Emilie Ritter Saunders was StateImpact Idaho's multimedia reporter until the project merged with the Boise State Public Radio site in July 2013. She previously worked as the Capitol Bureau Chief for Montana Public Radio and was a Senior Fellow with NPR's Economic Training Project from 2009 until 2010. She graduated from the University of Montana School of Journalism in 2007.
One unofficial kickoff to Idaho’s annual legislative session is the Associated Taxpayers of Idaho conference. And it’s already here. On Dec. 5, the business group hosts its day-long conference,packed with national and local speakers.
Last year, his high-energy, fiery talk, critical of the federal government, drew cheers from the standing-room-only audience. Casey was critical of Congress and the Obama administration, saying government “lurches from decision to decision.” He said lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are abusing the political system.
Casey called for a revamped tax code and more oversight of federal regulators, and he urged Idaho’s Attorney General to “sue the federal government more often.” Continue Reading →
Gov. Otter has until Dec. 14 to decide if Idaho will create it's own health insurance exchange.
Back in July, Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter put together a group of insurance industry stakeholders, business owners and lawmakers to figure out if Idaho should create its own health insurance exchange or let the federal government take the lead.
The work group has since recommended Idaho create its own state-based exchange. It spent at least $166,368 to come to that conclusion.
Invoices to the Idaho Department of Insurance that StateImpact obtained through Idaho’s public information law show the greatest cost to the state was through hiring consultants and experts. Continue Reading →
A child waits with a box of food at a food distribution center.
As the holiday season gets underway, the PBS show Frontline premiered a new documentary this week that tells the story of child poverty in America through the eyes of kids.
It’s called Poor Kids, and the hour-long program weaves together the similar stories of three families living in poverty, and trying to work their way out of it.
For a family of four, an annual income of $23,050 or less is considered in poverty.Today’s median household income is $50,054. In Idaho, the median income is $46,423. Last year, 7 percent of Idahoans had incomes that amounted to less than 50 percent of the poverty line, according to a Census Bureau report. Continue Reading →
Governor C.L. “Butch” said in a news release this morning he’ll wait to consult with Idaho Legislative leaders before deciding if the state will create its own health insurance exchange.
Late yesterday afternoon, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said it would give states until Dec. 14 to decide if they’ll create a state-based exchange, a federal exchange, or a partnership model.
Here’s the governor’s press release:
Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter said today that he will consult with legislative leaders and be ready by the new December 14 deadline for submitting a decision on whether Idaho will build its own health insurance exchange or opt into the federal system being developed under Obamacare. Continue Reading →
The Washington D.C. business think tank, the Conference Board, estimated there were 2.5 unemployed workers for every posted job opening in Idaho in October.
More than 7,000 Idahoans have left the labor force since May, says the state Labor Department, and that’s why Idaho’s jobless rate continues to decline.
The Idaho Department of Labor’s monthly unemployment report shows the jobless rate dropped one-tenth of a percentage point from September to October. The 7.0 percent seasonally adjusted unemployment rate is the state’s lowest in three and a half years.
The Labor Department writes October’s lower rate “was the result of another 1,100 workers leaving the state labor force.” That means the state has seen five straight months of workforce decline. “The only other year the labor force was smaller in October than May was 1980 between the 1980 and 1981 recessions,” the department’s release says. Continue Reading →
The Idaho Attorney General’s office says school districts have until December 15, 2012 to distribute roughly $38 million in teacher bonuses that were part of an education law voters overturned last week.
Voters rejected Proposition 2 on Nov. 6. That’s the provision that asked voters whether to uphold or repeal Idaho’s pay for performance plan the Legislature approved in 2011.
As we reported last week, school districts will have that bonus money by Nov. 15, but until today, it was unclear if districts had a deadline to distribute that bonus pay to teachers who earned it over the last school year.
Here’s the written opinion from Idaho’s Deputy Attorney General Andrew Snook:
Idaho’s Division of Financial Management reports state revenue came in 4.6 percent below projections for October.
DFM’s monthly general fund revenue report shows individual and corporate income taxes came in below expectations, while Idaho’s sales tax collections exceeded forecasters’ predictions.
Division of Financial Management
October revenue came in at $206.3 million, which is $10 million less than predicted. Fiscal-year-to-date general fund collections are at $874.7 million, which is $6.9 million — or less than a percentage point — below the state’s forecast.
The general fund is the main bank account the Legislature uses to fund state agencies. Lawmakers watch these revenue numbers to see how much money can be appropriated to certain programs each budget cycle.
Voters sent a clear message to Idaho lawmakers this week by rejecting all three education propositions by margins of 15 percent or more. See how each county voted and compare that to support for Tom Luna's 2010 reelection bid. Continue reading →
“I still believe that Idahoans want better schools through education reform. I still believe that empowering local school boards, phasing out tenure, giving parents input on evaluations, helping students take dual credit, paying teachers for more than just years of experience and amount of education, and making sure every classroom is a 21st Century Classroom are critical if we want an education system that meets the needs of every child. Continue Reading →
The campaigns for and against Idaho's Propositions 1, 2, 3 have brought in a lot of money. When you add it all up, the two sides have received donations totaling $4.88 million. It's all focused on a months-long tug-of-war over whether the package of controversial education laws known as Students Come First will be upheld or repealed on November 6. Continue reading →
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