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.
The tax cut goes into effect as soon as the bill is signed.
Idaho corporations and top individual taxpayers will pay less to the state next year.
A plan to lower the top tax rates passed the Senate this afternoon. It’s final stop will be a signature by Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter.
As soon as Otter signs the bill, which he is expected to, the new tax rates take effect. The rates are also retroactive, which means the lower rates will be effective as of Jan. 1, 2012.
The individual rate will be lowered from 7.8 percent to 7.4 percent, the corporate tax rate from 7.6 percent to 7.4 percent.
The Associated Press has reported a family of four in the top tax bracket, with a gross income of $100,000 will see their annual tax bill go down by $71. The Division of Financial Management says that will affect about 17 percent of Idaho taxpayers.
House Bill 563 passed the Senate along party lines, 28-7.
Lucky Friday Mine workers in Mullan, Idaho are valued for their skill at "jackleg" mining, using hand-held equipment seen here.
Work hasn’t been hard to find for laid-off miners in the Coeur d’Alene area. The Northwest News Network reports about 250 miners and contractors were laid-off at the end of 2011 when the Lucky Friday Mine was shut down over safety concerns.
Since November 2011 Kootenai County’s jobless rate has declined more than two percentage points. February 2012 estimates show the county’s rate is just above the state average at 8.1 percent.
“The price of gold and silver right now makes experienced miners a hot commodity. Idaho labor officials say some Lucky Friday Mine workers have been temporarily recruited to California, Nevada, Montana, Alaska — and even the sunnier climes of Guatemala. In many cases, their families remain in Idaho to wait out the year-long closure of the Lucky Friday.” – Northwest News Network
“[T]he Boise Fire Department’s hazardous materials team determined that no hazardous chemicals were released by the explosion. Employees in the building have been allowed to return to work.
One person suffered a minor cut to the arm, two people had ringing in their ears and another inhaled dust from the explosion. Several others workers who inhaled dust were being evaluated. No one was transported to the hospital.” – IdahoStatesman.com
Maggie Clark talks with customers at a recent event in Nampa, Idaho.
Earlier today we introduced you to Maggie Clark, an independent salesperson for the wickless candle maker Scentsy. Clark says she earns about $1,200 a month on her business. That is well above the median income for someone in the direct selling industry.
The Direct Selling Association, an industry trade group, says the median annual income is $2,400. That equals about $200 a month.
“There certainly are people who make the equivalent of a full-time income through direct selling,” says DSA spokesperson Amy Robinson. “But by and large people are looking for supplemental income.”
Robinson says most people work less than ten hours a week at their direct selling business.
Maggie Clark set up a booth to sell Scentsy at a recent cheerleading and dance competition in Nampa, Idaho.
Many Idaho companies issued a fair number of pink slips during the recession. But Meridian-based Scentsy didn’t.
Instead, the wickless-candle maker grew. It’s ranked among the country’s most promising companies by business magazines like Forbes and Inc.com. In just seven years, Scentsy has become a multimillion dollar enterprise.
Selling Scentsy
Maggie Clark started selling Scentsy products three years ago, just as the company started taking off. She recently set up a sales booth at a cheerleading and dance competition in Nampa. Continue Reading →
When I started researching the direct sales industry and one of Idaho’s newest direct sales companies, Scentsy, I wanted to find out if that model of selling at parties and events does particularly well in Idaho.
The Direct Selling Association has this handy map that shows the percent of sales by region. Idaho is part of the western region, which accounted for more than a quarter of direct sales in 2010. That puts the western region in second place, behind the South, for percent of total sales.
So are people in the West and South just more likely to go to home parties? Are we particularly drawn to certain products? Yes and no. Continue Reading →
The Idaho Department of Labor reports February’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate has fallen for the seventh straight month to 8.0 percent.
The jobless rate has steadily ticked downward, mostly one-tenth of a percent at a time. It’s the lowest monthly rate since September 2009.
Still, the department reports 62,500 Idahoans are still out of work. That doesn’t include the number of people who’ve stopped looking for a job or who consider themselves underemployed. Continue Reading →
The Queen Mary 2 sails toward Long Beach, California.
An Idaho economic consulting and modeling firm’s latest report details the five industries that have grown 40 percent or more since 2007.
Economic Modeling Specialists Inc., a Moscow-based firm, says the sector with the greatest rate of growth since 2007 was the cruise ship industry. That growth focused heavily in coastal states, including Washington and California.
One industry listed that has impacted Idaho is translation and interpretation services. According to EMSI, that industry more than doubled from 2007 to 2011.
Greber has directed COBE, part-time, since December 2009. He told the Idaho Business Review he’s leaving the University to do area consulting work.
“‘I wasn’t doing it for the money,” he said March 21. “It was starting to become work instead of fun.’
Greber’s last day at the center is March 30. He and a work-study student were the sole employees of the center, which is part of Boise State’s College of Business.
It could be hard to find another director of Greber’s caliber who is as inexpensive. Greber said he made about $600 a week for Boise State, with no benefits.” – Idaho Business Review
Greber told IBR.com he’ll continue to teach two classes at Boise State.
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