Idaho Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in Idaho, with full citations and the original source on every page.
No Idaho opinions match these filters
Try a different search term or clear the filters.
What did Idaho's AG certify about the 2011 referendum on Senate Bill 1108, the Luna Law restricting teacher collective bargaining?
The AG certified the referendum petition for form. S1108 had passed both houses and been signed. Sections 1-5, 7-9, and 13-25 had emergency clauses, meaning they remained effective pending the referen…
What did Idaho's AG certify about the 2011 referendum on Senate Bill 1110, the Luna Law on performance-based teacher pay?
The AG certified the referendum petition for form and style. S1110 had passed both houses, been signed into law, and was set to take effect in 2012, meeting the procedural requirements for referendum …
Could Idaho voters use a 2011 ballot initiative to broaden the state sales tax to services and lower the rate from 6 percent to 5 percent?
The AG identified drafting and constitutional issues with the proposed sales-tax restructuring: sourcing rules conflicted with existing law, the bill would have wholly exempted state and federal gover…
Can an Idaho county use its land use and zoning ordinances to regulate oil and gas wells, or does the state Oil and Gas Conservation Act preempt local control?
The Oil and Gas Conservation Act does not preempt county land use planning. Counties retain zoning authority over oil and gas wells, including groundwater protection rules, unless a specific local ord…
If Idaho voters had passed the 2010 medical marijuana initiative, would patients still face federal prosecution for possessing marijuana?
The AG flagged a critical limitation: even if Idaho legalized medical marijuana under state law, federal law would continue to apply. Patients would still face federal Controlled Substances Act prosec…
Could Idaho voters pass a 2010 initiative banning state and federal greenhouse gas regulation inside Idaho?
The AG flagged three legal defects: the initiative conflicted with Governor Otter's Executive Order 2007-05 directing GHG reduction, conflicted with Idaho's Title V Clean Air Act permitting authority …
Could a 2010 Idaho ballot initiative withhold federal income tax revenue from the federal government?
The AG concluded the initiative would likely be struck down. The 16th Amendment gives Congress the power to lay and collect income taxes without apportionment among the states. No state law can withho…
Could Idaho voters pass a 2010 ballot initiative letting county sheriffs block IRS enforcement of federal income tax laws?
The AG concluded the initiative would violate the Supremacy Clause and was likely void for vagueness. Idaho cannot block federal income tax enforcement, and sheriffs cannot decide which federal laws t…
Could Idaho voters pass a 2010 ballot initiative letting jurors ignore judicial precedent and decide both the law and the facts in every case?
The AG flagged the Informed Jury Act initiative for separation-of-powers concerns under Idaho Const. art. V, sec. 13, Supremacy Clause concerns where the rule extended to federal law and federal court…
Could Idaho voters pass a 2010 initiative to nullify federal health insurance laws within the state?
The AG concluded the proposed Idaho Health Insurer Protection Act was likely unconstitutional. A state cannot declare federal laws null and void inside its borders. That power belongs to the federal c…
Could a 2010 Idaho ballot initiative bar all forced vaccination, criminalize coercion, and authorize lethal self-defense against vaccinators?
The AG flagged numerous conflicts: with Idaho minor consent statutes (§§ 39-3801, 39-4302), with the federal vaccine definition in 42 U.S.C. § 1396s, with Idaho's existing self-defense doctrine (the i…
Could a 2010 Idaho initiative require presidential candidates to file birth certificates with the Idaho Secretary of State to qualify for the ballot?
The AG concluded the initiative would be unconstitutional. States cannot add qualifications for federal officers beyond what the U.S. Constitution specifies. Powell v. McCormack and the Supremacy Clau…
Could a 2010 Idaho ballot initiative bar federal deployment of the Idaho National Guard outside U.S. borders?
The AG concluded the initiative was unconstitutional. The U.S. Constitution's Militia Clauses and federal statute give Congress authority to call National Guard units to active federal duty. The Idaho…
Could a 2010 Idaho ballot initiative bar federal enforcement of health insurance mandates within Idaho?
The AG flagged the initiative's drafting ambiguities, the 'indirect effect' nullification clauses that left scope indefinable, signature-collection violations under § 34-1804, and noted that potential…
Could a 2010 Idaho ballot initiative require local governments to pay landowners 120% of value plus costs whenever zoning rules change land use?
The AG raised concerns about drafting (better placed as separate statutory sections rather than a single new section), the conflict with constitutional police powers, federal preemption of provisions …
Could a 2010 Idaho initiative bar Idaho from participating in the federal National Animal Identification System?
