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Read. Follow. Verify.Idaho Updates Uniform Controlled Substances Act to Revise Schedules and Enforce Stricter Database and Registration Rules
Last action · March 23, 2026: Reported Signed by Governor on March 20, 2026 Session Law Chapter 90 Effective: 07/01/2026
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What This Bill Does
Idaho enacts House Bill 777 to update schedules of controlled substances, mandate prescription drug monitoring program checks prior to prescribing certain opioids or benzodiazepines, and establish criminal penalties for unauthorized database access.
Changes regulatory compliance and prescribing requirements for healthcare practitioners across Idaho while imposing misdemeanor penalties and fines up to $2,000 for unauthorized database disclosures.
- State controlled substance acts regularly undergo legislative revisions to align state drug schedules with federal schedules and address emerging synthetic variants like illicit fentanyl analogues. context
- Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs (PDMPs) serve as state-administered electronic databases tracking the dispensing of controlled substances to curb prescription drug abuse and doctor shopping. context
Who It Affects
Groups the bill's text affects, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Healthcare Practitioners
Practitioners must comply with updated controlled substance schedules, registration rules, and mandatory prescription drug monitoring program reviews before prescribing certain drugs.
Pharmacists
Pharmacists must adhere to revised dispensing, labeling, and electronic filing requirements for controlled substances.
Patients Receiving Controlled Substances
Patient prescription histories in the database are subject to review by providers, and patient data disclosures are protected by misdemeanor criminal penalties.
Key Facts
- Revises Schedule I, II, III, IV, and V controlled substances to add and update specific chemical compounds, opiates, hallucinogens, and stimulants.
- Requires prescribers or their delegates to review a patient's 12-month prescription drug history via the prescription drug monitoring program prior to issuing an outpatient prescription for opioid analgesics or benzodiazepines in schedules II, III, or IV.
- Exempts PDMP reviews for patients in inpatient settings, emergencies, ambulances, hospice, skilled nursing facilities, or for prescriptions intended to last 3 days or less.
- Establishes a misdemeanor penalty punishable by up to 6 months in county jail, a fine up to $2,000, or both, for knowingly misrepresenting identity to access the database or unlawfully disclosing patient-identifying database information.
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- Sets an effective date of July 1, 2026, supported by an declared emergency clause.
- Authorizes the board to impose a reasonable administrative fine not to exceed $2,000 per occurrence, along with forfeiture of illicit profits and prosecution costs, for violations relating to registrations.
- Requires dispensers and prescribers, except veterinarians, to register with the division to obtain online access to the controlled substances prescriptions database.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does House Bill 777 take effect?
Who must review the prescription drug monitoring program before prescribing an opioid?
What are the penalties for unlawfully disclosing patient information from the database?
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News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Current status: Signed into law.
Procedural history
18 actions- Mar 23, 2026EnrolledReported Signed by Governor on March 20, 2026 Session Law Chapter 90 Effective: 07/01/2026
- Mar 20, 2026Delivered to Governor at 4:32 p.m. on March 19, 2026
- Mar 19, 2026Returned Signed by the President; Ordered Transmitted to Governor
- Mar 19, 2026Signed by President; returned to House
- Mar 19, 2026Received from the House enrolled/signed by Speaker
- Mar 18, 2026Reported Enrolled; Signed by Speaker; Transmitted to Senate
Show 12 earlier actions
- Mar 18, 2026FloorReturned from Senate Passed; to JRA for Enrolling
- Mar 17, 2026FloorRead third time in full – PASSED - 34-0-1 AYES – Adams, Anthon, Bernt, Bjerke(Bjerke), Blaylock, Burtenshaw, Carlson, Cook, Den Hartog, Foreman, Galloway, Grow, Guthrie, Harris, Hart, Kohl, Lakey, Lenney, Lent, Nichols, Okuniewicz, Ricks, Ruchti, Semmelroth, Shippy, Taylor, Toews, VanOrden, Ward-Engelking, Wintrow, Woller(Rabe), Woodward, Zito, Zuiderveld NAYS – None Absent and excused – Keyser Floor Sponsor - Shippy Title apvd - to House
- Mar 17, 2026Retained on calendar
- Mar 16, 2026Retained on calendar
- Mar 10, 2026Read second time; filed for Third Reading
- Mar 9, 2026Reported out of Committee with Do Pass Recommendation; Filed for second reading
- Mar 3, 2026IntroducedIntroduced, read first time; referred to: Health & Welfare
- Mar 3, 2026FloorReceived from the House passed; filed for first reading
- Mar 2, 2026FloorRead Third Time in Full – PASSED - 65-1-4 AYES – Alfieri, Barbieri, Beiswenger, Berch, Bingham, Boyle, Bruce, Burgoyne, Cannon, Cayler, Cheatum, Church, Cornilles, Crane(12), Crane(13), Dygert, Egbert, Ehardt, Ehlers, Erickson, Fuhriman, Gannon, Garner, Green, Hall(Stone), Handy, Harris, Haws(Woller), Healey, Hill(Brown), Holtzclaw, Hostetler, Leavitt, Manwaring, Marmon, Mathias, McCann, Mendive, Miller, Mitchell, Monks, Nelsen, Palmer, Petzke, Pickett, Pohanka, Price, Rasor, Raybould, Raymond, Redman, Sauter, Scott, Shepherd, Shirts, Skaug, Tanner(13), Tanner(14), Thompson, Vander Woude, Veile, Weber, Wheeler, Wisniewski, Mr. Speaker NAYS – Hawkins Absent – Furniss, Galaviz, Mickelsen, Rubel Floor Sponsor - Erickson Title apvd - to Senate
- Feb 27, 2026Read second time; Filed for Third Reading
- Feb 26, 2026Reported Printed; Filed for Second Reading
- Feb 25, 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.
Enhanced Database Security and Penalties
The bill codifies explicit misdemeanor penalties for failing to safeguard user credentials or misrepresenting authorization to access patient prescription monitoring data.
Connected Entities
Sources
legislature.idaho.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance85How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy15Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz25Current news / social attention level
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