One of the most talked-about topics during the session was illegal immigration. The move by Conservative legislators caused several prominent business leaders to personally lobby to allow the undocumented to stay in Idaho. Some call it amnesty, while others call it a pathway to legalization.

Every bill was covered dramatically by KIDO Talk Radio and other media outlets. A coalition of powerful law enforcement officials opposed bills that would have strengthened Idaho’s efforts to hold folks accountable.

With all the legislative smoke, was there any fire? In other words, were there any new laws passed enforcing immigration laws? The Idaho Capital Sun reviewed this year’s session and what laws were passed.

Can you guess how many laws were passed?

The answer is zero. Here’s how they summarized their findings:

Idaho is a dominant Republican state. It is also a state that is heavily reliant on agriculture. Crops, cattle, dairy products, and other goods depend on foreign workers to produce them.

With their power comes money, which means they can influence Idaho politicians to look the other way. Idaho law enforcement claimed they don’t need the federal government telling them what to do. They also stated that any increase in immigration laws would harm them in their communities.

Those two forces were enough to table bills that hard garnered a ton of attention and votes, but not enough to get them to the governor’s desk.