The AG flagged that the initiative was drafted with 'Missouri' substituted for 'Idaho' at three points (a copy-paste from another state's measure), would impair pre-existing federal-state cooperative …
Could a 2010 Idaho ballot initiative bar local governments from joining ICLEI or U.N. bodies?
The AG noted the proposed prohibition on local government membership in ICLEI or U.N. bodies was permissible as a public-funds limitation, but flagged that removing AG prosecutorial discretion imprope…
Could a 2010 Idaho initiative make midwifery licensure voluntary by removing the criminal penalty for unlicensed practice?
The AG noted a citation error (the petitioners cited § 54-5406 instead of the correct § 54-5506) and explained that eliminating the penalty for unlicensed practice would change Idaho's midwifery regul…
Could Idaho voters create a state-run electronic currency and 'private market exchange' through a 2010 ballot initiative?
The AG concluded the proposed Idaho-controlled currency system would likely violate the U.S. Constitution. The Coinage Clause and the prohibition on state-issued bills of credit reserve money creation…
Can the Idaho Legislature require an elected sheriff to be POST certified before or shortly after taking office?
Yes. The AG concluded the Idaho Constitution does not bar the Legislature from imposing additional qualifications on sheriffs, including a requirement that they hold Police Officer Standards and Train…
What did the Idaho AG say about the 2010 'Idaho Right to Protection Act' ballot initiative on self-defense, gun tracking, and home privacy?
The AG concluded the proposed initiative had no clear legal goal: it would be placed in the criminal code but defined no crime and set no punishment, its self-defense language redundantly tracked exis…
Could an Idaho ballot initiative declare federal statutes unenforceable in Idaho if they don't cite a specific enumerated power of Congress?
No. The AG concluded the proposed nullification initiative was clearly unconstitutional. The Supremacy Clause makes federal law binding on state judges, and the authority to declare federal laws uncon…
Could an Idaho ballot initiative exempt Idaho-made firearms, accessories, and ammunition from federal regulation?
No. The AG concluded the proposed Idaho Firearms Freedom Act was clearly unconstitutional. Federal regulation of firearms reaches intrastate manufacture under the Commerce Clause, the Supremacy Clause…
Could an Idaho ballot initiative require federal officers to obtain the county sheriff's written permission before making any arrest, search, or seizure in Idaho?
No. The AG concluded the initiative was clearly unconstitutional under the Supremacy Clause: a state cannot condition federal law-enforcement activity on a county sheriff's permission, criminalize fed…
Could Idaho exempt in-state nutritional and therapeutic products from federal regulation through the Health Supplements and Therapeutics Protection Act ballot initiative?
No. The AG concluded the proposed initiative would conflict with the federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and other federal drug statutes, would be preempted under the Supremacy Clause, and that limit…
What did the Idaho AG say about a 2010 ballot initiative listing veterinary procedures (ear cropping, debarking, docking, Caesarian sections) as animal cruelty?
The AG concluded the proposed amendment fit the existing animal-cruelty statutory scheme but flagged drafting problems: a citation error pointing to the wrong subsection, undefined technical veterinar…
Does the Endowment Fund Investment Board have to apply trust-law fiduciary duties when guaranteeing Idaho school district bonds?
Yes. The AG concluded the EFIB acts as a trustee of the Public School Endowment when it pledges endowment assets under the Credit Enhancement Program, must apply the Prudent Investor Rule and duties o…
Did the Idaho AG approve a 2009 ballot initiative to ban dog ear cropping by anyone other than a licensed veterinarian?
The AG issued an advisory Certificate of Review flagging serious drafting problems in the initiative: it would have created two conflicting penalties in the same statute, used an ambiguous mix of misd…
Can Idaho exempt cottage-site leases on state endowment land from the public auction requirement of Article IX, § 8?
No. The AG concluded that a reviewing court would likely find Idaho Code § 58-310A unconstitutional because Article IX, § 8 requires public auction of all endowment land dispositions, including leases…
Did the Idaho AG approve a 2009 ballot initiative establishing a permanent-absentee-voter list for Idaho elections?
Largely yes. The AG concluded the proposed addition to Idaho Code § 34-1002 (creating permanent absentee-voter status for any registered elector who applied in writing) raised no significant legal iss…
Could a 2009 Idaho ballot initiative amend the Idaho Constitution to allow elective Bible curriculum in public schools?
No, not by the route the petitioner chose. The AG concluded that under Idaho Const. art. XX, § 1, the only way to amend the Idaho Constitution is through a two-thirds vote of each house of the legisla…
Could a 2008 Idaho ballot initiative require all debts, fines, taxes, and contracts to be paid only in gold or silver coin?
