BOISE, Idaho — If you follow Idaho politics online, there is a good chance you have seen a series of videos featuring Idaho Republicans. Paid for and created by the Political Action Committee One Person, One Vote.
Elected lawmakers, candidates to win legislative office in November, and a constitutional officer appear in the videos speaking out against Prop. 1 in various ways.
Something that drew attention in the Prop. 1 campaign, questions about the use of the state seal on yard signs across the valley. Seems those are in bounds. These videos also include the state seal, creating similar questions.
But there is something else some Idahoans are now looking at in these videos: where were they filmed?
Sources told KTVB they were, in-fact, filmed inside a closed committee room at the Statehouse following the legislative session. That assertion has some asking if the videos are a violation of Idaho’s Public Integrity in Elections Act.
Rep. Ned Burns of Bellevue, Idaho, reached out to the Attorney General’s office about his concerns.
“I felt like it was, an improper use of, state facilities,” Burns said. “We had a conversation, and I said, I would like you to look into it. And if anything, comes of it, you know, the video should come down, you know, a warning should be issued, potentially. Never heard a word.”
Idaho Code states:
“Neither a public entity nor any of its employees shall use, nor shall a public official authorize or use, public property or resources to advocate for or against a candidate or a ballot measure.” There is an exemption for “legislator’s use of public property or resources for communication with the public using electronic or traditional physical correspondence…” alluding to emails and letters. Idaho code continues “ … or the use of any portion of any media initially produced using public property or resources from recordings of the legislature or any legislative committees.”
Eluding to recordings of legislative hearings and votes.
Burns doesn’t read the exception as including these videos.
“If you want to potentially grab a clip of something you said in a committee hearing or something that you spoke about on the House floor. I don't think I've got a problem with that. Most lawmakers have done it. We've all posted clips of ourselves on our social media accounts. That to me is completely in bounds, but this feels like it's, out of bounds in my opinion," Burns said.
Burns isn’t the only person who has reached out to the AG, a new complaint obtained by KTVB written from a citizen touches on concerns about misuse of public property through the lens of accessing areas at the Statehouse that are not open to the public.
Idaho law does identify definitions about the use of public property, defined as available to the general public at such times and in such manner as they are available to the general public. Complaints identify problems with what appears to be lawmakers behind locked doors, doors the public doesn’t have access to.
“If they were out on the rotunda. Not a problem. If they were, you know, out on the statehouse steps. Not a problem. But, like I said, it's because they're in a closed committee room, that's what feels to me like, this is, potentially a bit outside of the scope of the law,” Burns said.
Burns is concerned with the impression that these videos are official government stances on Prop. 1, something that would greatly influence some voters.
“Appears problematic. It doesn't feel, like something that we should be doing either for or against,” Burns said.