Legislature shuts down until April 6 due to COVID-19 outbreak [View all]
BOISE — The Idaho Legislature abruptly shut down on Friday, recessing until April 6 amid a worsening COVID-19 outbreak at the state Capitol.
House Speaker Scott Bedke said, “I’m not all that surprised. We knew it was a possibility, and we planned for it as best we could.”
In the past week, there have been nine new COVID-19 infections confirmed at the state Capitol: Six House members, one Senate staffer, and two House staffers. All told for the session, there have been 15, including the six House members, two senators, a total of five House staffers and two Senate attachés. In addition, at least one House member is currently in quarantine.
GOP legislative leaders declined to require masks or enforce social distancing during their in-person legislative session and refused requests to allow lawmakers to participate remotely. They did, however, begin allowing members of the public to testify remotely in legislative committee hearings, an option that proved popular.
Read more: https://www.postregister.com/news/government/legislature-shuts-down-until-april-6-due-to-covid-19-outbreak/article_c94e57d3-c4a0-5243-b0fc-8d937b6eb958.html
(Idaho Falls Post Register)
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