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Read. Follow. Verify.Idaho House Bill 523 Authorizes One-Year Bans from State Capitol and Grounds for Violators
Last action · January 27, 2026: Reported Printed and Referred to Judiciary, Rules & Administration
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What This Bill Proposed
Idaho House Bill 523 authorizes state officials to ban individuals from the State Capitol, Supreme Court building, Capitol Mall properties, and multiagency facilities for up to one year for rule violations or safety threats. The legislation explicitly prohibits camping on state-owned property, mandates that symbolic tents be removed between 9:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m., and establishes a 90-day holding period for unattended or removed property before it is deemed abandoned.
Visitors and demonstrators on state property face new one-year exclusion orders for safety or conduct infractions, while unhoused individuals are explicitly barred from overnight camping and storing personal belongings on Capitol Mall grounds.
- The Idaho State Capitol and surrounding Capitol Mall properties in Boise house the primary executive, judicial, and legislative offices of the state government. context
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Visitors to State Facilities
Visitors are subject to new conduct rules, potential one-year exclusion orders, and restrictions on camping and temporary structures on Capitol Mall grounds.
Idaho State Police and Department of Administration
Agency directors are granted explicit authority to issue exclusion bans, manage security, and enforce facility rules.
Unhoused Individuals
Individuals using state-owned property for lodging or dwelling are prohibited from camping and storing personal belongings.
Key Facts
- The director of the department of administration, the director of the Idaho state police, and their designees are authorized to ban any person from the capitol building, supreme court building, capitol mall properties, and multiagency facilities for a period of one year upon finding safety, conduct, or compliance violations.
- Any person who violates a one-year ban imposed under this act is subject to criminal penalties provided in section 18-7008, Idaho Code.
- Camping on or in any state-owned or leased property or facility—including the capitol mall—is prohibited, and symbolic tents or other enclosed structures must be removed from 9:00 p.m. local time to 6:00 a.m. local time.
- Individuals violating camping prohibitions are guilty of an infraction and must remove all personal property from the state-owned or leased property.
Show all 7 facts
- Temporary side-free canopies without side walls are permitted during rain or snow to stay dry, provided they are not used for sleeping or camping.
- A reasonable storage fee may be assessed when an owner claims stored property, and individuals must produce identification and sign a release form.
- Proceeds from rental contracts and lease agreements in excess of $200,000 at the end of the fiscal year from multiagency facilities shall be deposited to the credit of the permanent building fund.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who has the authority to ban someone from the State Capitol or Capitol Mall?
Are temporary canopies allowed on Capitol Mall grounds?
What happens to personal property removed from state grounds?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · in House committee.
Procedural history
2 actions- Jan 27, 2026CommitteeReported Printed and Referred to Judiciary, Rules & Administration
- Jan 26, 2026IntroducedIntroduced, read first time, referred to JRA for Printing
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Expanded Authority for Property Bans
The legislation establishes an explicit one-year ban mechanism for administrative officials and state police across multiple state properties in Idaho.
Connected Entities
Sources
legislature.idaho.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 75)
- Controversy65Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz45Current news / social attention level
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