Relates to the provision of criminal history background checks free of charge to mentoring programs operated by not-for-profit corporations

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Leroy Comrie and 7 co-sponsors

Shifts DOPL attorneys from classified to nonclassified status, aligning them with other state legal staff; alters hiring/termination rules and appeal rights, with no fiscal impact.

REFERRED TO CHILDREN AND FAMILIES

Summary — S 1056 (Idaho, 2025): Make DOPL attorneys non‑classified employees

Status
- Enacted as Session Law Chapter 85.
- Signed by the Governor: March 14, 2025.
- Effective date: July 1, 2025 (emergency clause declared).

Purpose / intent
- To change the personnel classification of attorneys employed by the Idaho Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses (DOPL) from classified (merit‑system) to nonclassified status, aligning them with other state legal personnel (e.g., assistant attorneys general, public defender attorneys, judicial employees).

Key provision
- Amends Idaho Code § 67‑5303 by adding subsection (bb): “All attorneys employed by the division of occupational and professional licenses.” This places those attorneys in the list of nonclassified employees.

What this changes (substantive effect)
- Employment classification: DOPL attorneys will be nonclassified rather than classified employees under the state personnel system.
- Administrative consequences: nonclassified status generally means these positions are outside the classified (merit‑based) personnel rules listed in chapter 67, though nonclassified employees are still subject to conformity requirements under section 59‑1603 where applicable. Practically this can affect hiring, appointment, termination procedures, and some appeal or grievance rights that apply under the classified system.
- Policy rationale: the bill’s stated purpose is to make DOPL attorneys consistent with similarly situated legal staff at other state entities, allowing comparable administrative handling.

Who is affected
- Directly: attorneys employed by the Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses.
- Indirectly: DOPL management, Idaho Division of Human Resources, and possibly other state personnel/HR processes; could affect employee protections, bargaining dynamics, and administrative flexibility in the division.

Fiscal impact
- Fiscal note states no impact to the General Fund or dedicated/federal funds. Employer compensation remains set and approved annually by the Legislature.

Procedural/timeline notes
- Introduced in early 2025; enacted and signed March 14, 2025; effective July 1, 2025 under an emergency clause. The amendment is limited in scope—adding a single new nonclassified category for DOPL attorneys to §67‑5303.