Idaho Breaks Its Own Rules To Quash Public Protests

It's good to be the rule-maker

The Idaho Department of Administration plans to submit changes to rules limiting rallies and other events on the Capitol mall, despite missing the Department's own deadline.  To have its rule changes published in October 2012, the state agency would have had to submit its rule changes no later than August 31, 2012.  An attorney for the state, however, acknowledged to the ACLU of Idaho that the Department had not even finalized its rule changes before that deadline.  Under the Idaho Administrative Code, agency rule changes "must be submitted no later than 5 p.m. on the closing date for agency filing as listed in the Bulletin Publication Schedule," which lists August 31, 2012, as the final deadline for submitting rules to be reviewed during the 2013 legislative session.