California Supreme Court Puts Urban Renewal Out of Business Statewide

THE GUARDIAN learned today via the LA Times Newspaper, all Urban Renewal (aka Redevelopment Agencies in Ca.) will be officially shut down in California as of February 1, 2012.  The High Court in California ruled unanimously in favor of a state law passed last summer to abolish more than 400 redevelopment agencies statewide,

Gov. Jerry Brown called for the demise of all redevelopment agencies in California when he was running for governor and was able to get it passed into law and now the court has ruled in his favor in this matter. Justice Kathryn Mickle Werdegar, said "the Legislature had the power to create the redevelopment agencies and the power to end them."


Assemblyman Chris Norby of Fullerton, Ca. stated " Redevelopment has become a cash cow for developers. NFL team owners and big box stores who have been on the public dole for a long, long time, subsidized by these redevelopment funds."


We can only hope Idaho Legislators come to the same conclusion about Urban Renewal abuses in Idaho. It is a legalized form of "earmarks" for local government to bypass voter approval of all manner of projects that would never pass muster with voters.  Yet all the funds for Urban Renewal come from property taxes within and outside the UR district.  Higher levy rates are put on property outside the UR districts to make up for the increased demand for city and county services.

We applaud Gov. Brown and the California Legislature's efforts to stop all the waste, fraud and abuses of California property owners. Here's a link to the full article in the LA Times.

http://articles.latimes.com/2011/dec/29/local/la-me-redevelopment-20111230 

Density and Costs of Alternative Electricity - Time to Think Nuclear

We are bombarded with all the information about alternative power from solar, wind and anything you can imagine.  I ran into a very interesting piece on the subject of "density" required per KWH of alternative electricity last week in the Wall Street Journal.  Going "green" has an offset cost in density not many of the experts are talking about.  Here are some density factors for your consideration:

1. Bio fuels  0.05 watts of energy per square meter 
2. Small Natural gas well 28 watts per square meter
3. Wind turbines  1.0 watts per square meter

If we wanted to replace 10% of our fuel requirements with bio fuel made from switch grass it would take 37 million acres or a land area roughly the size of the State of Illinois just to grow the stuff.  We all know what happened when corn was diverted to ethanol production.  Food costs shot up in proportion to the amount of corn diverted to ethanol production.

Solution for this would be to get serious about Nuclear Power.  In all the history of Nuclear Power the amount of high level waste comes to 62,000 tons of high level waste products.  Stacked to a depth of 20 feet it would cover an area the size on one football field.  France produces about 80% of their electricity from Nuclear Power.

The picture in this post is a photo of the San Onofre Nuclear Generation Station in San  Diego County.  It has been there since the late 1960's with the original reactor, SONGS #1, shut down in the early 1990's but reactors two an three are still on line and not scheduled for decommissioning until 2022.  It was built to withstand a 7.0 magnitude seismic event directly under the plant and still survive.   The people in the photo look pretty relaxed about the proximity of the Nuke Plant next to their beach.

Note:  The WSJ article was titled Small Is Beautiful - So Go Nuclear by Robert Bryce a senior fellow at Manhattan Institute and was adapted from the Winter 2012 edition of City Journal.  The photo is San Onofre State Beach Park located just south of San Clemete, Ca.  and right next to SONGS run by So. Cal. Edison.

Montana Constitutional Amendment Re: Initiatives

We all know how initiatives are treated by the Idaho Legislature.  The last time around was TERM LIMITS passed by the people and promptly disposed of in the first ten minutes of session.  The good people of Montana are fed up with such antics by their legislature and are going for a Montana Constitutional amendment.  Here it is and it would be a good one for Idahoans to put forward:

THE COMPLETE TEXT OF CONSTITUTIONAL INITIATIVE NO. 109 (CI-109)

BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MONTANA:

Section 1. Article III, section 4, of The Constitution of the State of Montana is amended to read:

“Section 4. Initiative. (1) The people may enact laws by initiative on all matters except appropriations of money and local or special laws.

(2) Initiative petitions must contain the full text of the proposed measure, shall be signed by at least five percent of the qualified electors in each of at least one-half of the counties and the total number of signers must be at least five percent of the total qualified electors of the state. Petitions shall be filed with the secretary of state at least three months prior to the election at which the measure will be voted upon.

