Last modified: Friday, March 23, 2007 12:11 PM PDT News Digest IDAHO - Otter vetoes bowling alley smoking ban, takes shot at Legislature BOISE (AP) — Bowlers, puff away. Gov. C.L. ‘‘Butch’’ Otter on Thursday vetoed a bill that would have banned smoking in Idaho bowling alleys. It cleared the House 48-17 and the Senate 31-4, but Otter said it took away private property rights of business owners who wanted to continue to allow smoking. See story Page A3. OREGON Budget co-chairs unveil their spending proposals for 2007-2009 SALEM (AP) — Public schools would get $6.24 billion in 2007-2009 under a proposed budget released Thursday by the co-chairs of the Legislature’s Joint Ways and Means Committee. That’s a significant jump from the $6.06 billion outlined by Gov. Ted Kulongoski in his December budget, but less than the $6.3 billion sought by public education advocates. IDAHO Ag Department reports low nitrate levels in south Idaho wells JEROME (AP) — The state Department of Agriculture says nitrate levels in wells in southern Idaho where dairy farms are prevalent usually are within the standard for safe drinking water, but a critic says the tests by the department are meaningless. The department says that sampling of wells in Jerome, Lincoln and Gooding counties found nitrate levels have remained steady or declined in the last 10 years, despite a growing number of dairy cows in the region. See story Page A3. THE NATION Blame flies for high-risk mortgage meltdown WASHINGTON (AP) — Charges of blame were flying Thursday for the meltdown of the high-risk mortgage market as pressure mounted for Congress to do something about rising foreclosures among homeowners unable to meet high payments. Under fire from lawmakers, federal regulators said they lacked full authority to prevent the crisis spawned during the soaring housing boom of 2003-2005.