The Idaho Joint Democratic Caucus issued the following response Monday in regard to a recent statement released by the Idaho House Republican Caucus:
It is ridiculous for GOP leadership to suggest the motion was brought for publicity or fundraising purposes. Every effort was made to resolve this issue in a non-public way, but those efforts were systematically shot down. Friday’s motion was brought out of a genuine desire to solve the problem, and with the expectation that it could pass given its modest nature and that it had been identified by Speaker Scott Bedke as the appropriate way to proceed. After the shocking party-line vote, it was entirely appropriate to send out a public email seeking accountability for the callous disregard shown on the House floor. If the majority does not like the bad press generated by their collective ‘No’ vote, they should heed the pleas of disabled legislators for reasonable accommodations in the workplace, not feign outrage that their actions triggered subsequent public notification.
There is office space on the 4th floor, which Speaker Bedke proposed be used by Reps. Sue Chew and Muffy Davis. Currently, the House Minority Interns occupy it. However, it is still a very high traffic area as it is the main corridor to the public gallery, continuing to cause safety/health concerns for both. The primary issue isn’t office space, since they still wouldn’t be able to vote/debate remotely from there. The real issue is these legislators with serious health conditions need to be able to fully carry out their job duties, including asking questions and speaking on the floor and in committee in a safe manner. Millions were spent upgrading the Capitol building to allow for full virtual participation, so the capabilities are now in place and would not cost any additional money. We just need legislators to allow those virtual capabilities to be used. Office location isn’t what is at issue here, and wherever these legislators are housed, it won’t solve the problem of their being able to debate, ask questions and vote safely.
Thus, the lawsuit isn’t impacted or resolved by Bedke’s statements regarding offices, but it would have been resolved if the House had passed Rep. Davis’s motion. That motion was precisely what Speaker Bedke directed the plaintiffs to do. In his declaration, he wrote, “I would entertain any motion properly brought to the Floor to allow virtual debate and voting. Similarly, I would entertain any motion properly brought to the Floor to allow Plaintiffs to debate from the gallery on the Fourth Floor. Until the session begins, however, these only remain as hypothetical options.” Friday’s motion, which was prompted by Bedke’s statement and the judge’s order, was supplied to House Republicans 24 hours in advance, so they were not surprised and would have time to discuss. The motion brought the narrowest possible request for relief, applying only to a handful of legislators, on a temporary basis during this session only. It would have cost nothing, did not require action on the part of any other legislator, and was consistent with what most other legislatures are already doing. The House suspends rules all the time for less pressing reasons, and this, frankly, seemed like a very modest and noncontroversial request. The Democrats were stunned when the Republicans locked arms and blocked this on a straight party-line vote.
We are pleased to hear options are still being considered to provide a safe work environment, and are hopeful that we can find a mutually agreeable solution and put this painful episode behind us.