(3) The sufficiency of the initiative petition shall not be questioned after the election is held.

(4) The people reserve to themselves the powers to repeal or amend all laws passed by initiative.

(5) The legislature may not amend or repeal an initiative statute except by another statute that becomes effective only when approved by the electors unless the initiative statute permits amendment or repeal without the approval of the electorate.”

A like effort in Idaho would put a stop to what happened to our last effort to implement term limits. 


 The photo in this post was taken in the Montana House chamber.  The painting is a C. M. Russel and all the furnishings are original dating back to the days of statehood formation.  The wolf-dog was put their by Mr. Russel as he did not like the Speaker of the House.  The Speaker was left-handed and every time he looked over his shoulder he saw that snarling dog

42 Months Magic PERSI Number For Idaho Legislators

I pulled the following out of the Idaho Freedom Foundation Pork Report for 2012.  Legislators can reap dramatic returns if they can get appointed to a full time job and here are some examples:

 December, former Sen. Joe Stegner, R-Lewiston, took a post as head lobbyist of the University of Idaho, a post paying $124,000 annually.

If Stegner stays on the job at least 42 months, he can jump his public

pension at least tenfold. If Stegner had simply retired at the end of next

year – his 14th year in the Legislature – he would receive a pension

payout of about $373 per month, or a $4,480 annually.  If Stegner stays

with the school 42 months at his starting wage, his pension payout will

increase to approximately $3,410 a month, or $40,920 annually.

In June, former Rep. Debbie Field showed the other end of the problem

as she exited her post as the head of the Office of Drug Policy. Field,

who served 10 years in the Legislature, was paid $74,000 as head of the

office. She retired after 43 months in the position, barely clearing the 42-month

threshold. Had she retired when she lost her re-election race in 2006, her legislative

pension would have amounted to about $443 per month, or

approximately $5,316 a year. With her legislative and drug policy

months combined in the retirement system, her pension will be more

than four times higher at $1,921 a month, or $23,052 annually 

Former Sen. Pro Tem Bob Geddes will also get a spiked pension if he

stays on as chairman of the oversight board at the Idaho State Tax

Commission for more than 42 months. Gov. Butch Otter tapped Geddes

for the post, which pays $85,000 annually, in January. Geddes can

spike his pension by more than $2,500 a month – or more than $30,000

annually – if he meets the 42 month time threshold.

Rep. Dennis Lake, R-Blackfoot, in the past has introduced legislation to

end the practice and separate legislative service from timed worked in other areas under PERSI.


This could all be fixed but there is no support for Rep. Lake.  It seems pretty simple to THE GUARDIAN to computer a month of service as a month of service rather than the current practice of granting a full year of service for each session of the Idaho Legislature.

Mental and Medical Health Legislative Issues In Idaho

The following is a guest opinion by Guardian Reader Elaine Hirsch ( Eline currently writes for a medical transcription resource) January 21, 2012:

Medical and Health Benefits In Idaho and Canyon County

Thanks to a petition from disabled residents, the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare is postponing cuts to government-funded living expenses. However, many legislators worry about the long-term health of Medicare in Idaho as the rolls of patients with mental health disabilities steadily increase.

Between 2008 and 2011, the number of mental health holds, in which police took an emergency call and then referred a subject for a mental health evaluation, increased by 19 percent. Department of Health and Welfare spokesmen attribute the increase to Idaho veterans returning from war, high unemployment and economic stresses.

For some, giving disabled people access to health care for little or no cost constitutes the deliverance of a basic human right. The Markula Center for Ethics at Santa Clara University in California argues that offering public health care constitutes providing for "the common good" and states public access to affordable health care as a right alongside other rights, such as, a just legal and political system. The British Medical Journal, on the other hand, argues an intolerable burden on medical professionals, governments and taxpayers. that basic health care is difficult to define, and calling health care a "human right" places

Doctors, caregivers and medical experts argue that cutting payments for mental health patients will make keeping them in private homes impossible. Cuts will force many patients into public institutions.

 Statistics from the National Alliance of Mental Illness Idaho suggest that approximately 54,000 adults and 18,000 children in Idaho have some degree of mental illness. NAMI Idaho states that cuts to mental health care budgets will drive up costs, such as, hospitalization, homelessness, incarceration, emergency services and suicides.

