Labrador Letter: Legislative Session Wrap Up

Dear Friends,

A few weeks ago, the 2026 legislative session wrapped up, and I want to share some of what my office accomplished alongside the Legislature. My role as Attorney General is not to make policy. That belongs to your elected representatives. But when legislators have questions about their legislation, how it might affect my office's authority, or what language would make a law more legally defensible, we can help. In some cases, we also work with legislators to identify gaps in existing law that limit what my office can do to protect Idaho families and propose ways to address them. Several bills this session reflect that kind of collaboration, and I wanted to briefly walk through what passed and why it matters.

Building a Stronger Case for Idaho's Immigration Law

When the Legislature passed Idaho's immigration enforcement law last year, we knew legal challenges would follow. The ACLU filed suit almost immediately, and a federal judge issued an injunction blocking portions of the law while the case proceeds. As we've defended the law in court, we identified specific provisions and definitions that could be more precise and help tie the law to federal immigration statutes to survive a challenge.

Senate Bill 1260, sponsored by Chairmen of the House and Senate Judiciary Committees, Senator Todd Lakey and Representative Bruce Skaug, addresses those vulnerabilities. The bill tightens the definition of illegal entry by anchoring it explicitly to violations of federal immigration law and adds affirmative defenses that track what federal law already recognizes. The litigation is ongoing, but this helps us in our defense.

Improving our Library Law

In January, the Ninth Circuit ruled that one provision of Idaho's Children's School and Library Protection Act was over broad and ordered a limited injunction on that provision while the case continues. The rest of the law remained in effect.

Senate Bill 1448, sponsored by Senator Todd Lakey and Representative Bruce Skaug, with help from Senate Pro Tempore Kelly Anthon, addresses the Ninth Circuit's concerns. My office helped with the bill's language so that the revised definitions more precisely align with the constitutional standard courts apply when evaluating material harmful to minors and add a clear statutory definition of "sexually explicit" material. The enforcement mechanism and the 60-day relocation process that parents use to request action from schools and libraries remain fully intact. This helps ensure the law protecting children from harmful material in our schools and libraries remains in force as litigation continues.

Protecting the Tools We Use to Protect Children

House Bill 689, sponsored by Rep. Clay Handy, expands my office's ability to issue administrative subpoenas to electronic service providers in child exploitation investigations. That means we can obtain subscriber records faster, without waiting for a full court order, when time is critical. These investigations move quickly, and our legal tools need to keep pace.

House Bill 654, sponsored by Rep. Michael Veile, adds "electronic storage detection dog" to Idaho's definition of police dog. You may remember K-9 Badger, our ICAC unit's dog who helped locate crucial evidence in eight search warrants during Operation Unhinged. This bill means that harming or interfering with a dog like Badger is now a felony, the same protection afforded to any other police animal.

The Budget

This was a difficult year when it came to the budget. The Legislature was asked to make hard cuts across nearly every agency, and my office was not exempt. Our office faced a 5% reduction to our budget, and for an office where 89% of costs are personnel, cuts come directly out of people, not contracts or overhead.

I believe government should handle few things, but the things it does handle it should do well. The Office of Attorney General represents exactly the kind of work government should be doing. That is what I told legislators, and I believe they understood it. The private sector cannot defend the State of Idaho when it gets sued. It cannot stand before the United States Supreme Court to defend laws passed by this Legislature. It cannot arrest and prosecute the individuals who exploit children online. These are the core functions of good, limited government.

I am grateful to JFAC Co-Chairs Senator Scott Grow and Representative Josh Tanner. I also thank the many legislators who worked to restore some of our funding, which allows us to continue protecting Idaho families.

A Word of Thanks

When my team works alongside legislators to identify where our legal tools fall short or where a law needs stronger footing, the results benefit every Idaho family. I'm grateful to every legislator who worked with us this session to strengthen Idaho's laws and protect Idaho families.

Best regards,