The State of the State

I listened to Governor Otter today give his State of the State address and was both impressed and shocked at what he thinks needs to be done to keep the State solvent. I liked the fact that the cuts varied by department but Health and Welfare was already woefully underfunded so the 7% cut there is really going to hurt. I have always believed that government exists to help those that are least able to help themselves. These people also have the weakest voice so it is understandable that Otter would cut their funding because the people hurt are the least able to speak up. The work loads for Child Protective Services are already at levels that boggle the imagination and Otter is gambling with the lives of children that nothing happens. The delivery of health services to these same children is among the lowest in the nation and those will be cut too. Is this what Otter and the Republicans mean by "Idaho Family Values".

The governor then spoke to the needs of transportation and the infrastructure of the State. The roads in Idaho have been in trouble for years and the legislature has done nothing because of the costs. They have always said that their constituents didn't want their taxes raised to fix roads on the other side of the state. So the roads have just gotten worse. The governor wants to raise the gasoline taxes at the pump and then hit us again when we register our vehicles. He uses the specious argument that the gas tax was last raised in 1996 so we are trying to meet 2009 needs with 1996 money. Using that argument then taxes and fees should raise every year. If last Summer and the $4 plus gas taught us anything it was that as the price goes up past $3.50 a gallon people will use less and less gas. So there goes his extra money. Otter sounds just lie a tax and spend Democrat on this issue.

The only good thing out of all this is there will be a statewide discussion about priorities. Hopefully those without a voice will find someone in the legislature to speak out for them. At least Idaho is not in as bad a shape as California.