State Government
Public Record Award Entries
Nominations are now being accepted for the 2012 Max Dalton Open Government Award sponsored by the Idaho Newspaper Foundation. The 2012 award will be the 14th annual award given to each year since 1999 to a citizen or group judged to be an outspoken advocate of openness in either public records or public meetings on [...]
Ball Park Bad Idea, Bieter Still Pitches It
Team Dave’s captain, Mayor Dave Bieter used the City Club of Boise Thursday as a forum to pitch a new public baseball park for private gain. We see it as another swing and a miss. At the same event, Bieter recruited the audience to seek petitions asking for a referendum to allow the city authority [...]
F-35 Opponent Questions Air Force Report
This is a GUARDIAN guest opinion By Kevin E. Cahill, PhD Is the Air Force being honest with Boise? The United States Air Force is proposing Boise’s Gowen Field as a possible Pilot Training Center and base for F-35A fighter Jets. The Air Force has just released a draft Environmental Review (Environmental Impact Statement or [...]
Bill Would Limit State Role In Commercial Business
A Bill to limit the Idaho Land Board’s role in private sector-type commercial enterprises has been introduced in the legislature. The GUARDIAN made public the state’s ownership of Affordable Self Storage in 2010, touching off a controversy which has the Dept. of Lands claiming they “do it for the children.” Meanwhile business interests and some [...]
PEACE OFFICER Trumps LAW ENFORCEMENT
(Disclaimder: GUARDIAN is in Thailand working on erratic WIFI, so this may be old news) When the legislature proposed a draconian law to clear the old courthouse lawn of Occupy Boise protesters, they included a clause that would classify their property as “litter” and destroy it. Both Boise’s Top Copper, Mike Masterson and Super Trooper [...]
Dynamis Rate Opposed by IPUC Staff
The Idaho Public Utilities Commission staff Friday came out against an agreement between Idaho Power and the Dynamis “trash to power” project at the Ada County landfill. There was strong written opposition to the plan before the IPUC, including a document filed by attorney Jon Steele. Much of the opposition was based upon the contemplated [...]
Ada Redistricting Could Spawn Commish Rivalry
The potential for some Ada County political fireworks and intrigue were opened up with the latest state redistricting plans. Ada was cleanly divided into nine legislative districts based on population and will likely remain unchanged. That makes a perfect fit for the Ada Commishes to each take three legislative districts to form the three county [...]
Supremes Refuse Republican Speaker Case
In a terse four sentence decision, the Idaho Supreme Court Wednesday dismissed a law suit filed by Idaho House Speaker Lawrence Denney and Republican party chair Norm Semanko over their attempt to fire members of the redistricting commission. Chief Justice Roger Burdick signed the order which said, in a nutshell, the parties seeking relief failed [...]
Idaho Speaker’s Actions Open Him To Humiliation
The following is a lay opinion from the GUARDIAN. Idaho House Speaker Lawrence Denney’s decision to file legal action in the Idaho Supreme Court against Secretary of State Ben Ysursa will probably lead to political and personal humiliation. The speaker has overstepped his bounds in an effort to rid the redistricting commission of a member [...]
Idaho Legislative Control May Be Worse Than Most Realize
Our sister blog, the CALDWELL GUARDIAN, has posted an interesting initiative from the neighboring state of Montana. Folks there are tired of the behavior of their legislators and seek to change the constitution to prevent legislators from changing or repealing laws passed by voters. We Idahoans have passed both term limits and a 1% property [...]
Repubs “Fire” Redistricting Comnmishes Without Legal Authority
After an attorney General’s opinion was issued last week saying there is “no mechanism in the law” to allow dismissal of commissioners serving on a bipartisan panel convened to map legislative districts, Idaho’s Speaker Lawrence Denney and Repub chair Norm Semenkop “fired” a couple of members anyway, according to John Miller of AP. The issue [...]
Idaho Power Adopts Growthophobe Philosophy
It reads like a chapter from the GROWHOPHOBE handbook. Idaho Power is happy to expand its transmission lines to take care of growth, but wants those who benefit and create the demand to pay for it, according to a new filing before the Idaho Public Utilities Commission. Under the proposal, Idaho Power seeks to charge [...]
Another Example Of Change To Fit Desire
Take two on the redistricting mess. Republican House Speaker Lawerence Denney wanted to fire his appointee to Idaho’s redistricting commission, former GOP state Rep. Dolores Crow, because party members don’t think she protected their interests. Translation: the lady wasn’t partisan enough. Secretary of State Ben Ysursa, the state’s chief election officer sought advice from the [...]
Supremes Nix Redistricting Plan, Governments Just Change Laws To Fit Desires
Two different Idaho panels were unable to come up with a redistricting plan to comply with the constitutional “one man, one vote” ruling of the U.S. Supreme Court. The Idaho Supremes have nixed the latest version after several counties filed suit protesting a split of legislative districts within their counties. This politically charged issue comes [...]
All Aboard The Ethics Train
It looks like both the Dems and Repubs are standing on the platform waiting to jump on the “Ethics Train.” After a series of public corruption and criminal cases involving legislators and state officials were reported by the news media, it seems like legislators of both parties can’t get aboard quick enough. Leadership of both [...]
Boise Attorney Opposed To Dynamis Deal
Boise attorney Jon Steele has released comments critical of the proposed Ada County “waste to energy” currently before the Idaho Public Utilities Commission. Steele, in a press release was critical of the proposed rate schedule between Idaho Power and Dynamis Energy, the outfit that already has $2 million from Ada taxpayers for the project. PRESS [...]
Chinese Communists Pony Up Cash For Hoku Power Bill
The troubled Hoku solar panel plant in Pocatello got a $10 million infusion of cash from its Chinese Communist parent company this week which should allow them to pay their Idaho Power bill before the plug is pulled. In action before the Idaho Public Utilities Commission, Hoku has sought to amend a contract with Idaho [...]
A Relaxed Recall Law Would Be Ultimate Ethics Panel
When Idaho’s Republican senators met Wednesday to determine whether or not to leave Caldwell Senator John McGee in a leadership post, they did something that citizen voters are all but denied–vote on the conduct of an incumbent politico. Under Idaho law, citizens must obtain signatures of 20% of the REGISTERED voters just to get a [...]
Local Option Tax Hike Bill Likely In Legislature
A bill to bump up the sales tax by 1%–with voter approval–will probably surface in the coming legislative session. Ironic that local politicos and Chambers of Commerce favor allowing voters to approve a sales tax hike when last year they almost uniformly opposed allowing citizens to vote on long term public debt at airports and [...]
Idaho Dept. Of Lands Posts Loss On Commercial Ventures
Thursday we asked Gov. Butch Otter about his thoughts on the land board going into the commercial real estate business. Otter stressed that he was adamantly opposed to the state operating enterprises that would otherwise be found in the private sector. He said as long as the state remained in a LANDLORD capacity and avoided [...]
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