The 2009 Idaho Legislature may not go down in the books as a record-setter. If lawmakers hang it up today, they will fall one day shy of the 2003 session, which ran 118 days.
But all the players — including Gov. Butch Otter and lawmakers — should still be embarrassed that this year's Legislature has even approached the record. They simply didn't do enough to justify a 117-day stay in town, at a taxpayer cost of $3.51 million.
There are some obvious parallels between 2003 and 2009. Both years, lawmakers faced deep budget cuts and the prospect of raising taxes during a recession. But in 2003, lawmakers really did need time to work through an agonizing process.
Resisting then-Gov. Dirk Kempthorne's call to balance the budget through tax increases, lawmakers first tried to impose additional budget cuts, on top of the cuts Kempthorne had already made. Kempthorne vetoed some agency budgets. Faced with an impasse — balance the state budgets either with cuts or tax increases — lawmakers finally agreed to a temporary sales tax increase and a cigarette tax increase.
Legislators finally concluded their work on May 3, a Saturday. As House members wrapped up their final bills, the Kentucky Derby aired on a TV in an adjacent meeting room.
It wasn't a smooth path to adjournment. The House-Senate infighting — a defining theme this year — was no less prevalent in 2003. The backbiting over the cigarette tax was sufficiently bad that our editorial board compared the houses to the incessantly squabbling sitcom couple Ralph and Alice Kramden.
I fully understand why 2003 was a tense and time-consuming session. I realize lawmakers, in both parties, agonized and held their nose while voting for tax increase they didn't like.
The point is, the 2003 session produced a decent result. And closure — largely by necessity, since the Constitution requires the Legislature to balance the budget.
This year, lawmakers met their constitutional requirement to balance the books, but utterly failed to show leadership on the state's transportation problems. They have ducked all the tough decisions on road repairs and how to pay for them — leaving them to task forces, and perhaps to some future session. (Click here for today's editorial.)
Which, of course, they could. Lawmakers weren't obligated to do anything on the road-repair issue — and for some, leaving town without a gas tax increase represents a victory. But it also represents ongoing delay, pushing back road repairs and driving up the cost to all taxpayers.
This issue didn't sneak up on anyone. It has topped Gov. Butch Otter's agenda for two years. To talk around the fringes of the issue for 17 weeks, and leave town no closer to consensus or a long-term plan, isn't acceptable.
Otter and lawmakers have talked themselves into an excuse for this session's slow slog into May. They say that the feds' economic stimulus plan slowed down the budgeting process — as they waited to see how much money Idaho would get, and then figured out what to do with it. "We lost 30 days with the stimulus package," Otter said recently.
I don't buy it. The stimulus slowed down the session, but far more than it should have. Certainly, everyone around the Capitol Annex could have used the stimulus-imposed downtime to engage in some serious discussions about the transportation issue. They didn't.
Which helps make 2009 a D-plus legislative session — and proof that quantity does not equal quality.
Coming Sunday: Our editorial board reviews the best and the worst of the 2009 legislative session.
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2009 Legislature
I agree that the 2009 Legislative Session deserves no more than a D- grade. I am particularly upset by a slew of fee increases that are going to be levied on many of Idaho's citizens while the Most of the House Republicans could not find it in themselves to vote for a gas tax increase.
I need point no further than the new fee that most boatowners will pay for invasive Mussel control. This is a waste of money and very few legislators fought it. Why do I have to pay a fee to keep Zebra Mussels out of Idaho waters when I never take my boats out of Idaho? The mussels of concern are in the waters of states around us. It is only a matter of time before they get here and this new fee and washing station legislation is not going to stop it from happening. However, I am sure that we boatowners will keep paying this fee every year long after the mussels have migrated into Idaho waters. Thank you Representative Moyle for voting against this legislation. Shame on you Representative Labrador and the rest of you who voted for it!
F
I would have to give them an F this year based upon the facts that grades are usually given by teachers and, if asked, I am certain that teachers would hold back these students for another year to get an education on education.
I believe that it was completely ridiculous for education to be last on the priority list with roads, mussels, and pharmacy refusals holding their favor.
We received almost 3 times the stimulus funding as Wyoming and we have found ways to replace new taxes (school levys) and fees with fewer services.
I am confused about why online learning was introduced and why our representatives have decided not to explain themselves.
