Bill-Drafting Season
The 2026 Legislative session starts on Jan. 12, so it’s time for drafting bills and preparing for advocacy work in the Capitol. Last month I wrote about a single issue — property insurance — while this month I will outline a few other important issues. I have started drafting bills to address the following:
Women’s health care: Last session I worked with many health care professionals and Sen. Jim Woodward, R-Sagle, to draft a bill to clarify a “health of the mother” exception to the Defense of Life Act (DOLA). The driver of this bill was our district’s and state’s lack of OB-GYN care. Inserting unambiguous language into statute will provide clarity for our medical professionals. Doctors don’t want to jeopardize their careers and educational investments by making decisions based on DOLA’s vague language — they want clarity.
This year I have worked with many doctors, other medical groups and again with Sen. Woodward to craft a straightforward bill to address an issue that continues to harm our area. Idaho ranks 50th in the country for physicians per capita. This bill will help to retain and recruit doctors.
Highway safety: We have had conversations and meetings with the Idaho Transportation Department throughout the year. Our concerns about traffic safety improvements, I believe, are warranted. During my research, I learned of a previous change in the law regarding the privilege of driving.
Several years ago, the Legislature decided to move away from the revocation process for drivers with outstanding infractions and citations. Since then, the unpaid traffic fines have increased from approximately $1 million in 2017 to more than $20 million today.
Financial issues aside, we now have drivers with multiple unadjudicated infractions driving our roads with less concern for losing their privileges. I’m drafting a bill to reinstate the penalties and give our law enforcement officers another tool to improve traffic safety.
Sewer: While Idaho has benefited from being a low-regulation state, there are limits to this philosophy. I have a bill drafted to have sewer districts join water and power districts in regulation. When there is no other provider to keep rates competitive, regulation is sometimes necessary — and infrastructure investment needs to be a part of district operations.
District boundaries: House Bill 389 stifled district boundary changes. The bill labels any change as an annexation and puts severe limits on the amount of revenue that can be transferred from one district to another. I’m having a bill drafted that will allow district boundary changes with the consent of the associated boards.
This change will allow the district providing services to be the beneficiary of the revenues generated (for example: levies). An appeal process will continue and the bill will not prohibit a vote on the issue if the commissioners (elected officials) involved believe that would be beneficial.
Homeowners’ exemption: I will bring draft bills to average the assessed property value over three years and increase the amount of the homeowners’ exemption to $250,000. While the Legislature has passed bills to reduce the tax burden on homeowners since I have been your representative, the means to do so has been with the use of sales tax. This method of tax reduction hasn’t changed problems of surprising year-on-year tax increases or the shift in the property tax burden to homeowners from other property taxpayers.
Career technical training: I’ve been approached by our logging community and asked to carry a bill to supplement training for students interested in heavy equipment operations and millwork. The revenue for the training would come from a small fee for every 1,000 board feet of wood delivered to our mills.
I’m currently doing some research on the bill and talking to the parties involved. In concept, it’s the logging industry taxing itself to increase the number and skill level of its workforce. Increasing our timber production seems more likely now. Increasing the size of the workforce merits consideration.
It is an honor to serve our district. Questions, thoughts, suggestions? Please send them to me at msauter@house.idaho.gov.
Rep. Mark Sauter is a second-term Republican legislator representing District 1A. He serves on the Agricultural Affairs; Education; and Resources and Conservation committees. sandpointreader.com/legislative-update-bill-drafting-season
