Testimony Before the Idaho Senate State Affairs Committee in support of House Concurrent Resolution 32

March 20, 2026

Chairman Guthrie, Members of the Committee:

Thank you for holding this hearing today on H.C.R. 32 and thank you to Representative Leavitt for introducing this forward-looking, critical resolution.

This legislation comes at a critical time for the Gem State, and I’m grateful for the opportunity today to support this resolution.

My name is Samantha Vick, and I am the Senior State Government Relations Manager at Heartland Impact. Heartland Impact is the advocacy and outreach arm of The Heartland Institute. Both are independent, national, nonprofit organizations working to discover, develop, and promote free-market solutions to social and economic problems. Heartland Impact specializes in providing state lawmakers with the policy and advocacy resources to advance free-market policies towards broad-based economic prosperity.

Energy is the “lifeblood of our economic system,” as the Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman noted. It is the master resource. Affordable, reliable, and plentiful energy is the foundation of economic growth and prosperity. Energy is at the core of nearly everything we do, everything we use, everything we manufacture, everything we purchase, sell, eat; it’s how we heat and cool our homes, it is a part of how we educate, how we stay connected with our community, and how we care for our young, elderly, and sick. Therefore, the price of energy is a significant factor in our lives and a major contributor or detractor from our overall personal, state, and national prosperity.

Affordable and reliable energy, economic growth, and protecting the environment from degradation need not be at odds with one another. The energy sources that are most abundant and affordable are surprisingly environmentally friendly, when we look at the full-spectrum environmental impacts of the various energy sources. Often, the best way to be pro-environment is to be pro-energy.

To fully unleash economic opportunity in the Gem State, policymakers in Idaho must be deliberate in enacting policies that prioritize abundant, reliable energy. House Concurrent Resolution 32 accomplishes that exact goal by expressing common sense standards for the future of energy generation in Idaho.

H.C.R. 32 establishes clear state standards for the Idaho Public Utilities Commission and state-level permitting and siting that prioritize grid reliability and stability, and dispatchable baseload generation which emphasizes overall energy and thus, in turn, will affect the affordability of energy for Idaho ratepayers. H.C.R. 32 also assesses the importance of private property rights, local land use authority, and the protection of agricultural and rural communities. Overall, H.C.R. tackles the three major pillars in discussing energy today: affordability, reliability, and cleanliness.  Affordable, reliable, and clean energy are not mutually exclusive goals, but interdependent pillars of sound energy governance. By aligning state policy accordingly, the resolution provides policy clarity and market certainty for investors, utilities, and ratepayers alike.

At the heart of H.C.R. 32 is the recognition that energy security begins with in-state production. While Idaho remains a net energy importer, it is paramount that Idaho continues to foster its in-state baseload energy generation. As becoming energy self-sustaining, or as close to it as possible, with reliable and affordable sources of energy will only reap benefits for Gem State ratepayers, small businesses, and foster economic development. This would also reduce reliance on out-of-state energy sources insulating Idaho ratepayers from potential volatility in supply and in pricing.

H.C.R. 32 promotes technologies that are dispatchable—available when needed—and resilient across seasons and peak demand periods. This is crucial in Idaho, where there are heat waves in the summer and long, cold winters.

Importantly, the resolution affirms the role of advanced and conventional nuclear energy, hydroelectric plants, and natural gas generation as part of a reliable, dispatchable energy mix – resources that continue to demonstrate unrivaled grid stability, scalability, and affordability.

When we look at a full-spectrum analysis of the environmental impacts of the competing forms of energy, we see that wind and solar, while they produce zero CO2, are among the most harmful to our environment in terms of animal and plant deaths and deforestation. A 2018 Harvard study found that to cover the energy demand for the United States in wind alone, one-third of the land mass of the continental U.S. would have to be used for wind turbines.

Furthermore, the rare earth elements (REE) required in wind and solar technology are mined using some of the most environmentally damaging mining practices in the world. This same mining is primarily done under the control of China, where they have cornered the market in REE. Most of these REE are mined in the Democratic Republic of Congo, by forced child slave labor, or in the Xinjiang Region of China by religiously persecuted Uyghur Muslim populations. These unethically sourced REE, after being integrated into wind and solar technology, eventually leech into the ground, poisoning the soil and ground water.

When all these environmental factors are considered, not just CO2 emissions, natural gas, nuclear, and coal will be less damaging to the environment than wind and solar. All while minimizing our reliance on slave labor, harmful mining practices, and foreign adversaries.

The allure of “green” energy is passing. It is expensive, inefficient, and incapable of powering the growth of the states’ economies.

The aforementioned points corroborate the importance of the H.C.R. 32 highlighting the Easten Snake River Plain Aquifer as a critical ground water resource for Idaho agriculture, rural communities, and economic stability.

Further, the resolution’s inclusion of the legislature’s opposition of the Lave Ridge Wind Project inserts a paramount policy position that Idaho lawmakers and constituents are not willing to, and should not, sign over the rights to their scenic and agriculturally important land for energy sources that are intermittent, and when all subsidies are accounted for, more expensive than baseload sources of energy.

By encouraging affordability, reliability, and prioritizing protecting agricultural lands and water sources, Idaho not only protects its consumers and industries from unreliable or costly alternatives but also sets a policy model for other states. H.C.R. 32 charts a pragmatic energy path that promotes both innovation and dependability without sacrificing affordability or security.

The “business of energy” in America has long been shrouded in double-speak, subsidies, and buried costs. H.C.R. 32 seeks to shed light and bring transparency to the true nature of energy for Idaho ratepayers.

By establishing and clearly stating the standards espoused in H.C.R. 32, you can create a transparency that does not prohibit any form of energy; it merely allows choice based on facts rather than hope and false promises.

With this resolution, Idaho lawmakers, and all of you on this committee, can steward energy security for the present state of Idaho and secure economic prosperity for the future of Idaho. Again, thank you for the opportunity to voice unequivocal support for H.C.R. 32 and urge your support for this critical legislation.

Thank you for your time and consideration on this paramount issue.