The misguided decision will not end abortions. One in four women will have an abortion in their lifetime and today’s decision is unlikely to alter that. Instead, it takes away access to safe abortion care from millions of American women. The ending of constitutional protections for abortion rights harms in particular low-income women who do not have the resources to flee their home state in search of safe abortion care.

“The Supreme Court just made millions of women second-class citizens,” said House Minority Leader Ilana Rubel. “In reversing 50 years of precedent, the Court has eviscerated the fundamental Constitutional right to privacy, opening the door to big government to police the intimate details of our personal lives. Unfortunately, Idaho’s GOP politicians have proven themselves eager to flex this power – in recent years pushing to tell Idahoans what medical care they can seek, who they can love and marry, what books their kids can read and more, and have already taken steps to force women through pregnancy and childbirth against their will as soon as Roe is overturned. Idahoans can count on Idaho Democrats to continue fighting to keep government out of their private lives, and the more seats we win, the more freedom we can deliver.”

Deaths from unsafe abortions have declined dramatically since Roe v. Wade was decided and expanded access to safe, legal abortion. Studies show states with the most draconaian laws against safe and legal abortion are also the states where women suffer from lower levels of education and higher levels of poverty. States with more abortion restrictions also have higher rates of maternal and infant mortality.

Idaho is one of those states. The Idaho Legislature has passed two trigger laws that outlaw access to abortion care while doing nothing to improve health care access or outcomes or to reduce the need for abortion. Within a few weeks, safe and legal abortion will no longer be available in this state.

“Today’s decision will have especially dangerous consequences for the women and girls living in states like Idaho,” Senator Mellissa Wintrow said. “The only thing standing between them and forced pregnancy and birth – even in the case of rape and inscest – was the constitutional protections of Roe v. Wade. Now that’s gone.”

Looking forward, state lawmakers have proposed and introduced legislation that would bring criminal penalties against women who seek an abortion. They will certainly bring similar bills in the next legislative session.

Idaho Democrats respect and understand that individuals may have personally held religious beliefs. But those religious beliefs should not be imposed on their fellow citizens. Idaho Democrats will zealously fight for fundamental constitutional rights and protections from governmental overreach such as this.

“The government has no business interfering in a personal medical decision between a woman and her doctor,” Rep. James Ruchti said. “No business. That’s not how we do things in Idaho.”

You can see the PDF of the press release here. 

House Minority Leader Ilana Rubel stated this morning, “The right to make personal medical decisions about our reproductive health care has stood in well-established law for 50 years. For nearly three generations, the law of the land has protected the right to privacy between a patient and their physician, keeping politicians out of the exam room. To dismantle this constitutional right to bodily autonomy goes against what the vast, vast majority of Americans want and expect.”

In fact, support for upholding Roe v. Wade is broad, even in majority Republican states like Idaho. A 2019 poll found that a bipartisan majority of Idahoans did not support overturning Roe v. Wade, 65% believing it is important that women in Idaho have access to all of the reproductive health care options available, including abortion. Nationally, that number rises to 80%.

Senator Melissa Wintrow said late Monday night, “This will have especially dangerous consequences for the women and girls living in states like Idaho, where the only thing standing between them and forced pregnancy and birth is the constitutional protection of Roe v. Wade. I am thinking about the testimony I’ve borne witness to, the testimony from rape survivors, from survivors of incest, who will have no protections in our state should Roe be overturned.

“There are hundreds–likely thousands–of reasons an individual seeks out this safe, legal, medical procedure, but one thread unites them all: her choice. Dismantling national protection for this most essential component of bodily autonomy is breathtaking in both its senselessness and its cruelty. Americans know that. Idahoans know that.”

We respect and understand that individuals may have personally held religious beliefs. But those religious beliefs may not be imposed on their fellow citizens. Idaho Democrats will zealously fight for fundamental constitutional rights and protections from governmental overreach such as this.

Added Representative James Ruchti, “The government has no business interfering in a personal medical decision between a woman and her doctor. No business. That’s not how we do things in Idaho.”

# # #

For more information and interview requests, contact: Senator Melissa Wintrow, 208-949-0279, mwintrow@senate.idaho.gov

Senate Bill 1259, sponsored by Sen. Melissa Wintrow (D-Boise), allows a person who owns a certified family home to qualify for the state’s property tax reduction program, known as the circuit breaker, by exempting the payment they receive from the state for caring for someone 24/7 in their home from the income counted toward their application. Last year, it died in the House by one vote. It now goes to Gov. Brad Little, who declared November as In-Home Caregiver Appreciation Month.

Wintrow said in order to keep people with disabilities out of institutions, Idaho is one of many states that allows someone to become licensed to care for a person in their home. The in-home caregiver is compensated, and receives an average of $54 per day from Medicaid. Currently, that money isn’t considered income by federal standards. Wintrow said it doesn’t make sense for the state of Idaho to be more onerous than the federal government, and the bill would change that policy. 

