Idaho Legislature shuts down due to COVID-19 outbreak

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — The Idaho Legislature has voted to shut down for several weeks due to an outbreak of COVID-19 among its members.

Lawmakers in the House and Senate made the move on Friday to recess until April 6 with significant unfinished business, including setting budgets and pushing through a huge income tax cut.

At least six of the 70 House members have tested positive for the illness in the last week, and there are fears a highly contagious variant of COVID-19 is in the Statehouse.

Three of the infected lawmakers participated in debates on the House floor this week.

The House, with the illness spreading, requested the Senate recess as well. The Senate honored the request.