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.
“For businesses, economic and financial uncertainty caused in large part by misguided federal programs and policies are undermining confidence in the marketplace. Employers have no idea what it will cost them to comply with new health care mandates. I understand their hesitation. But that’s stifling employment growth.” – Gov. Otter, 2011 State of the State
Nearly one year later, Otter stands by that statement. He explains why when we interviewed him earlier this month:
Idaho is one of 26 states suing the federal government over the health care law. At the same time, Idaho has accepted federal money to begin creating a health insurance exchange, an online marketplace for buying and selling insurance mandated by the federal law. We’ll have more on that in the coming weeks.
House Republicans have reportedly reversed their stance on extending a payroll tax cut and benefits for the long-term unemployed this afternoon. The Associated Press and Reutersreport the House will vote on the measure.
This means about 12,000 Idahoans who’ve been out of work for more than six months will continue to receive extended federal benefits for at least the next two months, if the measure passes. The Idaho Department of Labor Director Roger Madsen has said he doesn’t support an extension of benefits. Madsen has suggested Idaho legislators and the governor will reject any further benefit extensions.
Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter told StateImpact Idaho the state doesn’t have authority to reject federal benefits.
Talk of lowering taxes has already started among Idaho lawmakers. At the Associated Taxpayers Conference earlier this month, legislative leaders said proposals to lower Idaho’s corporate tax and individual income tax rates will be part of the discussion.
Sen. Brent Hill (R-Rexburg) says lowering taxes this session will be met with resistance, and will likely require a trade-off in order to pass muster. “If we lower the tax rate, for small businesses as well as corporations, I think you’ll see we’ll have to phase out the investment credit at the same time we lower the rate,” says Hill.
Governor Butch Otter says the state needs to be bringing in more revenue before it can consider lowering tax rates. And if a tax decrease is agreed upon, it would need to happen over a period of time, the governor says. Continue Reading →
Governor Otter meeting with StateImpact & Boise State Public Radio on Dec. 13, 2011
January 9th is a highly anticipated day for state budget wonks and policy nerds. It’s the day Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter releases his budget proposal for the 2013 fiscal year. The governor recommended spending about $2.5 billion general fund dollars for basic services like education, health care and corrections during the current budget year, FY12. The legislature ended up spending more than $2.8 billion. (You can see the breakdown of expenditures here).
Gov. Otter didn’t want to discuss the specifics of his 2013 budget proposal in advance, but we asked him about the budgeting process and how he approaches it. Continue Reading →
Roger Madsen is Director of the Idaho Department of Labor
The Idaho Department of Labor estimates about 1,500 people would lose their weekly unemployment payment immediately if federal benefits are allowed to expire at the end of the month. Additionally, the department estimates about 300 Idahoans would drop off the federal program every week through mid-June.
Extended benefits for the long-term unemployed are tangled in the Congressional debate over the payroll tax cut. It’s not getting as much press, but if the benefits aren’t extended, it could impact thousands of Idahoans and five million Americans.
Today, the House rejected the Senate-approved plan to extend the unemployment benefits for two months, still, Congress has until December 31st to come to an agreement.
The Idaho Department of Labor has already sent out this press release, which assumes an agreement won’t happen before the year-end deadline.
The Idaho Legislature convenes January 9th. In advance of the session, we interviewed several legislative leaders and asked them about Idaho’s economy and what the state could be doing to boost growth and job creation.
Idaho Legislature / State of Idaho
Sen. Brent Hill (R-Rexburg) is Senate President Pro-Tem. Hill joined the Idaho legislature in 2001. His colleagues voted him President Pro Tempore at the start of the 2011 session. Here is our conversation:
Q: What could the state be doing to help with job creation?
A: Last year we passed the Hire One Act to incentivize employers to go out and hire employees, offering them some tax credits if they meet certain criteria. And we also had some tax exemptions and so forth to help stimulate the economy and job growth, particularly small businesses. We aren’t in the same situation as the federal government. Anything we give away in the form of tax incentives or tax breaks affect the bottom line immediately. We’re not allowed to go out and borrow money the way the federal government does. And so, we may be doing things that give us some growth in the long term, but could make us suffer more in the short term, and as you know we’ve already been suffering quite a bit. There are some ideas to possibly reduce tax rates over the long-haul, not doing it immediately, but as a phase in. By broadening the tax base, getting rid of some exemptions, credits and other things, and actually lowering the rates so that everyone benefits instead of the legislature picking and choosing who the winners are and who the losers are. I think that’s something that would be good for the whole, because it goes across the board in helping all tax payers, both individuals and corporations. Continue Reading →
Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter has appointed Dan Johnson (R-Lewiston) to fill the state Senate seat vacated by Joe Stegner. Stegner resigned last month to become a lobbyist for the University of Idaho.
Port of Lewiston
Dan Johnson (R-Lewiston)
Johnson is the solid waste manager for the City of Lewiston and a commissioner for the Port of Lewiston. He is 51 years old.
The governor’s office says Johnson was the first choice of three nominees. Here is the full press release:
(BOISE) – Governor C. L. “Butch” Otter today announced the appointment of Dan Johnson of Lewiston to complete the unexpired term of Joe Stegner representing Nez Perce County’s District 7 in the Idaho Senate.
Johnson, 51, is solid waste manager for the City of Lewiston and a commissioner for the Port of Lewiston. He was the first choice of three nominees whose names were submitted to the Governor by the District 7 Legislative Committee after Stegner resigned to become a lobbyist for the University of Idaho. Continue Reading →
Governor Otter meeting with Boise State Public Radio & StateImpact Idaho on Dec. 13, 2011
As we previously reported, Idaho is one of a handful of states where the number of people without jobs has increased since the official end of the recession. The state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate has ticked down in recent months, but there are still at least 65,000 people out of work. Tens of thousands more don’t have enough work.
We recently spoke with Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter about the state of Idaho’s economy, including unemployment. This interview was done before the most recent unemployment data was released. So the numbers he mentions at the top are from October. Here are November’s.
Governor Otter believes many Idahoans who’ve been out of the workforce for one or two years lack the necessary skills to jump back into a job. Click play to watch the segment…
In our first Jobless in Idaho story, we introduced you to Justy Thomas. She’s 38 years old and graduated from Boise State University last Friday with a degree in Human Resources and Business Management. She’s unemployed. That’s why she enrolled in college four years ago. Now, she looks forward with mixed emotions. We caught up with her on graduation day, and here’s the next piece of her story. Click the play button below to view the audio slideshow.
Thomas had hoped to have a job lined up before graduation day. Since our last story, she’s had an interview with JC Penney’s manager-in-training program, but didn’t get the job. She’s also sent her resume to a handful of local companies, but hasn’t heard back.
In case you were outside playing in the snow and missed a story, we put our most-read stories of the week all in one place. Enjoy!
Here’s a look back at our most read, commented and shared stories of the week:
Jobless in Idaho: Soldiers Struggle to Translate War Experience into Work: Here’s a line most entry-level job seekers don’t have on their resume: “Operated a high-caliber machine gun, in Baghdad, Iraq.” Many of the 2,700 National Guard soldiers from the Northwest who just returned from Iraq aren’t old enough to have much of a pre-deployment work history. Now, many soldiers struggle to translate their war experience into a civilian career.  Continue Reading →
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