I am also concerned that the representatives from my district have never been to my County, not even for a visit, and these decisions are based upon their own limited understanding of how the world operates. They instead had their own agenda and chose to gather supporters from church to show up on the courthouse steps to protest and make it look like they were following their constituents whom I can tell you, they haven't met.
You asked for it, after all.
So stop whining and being so two-faced. Schizoid. Whatever it is. Stop running around like a head with it's chicken cut off.
You are what you don't eat also.
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Beethoven was deaf when he wrote his Ninth Symphony. Rush Limbaugh is profoundly hard of hearing.
Millions of people like Beethoven.
PS...
OBAMADRAMA
Why don't you get corrup--run for the legislature?
You get all the free government cheese we aren't priveledged to anymore...
SINE DIEHARD
The Legislature earned a big fat red "F"
I thought you were too kind giving a D-+ but have to agree it was the costliest, most unproductive, and power grabbing squabble I have ever seen. It is almost embarrassing to realize that the "big issues" like roads, education, and employee salaries were never discussed even when there was more than adequate down time to do so.
The biggest losers in this struggle for power and ego are Idaho taxpayers, state employees, and individual agency budgets that were pirated to pay for the Governor's pet rock issue. I am not suggesting that roads are not important ... but I am suggesting that the legislative priorities were all off track in the worst economic downturn in our history. The failure to recognize that raising taxes and increasing fees are not what voters needed or wanted was the first mistake; the second, failing to find other innovative ways to fund essential government services and eliminating those that have no purpose or any useful life.
The entire session was a classic example of what Charles Dickens mentioned in the the opening lines of a "A Tale of Two Cities" --- it was the worst of times and all we ended up with is the Idaho version of a "Road to Nowhere". /Jono
Subject is dead again
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Beethoven was deaf when he wrote his Ninth Symphony. Rush Limbaugh is profoundly hard of hearing.
Millions of people like Beethoven.
KEVIN'S HISTORY LESSON
Subject: Born 1776, died 2008
It does not hurt to read this several times. The point is so obvious!
Professor Joseph Olson of Hemline University School of Law, St. Paul, Minnesota, points out some interesting facts concerning our recent Presidential election:
Number of States won by: Democrats:19 Republicans: 29
Square miles of land won by: Democrats: 580,000 Republicans: 2,427,000
Population of counties won by: Democrats: 127 million Republicans: 143 million
Murder rate per 100,000 residents in counties won by: Democrats: 13.2 Republicans: 2.1
Professor Olson adds: "In aggregate, the map of the territory Republicans won was mostly the land owned by the taxpaying citizens of the country. Democrat territory mostly encompassed those citizens living in government-owned tenements and living off various forms of government welfare...."
Olson believes the United States is now somewhere between the "complacency and apathy" phase of Professor Tyler's definition of democracy, with some forty percent of the nation's population already having reached the "governmental dependency" phase.
If Congress grants amnesty and citizenship to twenty million criminal invaders called illegals and they vote, then we can say goodbye to the USA in fewer than five years. If you are in favor of this, then by all means, delete this message.
If you are not, then pass this along to help everyone realize just how much is at stake, knowing that apathy is the greatest danger to our freedom..
Wonder why you need to cite bogus facts?
Try Factcheck.org:
http://www.factcheck.org/askfactcheck/whats_the_deal_with_prof_joseph_olsons.html
Not real...
Guess you are just another Republican who would rather lie than face facts and reality.
Myworld's ethics lesson: Lies are the greatest danger...
Look in the mirror.
See the problem.
Solve the problem.
However necessary.
What's a Myworld? I'm not paying attention much and...
several blogs have been imploding this week it appears. Lost Remote lost all use by becoming a personal blog and of course you know who hasn't added a story or comment in almost a week.
Whatever on all that but you have the right plan listed.
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Beethoven was deaf when he wrote his Ninth Symphony. Rush Limbaugh is profoundly hard of hearing.
Millions of people like Beethoven.
When is this cat going to shout love it or leave it?
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Beethoven was deaf when he wrote his Ninth Symphony. Rush Limbaugh is profoundly hard of hearing.
Millions of people like Beethoven.
They got the same grade the American Society of Civil
Engineers gave roads. Coincidence or just flunkies? It expains the condition of roads & a lot more!