Institutionalized nursing care costs $273 per day, or about $100,000 annually, according to the Division of Medicaid. Right now, roughly 3,000 Idaho residents receive in-home care in a certified family home. If all were institutionalized, that cost would be about $300 million per year.

Wintrow worked closely with a number of in-home caregivers and stakeholders, as well as Rep. Ben Adams (R-Nampa), who carried the bill in the House. It was supported by the AARP, the Idaho Caregivers Alliance, and the Idaho Council on Developmental Disabilities. She said the issue first came to her attention in 2020 at an annual caregiver’s conference by JoAnn Vasko, who owns a certified-family home and is a full-time, in-home caregiver for her son.

“That conversation with JoAnn led me to the state Tax Commission and the Department of Health and Welfare to learn the scope of the issue. And after a two-year push, we finally got it,” she said. “I’m honored to have worked with so many people to get to this point, and hope it’ll receive the governor’s signature, so we can give our in-home caregivers much-needed property tax relief. This approach saves a lot of money and keeps people in a home setting — the best of both worlds.”

Senate Bill 1290, sponsored by Sen. Janie Ward-Engelking (D-Boise) and Rep. Sally Toone (D-Gooding), establishes a rural educator incentive program for educators who work in high-need or rural school districts and charter schools. It would provide the maximum amount of eligible funding, which gradually increases for each year the educator stays in the school. 

The program provides $1,500 to an educator after their first year, $2,500 the second, $3,500 the third, and $4,500 the fourth, for a max total of $12,000. The funds could cover education loan repayments, additional and advanced degrees, or other educational costs.

Ward-Engelking and Toone spent a number of years trying to pass different versions of the bill, which aims to help retain and support Idaho educators in rural and high-need areas, where the state’s teacher shortage is even more severe. Both said they appreciate the support of the governor to finally make this multi-year effort a reality.

“This is a great day for educators in our rural and underserved schools,” Toone said. “The program will offer incredible opportunities for our beginning teachers and additional programs to districts, helping keep educators in these critical areas of our state.”

“Educators are the backbone of our local communities,” Ward-Engelking added. “This program is a way to give them more time working with students, instead of needing two jobs just to cover rent and a loan payment. By investing in our teachers, we can better keep them not only in our rural and underserved schools but the profession.”

Senate Bill 1240, sponsored by Sen. Melissa Wintrow (D-Boise), unanimously passed both the House and Senate. It allows homeowners and/or tenants to go to their county clerk’s office and update their housing covenant free of charge in compliance with the federal Fair Housing Act of 1968, which outlawed the use of racially restrictive language in these kinds of documents. The law goes into effect on July 1.

McKay Cunningham, the director of on-campus experiential learning at the College of Idaho, worked with Wintrow on the bill, and told the Senate Judiciary and Rules committee this practice, along with redlining, was a common tool in the 20th century to create housing disparities based on race and prohibit people of color from buying homes. While it is illegal to embed racial covenants in property deeds nowadays, that language can still be found. 

Wintrow worked with a number of stakeholders, such as District 19 constituents Ed and Cynthia Labenski, who found racially restrictive language in the deed to their own home built in the 1970s. Others included the Idaho Realtors, NAACP of the Treasure Valley, Idaho Land Title Association, Boise Regional Realtors, Idaho Fair Housing Council, and the Association of Idaho Cities.

“This really is a historic day for our state,” Wintrow said during the bill’s public signing ceremony Wednesday. “We can’t move forward as a state or nation until we come to terms with our past and commit ourselves to ensuring it doesn’t repeat itself in the future. With this legislation, we acknowledge that this housing practice has been responsible for a lot of wealth disparities between people who are white and people of color and make sure it never will again.”

House Concurrent Resolution 51 celebrated the federal act that officially preserved the 760,000-acre land in 1972. An earlier resolution, Senate Concurrent Resolution 117, was killed in the House on an 18-51 vote March 10 after unanimously passing the Senate several weeks prior. Both were sponsored by Sen. Michelle Stennett (D-Ketchum) and Reps. Ned Burns (D-Bellevue) and Sally Toone (D-Gooding), all of whom represent District 26.

“We were just trying to honor the fine, hard-working people who’ve worked there for the last 50 years and recognize some beautiful land in our state,” Burns said. “Politics got in the way both times. It’s incredibly disappointing. I thank the representatives, particularly those in the Magic Valley, who rose above the political games to celebrate this remarkable area.”

Burns reintroduced HCR 51 on Monday in the House Ways and Means Committee, and removed language House Republicans objected to when it first came to the floor. This time, they took issue with the resolution because the land is managed by the federal government — and has been long before 1972, dating back to the 1890s, which Burns pointed out.

“The SNRA is truly one of the greatest gems in our state,” Toone said. “The federal act has helped ensure that land stays pristine and Idahoans can continue to enjoy it. That deserves recognition.”

