BOISE -- The Idaho Supreme Court struck down a state law that's been used shield people with leases of state-owned cottage sites on Payette and Priest lakes from competitive auctions.
The justices' ruling Friday bolsters Attorney General Lawrence Wasden's case that the Idaho Land Board wasn't generating sufficient income from state endowment lands for schools.
Wasden, a Land Board member, took the unconventional step of suing the panel in December 2010.
He contended the law was being used to circumvent the Idaho Constitution's requirement to generate the maximum return for endowment beneficiaries.
The Supreme Court decided Wasden was right: The state is required to hold a conflict auction to maximize returns.
Legislators passed this law years ago to help protect existing leaseholders on some of Idaho's most-coveted vacation real estate from competitors.
