01/20/05 No hearing, a grant, a new office

There won't be a statewide hearing on the Nez Perce water agreement. State Representative Ken Roberts request for such a hearing got the cold shoulder from House Speaker Bruce Newcomb. Newcomb rejected the hearing idea for the agreement that would settle the Nez Perce tribal claims to water in the Snake River in exchange for cash and land. Both the tribe and the legislature must approve the agreement by the end of March or the entire process will end up in court. The City of Gooding is getting a 300 thousand-dollar block grant from the state to help an Iowa company set up its livestock and cargo trailer manufacturing business. Kiefer Built will lease a vacant building and hire 31 people. Plans call for a Keifer workforce that could grow to 75 employees. The BLM has opened a new field office in Marsing. By relocating the Owyhee Field Office from Boise to Marsing, it puts BLM employees closer to the nearly 1.3 million acres of public lands that it manages in Owyhee County." And what are the real risks of bioterrorism? What can be done about it? Next week there will be a food security meeting in Nampa following by a two-day workshop in Boise on February 16th and 17th. Seating is limited for both events. For more information contact the University of Idaho or TechHelp. Today's Idaho Ag News Bill Scott