BOISE (Idaho Capital Sun) – The Idaho Legislature’s Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee closed out the first week of the 2025 legislative session Friday by accepting a report recommending raises of $1.55 per hour for all state employees.

The Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee, or JFAC, is a powerful legislative committee that meets daily and sets the budgets for every state agency and department.

A day earlier, on Thursday, the Idaho Legislature’s Change in Employee Compensation Committee voted 7-3 to recommend the $1.55 per hour raises.

On Friday, JFAC voted to accept the report with the recommendation from the Change in Employee Compensation Committee, but it did not vote on whether to approve the raises.

An actual JFAC vote on the raises is expected on Wednesday or Thursday.

JFAC also accepted a report Friday from the Economic Outlook and Revenue Assessment Committee that projected $6.4 billion in state revenue will be available for next year’s budget. The $6.4 billion projection is slightly under Gov. Brad Little’s $6.41 billion revenue projection.

“We recommend caution in making appropriations above the committee’s revenue projection,” Sen. Kevin Cook, R-Idaho Falls, told JFAC on Friday. “The committee recognizes economic uncertainty related to the impact of the Federal Reserve Bank addressing inflation and the recent presidential election.”

The action is expected to pick up considerably next week for JFAC. JFAC’s long-term schedule lists statewide maintenance budget decisions on the schedule for Wednesday, which could include decisions on state revenues and the proposed $1.55 raises for state employees.

On Friday, JFAC members are expected to set the maintenance budgets for all state agencies. JFAC leaders describe maintenance budgets as bare bones versions of last year’s budgets, with all the one-time money and projects removed. The maintenance budgets are simply meant to keep the lights on for state agencies. Under budget changes approved last year, new spending requests and replacement items are called budget enhancements, which are considered and voted on separately from the maintenance budgets.

BOISE, Idaho — “If you are going to kill somebody, definitely do it in Idaho because you are very likely to get away with it here,” said Idaho House Minority Leader Ilana Rubel on the first day of the state legislative session. To be clear, Representative Rubel believes law enforcement does their best to protect Idahoans, and she does not truly encourage anyone to commit murder but that bold statement prompted Idaho News 6 to look into the stunning lack of standards Idaho has set for state Coroners.

“We have no standards whatsoever for when autopsies are to be conducted,” said Rep. Ilana Rubel. As a result, Idaho lawmakers are looking for a change when it comes to investigating suspicious deaths.

A state-wide, multi-year study by The Office of Performance Evaluations revealed Idaho lags behind other states, with autopsies performed in fewer than 4% of deaths between 2018 and 2022. Nationwide that number doubles to almost 8%.

“The overwhelming majority of child deaths are investigated in other states and not in Idaho,” said Rep. Rubel.

We spoke with Ada County Coroner Rich Riffle, who provides autopsy services for a majority of Idaho coroners.

“Out of county [coroners], they bring their autopsy cases here. It’s rare that we would go to them to help with an investigation [but] we will try dang hard. If they ask, we’re going,” said Coroner Riffle.

Coroner Riffle sees firsthand the difficulties small counties face regarding suspicious deaths.

“[In] the smaller counties, you have part-time people— you know farmers, plumbers, all these people working to put food on the table for their family… oh ‘yeah by the way could you go out and do this while you’re at it?’ So it’s like, death investigations: they care, but it’s not at their frontal lobes,” explained Coroner Riffle.

Rep. Rubel, points to the high-profile murder of Tammy Daybell in 2019, Who was quickly deemed a natural death and buried without an autopsy.

Her body had to be exhumed months later as part of an investigation that eventually led to a murder conviction for Chad Daybell.

“We would really like to see a system where we have a little bit more uniformity and access to resources where maybe the state provides some type of medical expertise,” said Rep. Rubel.

“State-wide standards I think would be a good thing, absolutely. The bottom line is still going to boil down to resources. We could have the best standards on the planet but if you don’t have the resources to do it…” nothing will happen explained Coroner Riffle.

Rep. Rubel says she and other lawmakers have started to draft legislation, and she hopes to see a bi-partisan effort to improve suspicious death investigations across the state. Coroner Riffle says he is interested in being a part of those conversations.

We’ll continue to follow this topic throughout the legislative session.

With its rugged Western landscapes, Idaho attracts visitors who want to immerse themselves in the peace, quiet, and charms of the great outdoors. But now there’s another great — and thrilling — reason to visit the Gem State.

A recent study conducted by casino sweepstakes comparison site Casinos Sweeps revealed the top 50 highest-rated theme parks in America. The site analyzed over 300 amusement parks across the country — including favorites like Dollywood,  Silver Dollar City, and Disneyland — using Tripadvisor and Google reviews. And landing in the top 30, with a solid ratio of 70 percent five-star reviews, is Silverwood Theme Park in Athol, Idaho.

The Wild West-themed park, located less than 20 miles north of Coeur d’Alene, opened in 1988 and has transformed from a local amusement park to a regional destination. With over 70 rides and attractions, it’s the largest theme park in the northwest. 

For thrill-seekers, Silverwood has an impressive array of seven rollercoasters. There’s Aftershock, an inverted, boomerang-style roller coaster as well as the Stunt Pilot, a unique, single-rail attraction, designed as a homage to the daily air shows that used to take place in the park. For those with little ones, there are also family-friendly rides, including the spinning Krazy Koaster, which runs on a figure-eight track.  And don’t miss out on Tremors, an award-winning, earthquake-themed roller coaster that takes riders through four underground tunnels.

But for those interested in gentler excitement, Silverwood has several classic amusement park attractions, including a Ferris wheel, carousel, log flume, and drop tower. Be sure to make time to ride the Silverwood Central Railway, which takes riders on a scenic 30-minute ride around the park aboard a 1915 steam engine with views of northern Idaho.

Summertime temperatures in Athol can sometimes reach the high 80s, and a visit to Boulder Beach is an ideal way to cool off. Best of all, access to the water park is included with standard admission (prices start at $74 per person for a day pass). Guests can relax in one of two wave pools at Boulder Beach Bay or take on the 925-foot-long Eagle Hunt, the longest dueling water coaster in the country. The truly brave will want to conquer Velocity Peak, a high-speed water tower with three slides that can send riders careening off at 55 miles per hour.

Silverwood’s seasonal events are also a fan favorite, including the annual Halloween Scarywood Haunted Nights. The nighttime celebration embraces the spooky season with haunted scare zones and immersive mazes.

As for other highly rated theme parks across the West, properties such as Epic Discovery in Breckenridge, Colorado; Wildlife World Zoo, Aquarium & Safari Park in Maricopa County, Arizona; and Lagoon Amusement Park in Farmington, Utah also made Casinos Sweeps’ list.