Legislative Notebook: Idaho lawmakers consider pay raises for judges, 25,000 state employees

The Idaho State Capitol Building in Boise shines in the sunlight on Jan. 7, 2025. (Pat Sutphin for the Idaho Capital Sun)

In an effort to help Idahoans follow major bills, resolutions and memorials through the legislative process, the Idaho Capital Sun will produce a “legislative notebook” at the end of each week to gather information in one place that concerns major happenings in the Legislature and other news relating to state government.

Here is our quick rundown of the major happenings during the second week of the Idaho Legislature’s 2025 session.

Chief Justice G. Richard Bevan went before the Idaho House of Representatives and the Idaho Senate on Wednesday to make the case for increasing pay for the state’s judicial branch. 

Data released by the court this month showed that salaries for Idaho Supreme Court justices ranked 50th among the United States and its territories, according to a July 2024 survey published by the National Center for State Courts. Bevan, in his speech, said pay for Idaho district judges ranks 48th out of 53 states and territories.

Bevan said his concerns extend beyond paying judges a fair salary for their work. He said low pay, increased caseloads and the complexity of cases all place a great strain on the court system.

“Experienced judges are leaving office early,” Bevan said. “Experienced attorneys are less interested in replacing them.”

Just before the 2025 legislative session began, the Idaho Supreme Court released its official proposal for judges’ salary increases. 

The proposed new wages for judges are:

• $215,000 per year, for Idaho Supreme Court justices, up from the current level of $169,508.
• $207,000 for a Court of Appeals judge, up from $161,508 currently.
• $201,000 for a district court judge, up from $155,508 currently.
• $193,000 for a magistrate judge, up from $147,508 currently.

The Idaho Legislature’s powerful budget committee, the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee, is the body that will ultimately decide on those proposals and send its recommendations on to the full Idaho House and Senate for consideration.

Pay increases for the judicial branch aren’t the only compensation for state employees that the budget committee will consider this year.

JFAC is also debating pay increases for Idaho’s 25,000 state employees, but those discussions devolved on Thursday and the committee didn’t take action on any of the considered proposals.

Some of the proposals considered included pay increases for teachers, others left teacher pay out completely, setting it aside for a separate decision at a later date. Some proposals included targeted pay increases for all IT and engineering staffers and others only included it for some IT and engineering staffers.

On Dec. 20, the Idaho Division of Human Resources recommended raises of 4% for state employees – saying turnover is an issue for the state and that state employees are so underpaid they all could go do the same job virtually anywhere else and be paid better.

In conjunction with his State of the State address, Gov. Brad Little recommended raises of 5% or $1.55 per hour for all state employees.

Last week, the Idaho Legislature’s Change in Employee Compensation Committee recommended raises of $1.55 per hour for all state employees. The Change in Employee Compensation Committee also recommended additional, targeted raises totaling 8% for Idaho State Police troopers, a 4.5% increase for IT and engineering staff and increases of $1.55 per hour or 3%, whichever is greater, for health care and nursing professionals.

JFAC did not set a new date to consider state employee pay, saying instead it will take up the pay increases later once more of the state’s financial projections have been analyzed. 

• House Bill 11: Sponsored by Rep. Jaron Crane, R-Nampa, the bill introduced Tuesday would replicate a 2023 Texas law creating a new immigration-related crime called illegal entry. The bill would allow local law enforcement officers to check the documentation status of individuals. The first instance of a person being discovered as unauthorized by law enforcement would result in a misdemeanor charge, and a second occurrence would lead to a felony charge and deportation. The bill may be taken up by the House State Affairs Committee in the coming days of the session.
• House Bill 10: Sponsored by Rep. Ted Hill, R-Eagle, the bill introduced Tuesday would ban flags or banners in Idaho public school classrooms that “represent a political viewpoint, including but not limited to flags or banners regarding a political party, race, sexual orientation, gender, or a political ideology.” The bill will be on the House’s third reading calendar on Monday. It will be heard by the full House in the coming days of the session.
• House Bill 7: The Idaho House State Affairs committee held a public hearing, which included two hours of testimony, on Wednesday on the bill that would implement a $300 minimum fine for adults possessing three ounces or less of marijuana. The committee voted 10-4 in favor of the bill and sent it to the full House floor for consideration with a recommendation that it pass. The bill will be on the House’s third reading calendar on Monday. It will be heard by the full House in the coming days of the session.
• Senate Bill 1004: Idaho Senate Minority Leader Melissa Wintrow, D-Boise, introduced the bill to add housing and workforce anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ Idahoans. She introduced it as a personal bill, a legislative maneuver that doesn’t follow the traditional path of a bill being introduced by a legislative committee. Wintrow said she introduced the legislation, which would add the words “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” to the Idaho Human Rights Act, as a personal bill because GOP leadership in the Legislature has refused – for a decade – to hold a hearing on the legislation. The bill has essentially no way forward in the GOP supermajority-dominated Legislature and has little chance of passing.
• Senate Bill 1001: Sponsored by Sen. Brian Lenney, R-Nampa, the anti-SLAPP (which stands for strategic lawsuits against public participation) bill introduced Monday aims to protect free speech and curtail frivolous lawsuits. The bill may be taken up by the Senate Judiciary and Rules Committee for a full public hearing in the coming days of the session.
• Senate Bill 1002: Sponsored by Sen. Brandon Shippy, R-New Plymouth, the bill introduced Thursday would decrease the fee for seniors to obtain a driver’s license from $35 to $30. He sponsored the bill after a constituent told him that seniors pay a higher cost for a four-year driver’s license than the general adult population. The bill may be taken up by the Senate Transportation Committee for a full public hearing in the coming days of the session.

MLK Jr. Day celebration

The public is invited to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday at the Idaho Capitol Building in Boise. The event will feature guest speakers, dancers, singers and other performers from noon to 1 p.m. on the second floor of the Statehouse’s rotunda. Attendees are encouraged to bring donations for service projects to benefit Idaho organizations.

Idaho Senate confirmations

On Monday, multiple Idaho Senate committees will hold hearings for gubernatorial appointments and reappointments to state boards and commissions, including the reappointment of former legislator Shawn Keough to the State Board of Education, former legislator Luke Malek to the State Board of Correction and former legislator Marc Gibbs to the Idaho Water Resources Board. For a full list of the appointments to be considered, check out the full agendas for those committees online.

House Transportation and Defense Committee

On Monday, the committee is expected to hold a public hearing for House Bill 13, which would “establish an exemption for persons under eighteen years of age from the requirement to wear a helmet when riding in UTVs equipped with a roll cage and seat belts.”

“My oncology teams have told me plenty of times that if they could legally allow me to use medicinal cannabis, they would, and it would be beneficial for my circumstances. ” – Jeremy Kitzhaber, a U.S. Air Force veteran with disabilities, in his public testimony opposing House Bill 7, noting marijuana would have been used to ease pain and stimulate his appetite when he lost more than 40 pounds during his 150 rounds of chemotherapy and treatments for stage four cancer

Biden’s Green New Deal is trying to saddle Idaho with 241 windmills on 100,000 acres. Luckily, Idaho has @realDonaldTrump and @DougBurgum on our side! Lava Ridge is living on borrowed time. pic.twitter.com/19BywhgqLm

— Jim Risch (@SenatorRisch) January 17, 2025

Reporting from Idaho Capital Sun journalists Clark Corbin, Mia Maldonado and Kyle Pfannenstiel contributed to this legislative notebook.