H 544 Idaho House · 68th Legislature, 2nd Regular Session (2026)

MILITARY – Amends existing law to revise provisions regarding leaves of absence from regular duties for military duty.

This bill (H 544) increases the annual paid leave entitlement for Idaho state employees serving in the National Guard or military reserves from 120 to 160 hours. It directly affects state employees who are active military members, ensuring they can take leave for duty without losing pay or job standing. The bill also clarifies that employees with irregular schedules ("uncommon tours of duty") will receive prorated leave based on their regular biweekly hours, aligning with federal guidelines. The change takes effect July 1, 2026.
Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Mar 2026
House Passage
Mar 2026
Senate Passage
Mar 2026
Signed into Law
Mar 2026
Introduced Jan 28, 2026 Signed Mar 20, 2026
Floor votes · Senate Mar 16, 2026 · House Feb 10, 2026

How they voted

350
Passed
Total votes 35
Mar 16, 2026
D Democratic5
5 Yea
100% Yea
R Republican30
30 Yea
100% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
17
Key actions
7
Committee
3
Mar 18, 2026
Upper · Passed
Signed by President; returned to House
upper
Mar 18, 2026
Upper · Passed
Received from the House enrolled/signed by Speaker
upper
Mar 17, 2026
Lower · Passed
Reported Enrolled; Signed by Speaker; Transmitted to Senate
lower
Mar 16, 2026
Upper · Passed
Read third time in full – PASSED - 35-0-0AYES – Adams, Anthon, Bernt, Bjerke(Bjerke), Blaylock, Burtenshaw, Carlson, Cook, Den Hartog, Foreman, Galloway, Grow, Guthrie, Harris, Hart, Keyser, Kohl, Lakey, Lenney, Lent, Nichols, Okuniewicz, Ricks, Ruchti, Semmelroth, Shippy, Taylor, Toews, VanOrden, Ward-Engelking, Wintrow, Woller(Rabe), Woodward, Zito, ZuiderveldNAYS – NoneAbsent and excused – NoneFloor Sponsor - NicholsTitle apvd - to House
upper
Mar 6, 2026
Upper · Passed
Reported out of Committee with Do Pass Recommendation; Filed for second reading
upper
Feb 11, 2026
Introduced
Introduced, read first time; referred to: Commerce & Human Resources
upper
Feb 10, 2026
Lower · Passed
Read Third Time in Full – PASSED - 68-0-2AYES – Alfieri, Barbieri, Beiswenger, Berch, Bingham, Boyle, Bruce, Burgoyne, Cannon, Cayler, Cheatum, Church, Crane(12), Crane(13), Dygert, Egbert, Ehardt, Ehlers, Erickson, Fuhriman, Furniss, Galaviz, Gannon, Garner, Green, Hall(Stone), Handy, Harris, Hawkins, Haws, Healey, Hill, Holtzclaw, Hostetler, Leavitt, Manwaring, Marmon, Mathias, McCann, Mendive, Mickelsen, Miller, Mitchell, Monks, Nelsen, Palmer, Pickett, Pohanka, Price, Rasor, Raybould, Ra
lower
Feb 6, 2026
Lower · Passed
Reported out of Committee with Do Pass Recommendation, Filed for Second Reading
lower
Jan 29, 2026
Committee
Reported Printed and Referred to Commerce & Human Resources
lower
Jan 28, 2026
Introduced
Introduced, read first time, referred to JRA for Printing
lower
0 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

No sponsor information available.