No. The AG concluded the 'Jubilee Initiative' was preempted by federal law. Article I, § 8 of the U.S. Constitution gives Congress, not the states, the exclusive power to determine what is legal tende…
Could the City of Rexburg deputize BYU-Idaho's private campus security officers as Idaho peace officers, and could POST certify them?
No on both counts. The AG concluded that Idaho municipal corporations can enter joint-powers agreements only with other public agencies, so Rexburg could not delegate its police power to private BYU-I…
How should an Idaho governing body interpret the Open Meetings Act's hiring exception, and what should it do if an executive session 'drifts' from its stated purpose?
Narrowly, and immediately. The AG concluded that all of the Open Meetings Act's executive-session exceptions, including the Idaho Code § 67-2345(1)(a) hiring exception, must be read narrowly so that t…
Do Idaho's state CAFO laws preempt county regulation of confined animal feeding operations like dairies and feedlots?
Partly. The AG concluded that Idaho law expressly authorizes counties to regulate the siting of dairy and beef-cattle CAFOs (where to locate them, setbacks, livestock-density limits), but county ordin…
Did the Idaho AG approve a 2008 ballot initiative banning new coal and nuclear power plants in Idaho without statewide voter approval?
Mixed. The AG noted the coal-plant ban was effectively redundant because Idaho's existing zero-mercury rule (IDAPA 58.01.01.199) already prohibited new coal-fired generation. The nuclear provisions ra…
Did Hailey, Idaho's three voter-passed marijuana initiatives (medical marijuana, hemp, lowest enforcement priority) hold up under Idaho law?
Mostly no. The AG concluded the medical-marijuana and industrial-hemp initiatives directly conflicted with Idaho criminal drug law and were preempted; the law-enforcement-priority initiative addressed…
When the Idaho Land Board disclaims state ownership of formerly submerged land, can it require a 25-foot public-use easement in exchange without it being an unconstitutional taking?
Yes. The AG concluded the 25-foot easement requirement is a programmatic settlement of a competing-claim boundary dispute, with the easement representing valuable consideration for the State's giving …
Did the Idaho AG approve the 2007 'Public Employee Accountability Act' ballot initiative that aimed to strip judicial immunity and force grand juries on demand?
No. The AG concluded most provisions of the initiative would likely be struck down: it bundled multiple subjects in violation of Idaho Const. art. III, § 16; usurped the district court's exclusive con…
What did Idaho's AG say about Ron Gillett's third 2006 wolf-removal ballot initiative, this one aimed at the 2008 ballot?
This was Ron Gillett's third 2006 wolf-removal initiative, substantively identical to the March 9 version. Wasden cleared it on single-subject grounds (a single subject of wolf regulation), confirmed …
What did Idaho's AG say about a 2006 ballot initiative that would have amended Idaho's eminent domain and regulatory-takings statutes after Kelo?
The AG flagged a potential single-subject issue (eminent domain and regulatory takings might or might not be sufficiently related), a conflict with House Bill 555 which had just created a new Idaho Co…
Does the Swan Falls Agreement let Idaho prioritize aquifer recharge over Idaho Power's hydropower water rights, and do later statutes give Idaho Power vested rights against that?
This is the original Opinion 06-2, since superseded by Opinion 06-2A. The conclusions are unchanged: Idaho Power's hydropower rights above the Murphy Gauge minimum flows are subordinated to subsequent…
What did Idaho's AG say about Ron Gillett's revised 2006 wolf-removal ballot initiative, after the AG flagged single-subject problems with the original?
Petitioner Ron Gillett refiled the wolf-removal initiative on March 7, 2006, after the AG's March 3 Certificate flagged single-subject problems. The revised version dropped the Office of Species Conse…
What did Idaho's AG say about Ron Gillett's 2006 ballot initiative to 'remove' gray wolves from Idaho?
The AG concluded the initiative's caption was misleading because state law cannot remove federally protected gray wolves under the Endangered Species Act, and that the proposal's combination of wolf-m…
Did the 1984 Swan Falls Agreement subordinate Idaho Power's hydropower rights to aquifer recharge, and do later statutes create vested rights for Idaho Power against that subordination?
Yes and no. Yes, Idaho Power's hydropower rights above the Murphy Gauge minimum flows are subordinated to all subsequent beneficial upstream uses, including aquifer recharge. No, the 1994 statutes tha…
Would a defense-of-marriage amendment to the Idaho Constitution actually do anything new, given that Idaho already banned same-sex marriage by statute?
