Dear Friends and Neighbors,
The weather this week in Boise went from warm to cold and back to warm again by Thursday. In fact, Thursday was such a gorgeous day that it made me pine for a return to my home. I think this was the case for the majority of my colleagues and I can only hope that the lure of spring weather in each of our hometowns will signal the beginning of the end of this extremely long legislative session.
This session is now officially the second longest in state history but I am almost certain we will not be challenging for the overall record. Efforts in the last three days have been such that I am hopeful of the session ending next Friday, April 24th. It will not be a moment too soon as the cost of keeping legislators here is $30,000 per day and in these tough economic times we need to spend less money on things such as this.
Spending less money was the point of me sponsoring Senate Bill 1204, which passed unanimously this week. This bill, if it becomes law, will save the state of Idaho at least $500,000 per year by simply changing the way Idaho's liquor dispensary monitors the over the counter sales of bottled alcohol. For many years our bottled alcohol has carried a small stamp which ensured the alcohol was legal for sale in our state. It costs at least $500,000 a year to print and affix these stamps to every single bottle. However, technology now allows for this to happen merely by scanning the bar code. I know that now more than ever saving $500,000 means a lot when we are being forced to curtail important services due to a lack of revenue. Please click below for an article on my presentation of the bill, which includes a photograph (thanks Betsy.)
I am delighted to report that I have had the honor of being selected to serve on the Joint Millennium Fund Committee by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate. This joint committee is comprised of five members of the Senate and five in the House and its purpose is to oversee how money in the fund is distributed. The fund was established in 2000 with Idaho's share of money disbursed to the states from the tobacco settlement of 1998. Every year millions of dollars are directed to organizations which strive to help people who suffer from tobacco addiction and substance abuse. Worthy and successful applicants in the past have included the Boys and Girls Club of Idaho and Drug Free Idaho. I look forward to my work on the committee. A copy of my letter of appointment can be seen by clicking the link below.
As always, please continue to contact me with your thoughts and comments.
Sincerely yours,
Mike Jorgenson
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