2000 Legislation
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HOUSE BILL NO. 452 – Potato Comm, tort obligations

HOUSE BILL NO. 452

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Daily Data Tracking History



H0452...............................................by AGRICULTURAL AFFAIRS
POTATO COMMISSION - Amends existing law to provide that all tort
obligations for acts and omissions of the Idaho Potato Commission are
binding on the state of Idaho as, and to the extent provided for, in
Chapter 9, Title 6, Idaho Code.
                                                                        
01/27    House intro - 1st rdg - to printing
01/28    Rpt prt - to Agric Aff
02/07    Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
02/08    2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
02/09    3rd rdg - PASSED - 66-0-4
      AYES -- Alltus, Barraclough, Barrett, Bell, Bieter, Black, Boe,
      Bruneel, Callister, Campbell, Chase, Cheirrett, Clark, Cuddy, Deal,
      Denney, Ellsworth, Field(13), Field(20), Gagner, Geddes, Gould,
      Hadley, Hammond, Hansen(23), Hansen(29), Henbest, Hornbeck, Jaquet,
      Jones, Judd, Kempton, Kendell, Kunz, Lake, Linford, Loertscher,
      Mader, Marley, McKague, Meyer, Montgomery, Moss, Moyle, Pearce,
      Pischner, Pomeroy, Reynolds, Ridinger, Ringo, Robison, Sali,
      Schaefer, Sellman, Shepherd, Smith, Smylie, Stevenson, Stoicheff,
      Stone, Taylor, Tilman, Trail(Miller), Wheeler, Wood, Mr Speaker
      NAYS -- None
      Absent and excused -- Crow, Kellogg, Mortensen, Zimmermann
    Floor Sponsor - Stevenson
    Title apvd - to Senate
02/10    Senate intro - 1st rdg - to Jud
02/15    Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
02/16    2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
02/23    3rd rdg - PASSED - 33-0-2
      AYES--Andreason, Boatright, Branch(Walton), Bunderson, Burtenshaw,
      Cameron, Crow, Danielson, Darrington, Deide, Dunklin, Frasure,
      Geddes, Hawkins, Ingram, Keough, King-Barrutia, Lee, McLaughlin, Noh,
      Parry, Richardson, Riggs, Risch, Sandy, Schroeder, Sorensen, Stegner,
      Stennett, Thorne, Wheeler, Whitworth, Williams
      NAYS--None
      Absent and excused--Davis, Ipsen
    Floor Sponsor - Sandy
    Title apvd - to House
02/24    To enrol
02/25    Rpt enrol - Sp signed
02/29    Pres signed - to Governor
03/03    Governor signed
         Session Law Chapter 12
         Effective: 01/01/93

Bill Text


 H0452
                                                                        
                                                                        
  ||||              LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO             ||||
 Fifty-fifth Legislature                  Second Regular Session - 2000
                                                                        
                                                                        
                              IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
                                                                        
                                     HOUSE BILL NO. 452
                                                                        
                             BY AGRICULTURAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
                                                                        
  1                                        AN ACT
  2    RELATING TO THE IDAHO POTATO COMMISSION; AMENDING SECTION 22-1210, IDAHO CODE,
  3        TO PROVIDE THAT ALL TORT OBLIGATIONS ARISING OUT OF ACTS AND OMISSIONS  OF
  4        THE  COMMISSION  ARE  BINDING  ON THE STATE OF IDAHO AS, AND TO THE EXTENT
  5        PROVIDED FOR, IN THE IDAHO TORT CLAIMS ACT; AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY AND
  6        PROVIDING RETROACTIVE APPLICATION.
                                                                        
  7    Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
                                                                        
  8        SECTION 1.  That Section 22-1210, Idaho Code, be, and the same  is  hereby
  9    amended to read as follows:
                                                                        
 10        22-1210.  LIMIT  ON STATE LIABILITY -- COMPENSATION AND EXPENSES. All con-
 11    tractual expenses incurred by the commission  in  performing  its  duties  and
 12    exercising its powers shall be without liability on the part of the state. All
 13    tort obligations arising out of acts and omissions of the commission are bind-
 14    ing  on  the  state of Idaho as, and to the extent provided for, in chapter 9,
 15    title 6, Idaho Code.
 16        No member of the commission shall receive any compensation  for  his  ser-
 17    vices  as  such member, except as provided in section 22-1202, Idaho Code, but
 18    members and employees of the commission and other  persons  acting  under  the
 19    direction  of  the  commission  shall, if approved by the commission, be reim-
 20    bursed for their actual and reasonable expenses incurred in  performing  their
 21    duties under this chapter.
                                                                        
 22        SECTION  2.  An  emergency  existing  therefor,  which emergency is hereby
 23    declared to exist, this act shall be in full force and effect on and after its
 24    passage and approval, and retroactively to January 1, 1993.

Statement of Purpose / Fiscal Impact


                        STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
                           RS 09682C1

This legislation clarifies existing law of the Idaho Potato 
Commission ("IPC"). During the last legislative session, this 
code section was amended to state that while the IPC was 
responsible for its contractual obligations, the State of Idaho 
was responsible for tort claims made against state agencies, 
including the Idaho Potato Commission. However, this portion of 
the legislation was not put in the Idaho Code, but only in the 
Session Laws.  This legislation was submitted to the federal 
district court which has been hearing thecase IPC brought against 
several companies accused of putting non-Idaho potatoes in Idaho 
potato bags. These same companies have sued the IPC claiming that 
IPC has damaged them by requiring them to enter into agreements 
and keep records to prove that they are honest packers of Idaho 
potatoes. The Judge ruled that last years legislation was not clear 
enough stating: 

"The Idaho Legislature could have dealt directly with the sixth 
Mancuso factor simply by providing that all the obligations of the 
IPC are binding on the State, and it may yet do so. As of the 
present date it has not." 

IPC has appealed this determination to the Second Circuit Court of 
Appeals.  In October, 1999 the case was put on hold in order to give 
the Idaho legislature the opportunity to clarify the law by putting 
the uncodified language previously adopted into the statute. This is 
what section one of this legislation accomplishes.  The legislation 
also includes an emergency clause because the law is not being changed 
but merely being clarified. This will allow the litigation to proceed 
forward without further delay.  The emergency clause also makes the 
legislation retroactive to January 1, 1993. This is necessary to cover 
the period of time relevant to the court proceedings.

                           FISCAL NOTE

This legislation will reduce expenditures of both the IPC and the State 
of Idaho's Risk Management Program because litigation may be avoided. The 
State and the IPC should save money through passage of this legislation.

CONTACT: Rep. John A. "Pert" Stevenson
Senator John Sandy
(208) 332-1000

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE/FISCAL NOTE          Bill No.   H 452