BOISE, Idaho — Idaho Gov. Brad Little on Monday vetoed a bill, backed by Senate Republicans, that would block most private businesses from requiring COVID-19 vaccines for a year.
Little in a veto letter wrote that the legislation “significantly expands government overreach into the private sector.”
“I have been consistent in stating my belief that businesses should be left to make decisions about the management of their operations and employees with limited interference from the government,” he wrote.
The proposal comes after repeated attempts by the Idaho Legislature to prevent businesses from requiring vaccines during the coronavirus pandemic. Top Senate Republicans backed the latest proposal, Senate Bill 1381.
Senate President Pro Tem Chuck Winder, R-Boise, who sponsored the bill, said it’s the most difficult legislation he’s sponsored in his six terms. It seeks to “thread the needle” between employee and employer interests, Winder said during a floor debate earlier this month.
The bill prohibits employers from requiring their employees to be vaccinated against the coronavirus. It allows exceptions for health care businesses, including assisted living and nursing home businesses, employers who require travel to foreign countries with COVID-19 vaccine mandates, and businesses required by the federal government to impose the mandate.
The bill also establishes that business patrons, including concert attendees, could not be denied entry based on COVID-19 vaccine status.
Little lauded his own conservative policies during the pandemic.
“I kept Idaho open while other states were on lockdown, never issued any mask or vaccine mandates and banned ‘vaccine passports,’” he wrote. “I am committed to working through the rule of law to keep Idaho the strongest state in the nation.”
The Legislature has constitutional authority to override a veto — both chambers recessed for five days last week so they could address a veto, after this year’s session effectively ended Friday.
Two-thirds of lawmakers present in each chamber must vote to override a veto. The Senate would need to secure 24 votes if all members are present. The House would need 47 votes.
When the bill passed the Legislature, 24 senators and 45 House members supported it.
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