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BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A bill in Idaho that would ban any public money from going to organizations that provide abortions was approved by a panel of lawmakers despite opposition from some who said it didn't go far enough. The House State Affairs Committee sent the legislation to the full House Friday. Federal and state laws already ban public funding for abortion except for in certain circumstances, such as in cases of rape or incest or when the pregnancy endangers the mother’s life. But health care providers who perform abortions can receive public funding for other medical services.
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Federal regulators have rejected the idea of removing four hydroelectric dams on a major Pacific Northwest river in a last-ditch effort to save threatened and endangered salmon. A report released Friday says breaching the dams would destabilize the power grid, increase greenhouse emissions and raise the risk of power outages. The four dams on the lower Snake River are part of a complex hydroelectric system operated by the federal government on the Columbia and Snake rivers in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana. The 14 dams together produce enough electricity to power eight cities the size of Seattle, but are disastrous for salmon. The public now has 45 days to comment.
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Authorities say a California man convicted of mail fraud who escaped from a Utah jail by posing as a fellow inmate whose time had come to be released was captured in Idaho. The U.S. Marshals Service said in a news release that Kaleb Wiewandt was arrested Friday on Interstate 84 southeast of Mountain Home, Idaho. The 40-year-old Wiewandt was allowed to leave a county jail in Ogden, Utah, on Tuesday because staff thought he was a fellow inmate who was supposed to be freed that night, authorities said. The fellow inmate has been accused of helping Wiewandt.
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A federal judge has cancelled more than $125 million in oil and gas leases sold on public lands that are home to the declining bird species greater sage grouse. The ruling doesn't prevent the administration from selling the leases at a later date. But opponents hope the delay can help them make the case that drilling should not be allowed in areas with sage grouse. The judge said the Trump administration illegally curtailed public comment on the sales that included more than 1,300 square miles in Nevada, Utah and Wyoming. Wyoming's governor says millions of dollars from the sales already has been incorporated into the state's budget.
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