Otter: Not yet ready for special session on child support

Idaho Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter says he will take action to address the potential collapse of Idaho’s child support system, but he’s not yet ready to call lawmakers back to the Statehouse for a special session.

The governor told reporters Thursday that he’s not ready to detail the path he expects to take to address lawmakers’ decision to kill a bill that would bring the state into compliance with federal child support rules. The federal government has warned Idaho it will pull all funding and child support enforcement tools from the state in 60 days; Idaho Health and Welfare officials say that will effectively dismantle the child support system.

The governor says the only way to fix the issue is for the bill to be passed into law, but House Speaker Scott Bedke says he doesn’t yet know if enough lawmakers would vote to pass the bill as it currently stands.

In an opinion piece submitted to Local News 8 on Thursday, Rep. Luke Malek, R-Coeur d’Alene, who supported the bill, said killing it was a “slap in the face to Idaho’s children, and was an extremely irresponsible example of governance.”