The 2006 AG concluded that even without an amendment, Idaho courts would probably uphold the state's existing same-sex marriage ban, but a constitutional amendment would foreclose state-constitutional…
What did Idaho's AG say about a 2006 ballot initiative to expand the Idaho Open Meeting Law and increase the fines for violations?
The AG flagged that the initiative used informal language instead of strikethroughs and underscores, cited the wrong subsection for the penalty (§ 67-2347(1) instead of (2)), and proposed minimum fine…
What did Idaho's AG say about the Idaho Education Association's 2006 initiative to raise the sales tax to 6% and dedicate the proceeds to K-12 public schools?
The AG flagged inconsistencies in the proposal's text (multiple definitions of permitted uses), the lack of a self-executing appropriation under Art. 7 § 13, ambiguous language on charter schools and …
What did Idaho's AG say about the proposed 'Residential Property Tax Relief and Bonding Act' that would have capped property tax at 1% and required a two-thirds vote for state revenue increases?
The AG flagged multiple constitutional and operational defects: the 1% cap had no implementation mechanism (echoing prior 1978, 1991, and 1996 AG opinions on similar proposals), the value-base distinc…
What was wrong with the longer 'Tax Accountability' property tax initiative filed in August 2005, the second '1%' tax cap proposal of that year?
The AG concluded the 6,500-line initiative was unimplementable as written. Three sections set conflicting one-percent caps with three different definitions of 'market value'; the value-base distinctio…
If an Idaho creditor follows Regulation B's spousal-signature rules and only the applicant spouse signs, can the creditor still collect against community property after divorce or the death of the borrower?
The opinion concluded creditors face significant collection risk if they make individual loans to married Idaho borrowers without obtaining the spouse's signature. Under Twin Falls Bank & Trust v. Hol…
What did Idaho's AG say about a 2005 ballot initiative to amend Idaho Code § 49-445 (motor vehicle registration)?
The AG cleared the proposed initiative as raising no significant legal issues. Initiative legislation is on equal footing with bicameral-passed legislation and so can amend a statute. The certificate …
What did Idaho's AG say about the 'Idaho Judicial Accountability Act of 2006' ballot initiative, the second JAIL-style judicial-accountability proposal aimed at Idaho?
The AG concluded the proposal would create the 'Idaho Judicial Accountability Commission' as a fourth branch of government, independent of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, which is p…
What did Idaho's AG say about a 2004 ballot initiative to repeal Idaho's Right to Work law?
The AG cleared the initiative as raising no significant legal issues. Initiative legislation is on equal footing with bicameral legislation and so can repeal a statute. The substantive policy question…
What did Idaho's AG say about a 2004 ballot initiative that would have required Idaho's Legislature to call for a federal constitutional convention to define marriage?
The AG concluded the proposal was less a law than a mandate that the Legislature act, and that it was likely unconstitutional because it would limit the Legislature's plenary authority over its own ru…
What did Idaho's AG say about a 2004 ballot initiative to authorize 'video lottery terminals' at horse-racing facilities in counties with population under 100,000?
The AG concluded the proposal was unconstitutional in two ways: (1) the 'video lottery terminals' it would authorize are slot machines under Idaho Const. art. III, § 20 and Idaho Code § 18-3801, just …
What did Idaho's AG say about a 2003 ballot initiative requiring all Idaho schools to be funded above the bottom 5% of school districts nationwide?
The AG concluded the proposal was likely unconstitutional. It mandated school funding 'at a per pupil level greater than that of the lowest five percent (5%) of public school districts in the entire U…
What did Idaho's AG say about a 2003 ballot initiative to repeal Idaho's Right to Work law?
The AG cleared the proposed initiative as raising no significant legal issues. Initiative legislation is on equal footing with bicameral-passed legislation and so can repeal a statute. The substantive…
What did Idaho's AG say about the original 2003 'Idaho Judicial Accountability Act of 2004' ballot initiative?
The AG concluded the proposal would create the 'Idaho Judicial Accountability Commission' as a fourth branch of government, independent of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, which is p…
What did Idaho's AG say about a 2003 ballot initiative to allow Idaho's 'resort counties' to impose a local sales tax for property tax relief?
The AG concluded the proposal's definition of 'resort county' (population over 17,000 plus deriving a major portion of economic well-being from tourism) was sufficiently inclusive to avoid the local-o…
Browse Idaho opinions by topic
Attorney general opinions in Idaho are written by the Idaho Attorney General's office in response to questions from state agencies, legislators, and prosecutors. They are not binding like court decisions, but courts and agencies treat them as persuasive guidance on how state law applies. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original text.