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.
Gov. Otter delivered his State of the State speech at the Capitol on Jan. 9, 2012
Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter said Idaho will not and has not faced “staggering” state employee layoffs like many other states have during his annual State of the State address delivered Monday. But what does “staggering” mean? Idaho has laid-off 928 people over the last five years. The state’s total workforce has averaged about 24,700 employees during that same time.
The Associated Pressreports state and local governments across the country have cut hundreds of thousands of jobs since the recession began. Some of those cuts mean layoffs. Some cuts mean governments aren’t filling positions that were opened by retirees or people taking new jobs.
Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter’s salary is up 4 percent from last year according to the annual Rainbow Report issued by the state controller’s office.
The Lewiston Tribunereports despite that 4 percent pay raise, the gap is widening between Otter’s salary and the highest paid state employee (Boise State University’s football coach).
The governor’s fiscal 2012 salary is $115,348, up from $110,734 last year, according to the annual “Rainbow Report” issued by the state controller’s office.
Boise State University head football coach Chris Peterson was once again the highest-paid state employee, with a $1.17 million annual salary – up 28 percent or $255,000 from the year before.
(The report, which was released Friday, didn’t include the $375,000 raise the State Board of Education approved for Peterson last week. Nor did it mention that Peterson’s salary is paid from revenue generated by the Bronco football program, not state tax dollars.) – The Lewiston Tribune
According to the report, 261 state employees are paid more than the governor.
Idaho Public Television is broadcasting hearings and floor sessions from the 2012 Idaho Legislature.
You can check out the various live stream feeds here. You can also view live statewide broadcast coverage of the Idaho Legislature on Idaho Public Television’s Learn [House] and World [Senate] channels.
Idaho Legislature Live is a collaborative effort among Idaho Public Television, the Idaho Department of Administration, and the Legislative Services Office.
The Division of Financial Management released its monthly general fund revenue report today with mixed news. First the good, sales tax collections exceeded expectations for the month of December, due in large part to the holiday shopping season.
“Idaho gross sales tax collections in December were $94.9 million, an increase of 9.0% over the previous December. On a fiscal year-to-date basis, gross sales tax collections are up 4.0% from the same period last fiscal year. The amount of sales tax accruing to the General Fund in December 2011 was $81.6 million, which was $2.0 million more than the forecast.” – DFM Report
Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter’s budget staff will spend the first few days of the legislative session explaining its budget proposal to lawmakers. Division of Financial Management Administrator Wayne Hammon will officially start that work tomorrow. Hammon met with reporters today to outline the administration’s key budget requests.
Here are some important points:
Governor Otter is proposing a $2.6 billion budget for Fiscal Year 2013, that’s up more than $126 million from the budget lawmakers approved in 2012
Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter is delivering his annual State of the State Address right now to a joint session of the Idaho Legislature. You can watch the speech live here and follow along with a copy of the speech. We’ve highlighted some important passages and included more detail.
An Idaho lawmaker who is being sued by the federal government for unpaid taxes claims the IRS was wrong in asking him to pay eight years’ worth of business deductions. The Coeur d’Alene Pressreports Rep. Phil Hart (R-Athol) responded to the federal government’s lawsuit through court documents Thursday.
Here’s The Coeur d’Alene Press report:
The Internal Revenue Service said that Republican Rep. Phil Hart owes nearly $550,000 in unpaid taxes and penalties. The four-term lawmaker from Athol, who has a history of protesting taxation, believes that income taxes are unconstitutional.
The U.S. Justice Department sued him in October, alleging that he fraudulently transferred the title to his home in northern Idaho to keep the federal government from seizing it to help pay his tax bill. Federal tax lawyers say tax liens on the property should be foreclosed, Hart’s home sold and the proceeds should go toward satisfying his debts.
On January 9th, Idaho’s Legislature will convene in Boise for its annual session. StateImpact Idaho will be focusing our coverage on how proposals and policy decisions impact Idahoans and the area economy. We’ve been interviewing leading lawmakers in the run-up to session and have compiled various resources to help you get involved or stay informed.
These posts are a series of Q & A’s we did during the weeks leading up to the 2012 Legislative session. Each conversation focused around job creation, tax policy and the state budget.
StateImpact seeks to inform and engage local communities with broadcast and online news focused on how state government decisions affect your lives. Learn More »
