BOISE, Idaho — While people across Idaho and the United States avoid mass gatherings, the Idaho Legislature continued its business Tuesday.
But some lawmakers like House Minority Leader Ilana Rubel think the session needs to end.
“We should not still be here,” Rubel said. “I’ve expressed those concerns to the speaker of the House and to majority leadership. I think we should have gotten out of here days ago.”
Rubel gets right to the point. As confirmed cases of coronavirus start to pop up in Idaho, she thinks the Legislature needs to take action to end the session.
“We are contradicting every health advisory out there, we are not setting an example for the people of Idaho. I am advocating strongly that we get out of here, but I am unfortunately not the one calling the shots,” Rubel said.
Rubel is not alone in calling for the session to cease, and at least two lawmakers left Tuesday because of coronavirus concerns.
Other lawmakers, like Majority Caucus Chair Megan Blanksma, say there is no need to panic.
“Central District Health is not recommending drastic measures for businesses or the Legislature. At this point, what they are recommending is purely preventative,” Rep. Blanksma said.
Blanksma says she called Central District Health for guidance on what the Legislature should do.
“If you are sick, stay home, and I think that’s the biggest thing. And so, they are trying to be as responsible as they can, they are evaluating the situation and as the situation changes, their recommendations might change,” Blanksma said.
Rubel says if there was emergency or urgent business to get done, it would be one thing. But she says business on things like the transgender athletes bill is different.
“We don’t have to be here during a public health emergency so we can ban transgender athletes from playing sports. That to me does not meet the level of urgency for us being in session at this juncture,” Rubel said.
Blanksma says members of the House are taking their own precautions, embracing tips that are on posters throughout the Capitol. She says they want everyone to stay healthy and they are taking the situation seriously.
“I’m following precautionary measures. There is not a drawer on that floor that isn’t full of hand sanitizer. We are all trying to be so cautious, we do know that we have some older members in the chamber and so we are trying to be careful with their exposure,” Blanksma said.
Still, lawmakers like Rubel say they are simply too close together. Their seating arrangement she says for example, does not help with social distancing.
“Far less than six feet, far less. We are about a foot away from each other,” Rubel said.
At KTVB, we’re focusing our news coverage on the facts and not the fear around the virus. To see our full coverage, visit our coronavirus section, here: www.ktvb.com/coronavirus.
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