The Latest: House lawmakers choose not to override veto
The Latest on Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter’s first veto of the 2018 session (all times local):
5 p.m.
House lawmakers on Tuesday chose not to override Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter’s first veto of the 2018 legislative session.
Otter had recently announced he had blocked legislation that would have removed the state’s long-standing reading test for young students from being tied to teachers’ pay raises.
Lawmakers had the option of override Otter’s veto, but that effort failed after House members voted 34-29 to ensure the veto stayed in place.
According to the Idaho Constitution, lawmakers need a two-thirds majority to reverse a governor’s veto.
Otter has until Wednesday to sign or veto the remaining bills lawmakers passed during this year’s session.
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11 a.m.
Idaho Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter has vetoed legislation that would have removed the state’s long-standing reading test for young students from being tied to teachers’ pay raises.
Otter announced Monday that the so-called Idaho Reading Indicator is still a valid measure of student growth even though lawmakers chose this year to replace the test with a more comprehensive assessment.
It was the first veto Otter has handed down during the 2018 session. The bill had received strong support in the House and Senate.
The early reading test is targeted toward kindergarten through third-graders students with the intent of identifying students falling behind.
It’s still unknown if lawmakers will move to override the governor’s action. House Republicans met privately Tuesday to discuss the veto and still had not reached a conclusion after meeting for more than an hour.