“The Senate recognizes the extraordinary beauty in the SNRA and its economic benefit to many Idahoans who live and work in and around its boundaries. Without this act, it would have been privatized and Idahoans would have lost the amazing access they now enjoy,” Stennett said. “It mystifies me why the House does not also recognize its importance. HCR 51 was a 50-year anniversary celebration of a universally loved place.”

Rep. James Ruchti

That money would have helped communities build and fund preschool programs in accordance with local needs and values. But Republicans were bullied by the Idaho Freedom Foundation into voting against the grant, which had been secured by our U.S. senators under the Trump administration. Because of this, Idaho remains one of four states that doesn’t offer public pre-K.

Now the IFF’s Idaho Freedom Action group has launched a smear campaign against us for voting in support of early childhood education, saying we were pushing “critical race theory” on Idaho children. What dangerous nonsense.

Investigation after investigation proves CRT isn’t being taught in our schools at any level. And yet, that false narrative continues to be pushed by the IFF and its legislative puppets in order to defund and undermine public education in Idaho, causing serious damage to our local communities, educators, and children.

This malicious lie also just distracts us from addressing the real issues impacting Idahoans, like underfunded schools and a lack of accessible child care options.

Sen. David Nelson

For many, pre-K serves as a form of day care for children while parents are at work. It also helps children develop a number of critical skills, like literacy, that better prepare them for success in kindergarten. Had we accepted the $6 million grant, it would have greatly benefitted young working families, as well as our economy by allowing parents to enter or stay in the workforce. 

But one lawmaker made it clear in his debate he had no interest in voting for a bill that made “it easier or more convenient for mothers to come out of the home.” 

Voting to accept that grant was a no-brainer, and it would have been a major investment in our most precious resource: our children. That money would have actually been the second distribution from the federal Preschool Development Grants Program. We accepted the first $6 million in 2020, and saw great success in our local communities. Both of our districts have early learning collaboratives — the Kendrick-Julietta and Pocatello-Chubbuck preschools  — that directly benefited.

If given the opportunity, we’d continue to vote in favor of it, and won’t stop fighting for quality public education at every level, particularly for our youngest learners. As elected officials, we represent the people of Idaho, not the interests of extremist groups trying to destroy our state, like the IFF. No amount of bullying or intimidation will ever change that.

House Concurrent 29, sponsored by Rep. Brooke Green (D-Boise) and Sen. David Nelson (D-Moscow), passed the full House earlier this month, and encourages state officers, agencies, and employees to become better informed on the long- and short-term impacts of severe emotional trauma on children and adult survivors. These serious traumatic events are referred to as Adverse Childhood Experiences, or ACEs, and occur before a child reaches 18 years old.

The resolution encourages the implementation of evidence-based interventions and practices, which are proven to be successful in identifying risk and helping children and adults suffering from trauma-related disorders develop resiliency and tools to heal.

Nelson said the legislation was a bipartisan effort. He and Green partnered closely with Rep. Laurie Lickley (R-Jerome) and Sen. Jeff Agenbroad (R-Nampa), both of whom serve with them on the Idaho Behavioral Health Council. The resolution was the result of the work done by the council to improve behavioral health systems in Idaho. During the last year, its members, which come from all three branches of state government, identified ways to decrease agency silos, reduce barriers to recovery and treatment, and identify any missing services. 

Rep. Brooke Green

On Tuesday, the Idaho Behavioral Health Council was honored for its work to improve Idahoans’ access to mental health services.

The state’s National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI Idaho) presented the council — which features members from each branch of government, including Sen. David Nelson and Rep. Brooke Green — with the second annual Kathie Garrett award, given to mental health advocates.

“It was such an honor for the Behavioral Health Council to be recognized by NAMI Idaho today,” Green said. “ I have committed my legislative career to addressing this issue, and I’m grateful to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to tackle this crisis in our state. Together, we are working to make sure Idahoans have the quality of life they deserve.”

The council participants include all three branches of government — the legislative, executive and judicial — working together to address the behavioral health needs of Idahoans. During the last year, its members took a systematic look at the state’s behavioral health system, and identified ways to decrease agency silos, reduce barriers to recovery and treatment, and identify any missing services.

Sen. David Nelson

That information was compiled into a strategic plan, which the council presented this past summer to Gov. Brad Little, legislative leadership, and the Idaho Supreme Court. It covered state actions through 2024, and included a set of 34 recommendations — nine of which were identified as key priorities for the next three years — to improve Idahoans’ access to care.

“Behavioral health issues impact our communities at all levels and citizens of all ages,” Nelson said. “As more Idahoans seek out these types of services, we have to make sure they can get the appropriate help, no matter what part of the state they call home — and that’s what the council was created to do. I’m really proud of our work, and so thankful to receive this award.”