Idaho, like many states, is experiencing budget shortfall. The Department of Health and Welfare lost $45 million when the state legislature cut its budget last year in order to balance the budget.  Benefits had to be reduced to 2,000 patients served by the Aged, Blind and Disabled.

A tough economy with limited funding options makes it difficult to do more with less funding for these programs.

What Mayor Nancolas Failed To Mention In State Of City Address

WHAT MAYOR NANCOLAS NEGLECTED TO MENTION IN HIS STATE OF THE CITY ADDRESS.


By D. L. Maitland, Caldwell  January 16, 2012

While the YMCA is a worthwhile project it is a private entity that is being paid for at the rate of one million dollars a year with public money from taxes collected that go into the coffers of Caldwell Urban Renewal.

Mayor Nancols also forgot to mention the TVCC building. This building cost easily over six million dollars taking into consideration the cost of property and other improvements. TVCC has a lease on the building for this year for $218,000.00 for twenty thousand square feet. There is approximately thirty nine thousand square feet in the building and TVCC is using all of it. They are using these facilities at the cost of less than five dollars a square foot. Quite a bargain when you consider that normal commercial prices on a lease are ten to twelve dollars a foot.

Caldwell Urban Renewal also spent $151.000.00 in putting a coffee shop in the TVCC building that competes directly with private enterprise.

An urban renewal district is supposed to remove urban blight. Any project created by the urban renewal board until recently did not require the vote of the citizens but could be undertaken with the approval by the members of the board who are appointed by the mayor. To get an understanding of urban renewal please google the Canyon County of Idaho web site which has a very good explanation of the intended functions of urban renewal. In the case of Caldwell these funds have been spent on a lot of window dressing which is fine to some extent but did it really help the main downtown area? Cross over the bridge into main downtown area and it is almost liking walking into a ghost town on main street. As this area further deteriorates the tax revenue will go down due to the lowering of the assessed value of the properties.

I was delighted to see that MYAC (Mayors Youth Advisory Committee) is raising funds to pay for their excursions. This has not always been the case in the past. On previous occasions according to Eljay Waite, our city finance manager, funds were used from non tax property revenues of the city. These expenditures were approved by the mayor and city council. This was not the proper use of public revenue.

The city of Caldwell has a high or higher mill levy rate of any city in the Treasure Valley.There are a good deal of other items that I could mention such as that people living in Pioneer Irrigation District are paying for litigation between the city and the irrigation district in taxes and additional fees charged by the irrigation district. The attorneys are having a heyday on this one. (Editor note:  Last year Caldwell spent well over $500 thousand dollars on this litigation.)


D.L. Maitland
Caldwell, Idaho

Boise Atty: Dynamis Bad Deal For Id. Power Customers

Boise Attorney Opposed To Dynamis Deal January 13, 2012

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 RELEASE
Backdoor Politics: The Ada County Commissioners and Dynamis Energy, LLC

Why would Idaho Power agree to pay Dynamis Energy far more than any other alternative energy provider?

The Idaho Public Utilities Commission has been asked to approve a “deal” between Dynamis Energy, LLC and Idaho Power Company that will require Idaho Power to pay Dynamis more than twice the going rate for electricity. The Dynamis electricity is planned to be generated at a proposed trash-to-energy Project located at the Ada County landfill.

While the public spotlight is now focused upon Idaho Power and the Idaho Public Utilities Commissioners, this boondoggle originated with the Ada County Commissioners.

Although Idaho Power has made the application to the Idaho Public Utilities Commission for approval of the Dynamis “deal,” a close reading of the Idaho Power papers discloses a less than enthusiastic endorsement. The garbage to energy concept sounds green and clean and may even be technically feasible, but it will be expensive for Idahoans, who have enjoyed the cheapest electric rates in the United States.

In June of 2010 the Ada County Commissioners agreed to pay Dynamis almost 2 million dollars for the design of a trash-to-energy Project to be built at the Ada County landfill. The primary benefit to Ada County is the possibility of extending the useful life of the landfill because the Project will incinerate garbage rather than bury it.

However, unlike many communities, Ada County has a landfill that will provide solid waste disposal for roughly 70 to 100 years – the Hidden Hollow Landfill off of Hill Road. In 2007 Ada County opened a new landfill section, the North Ravine Cell, located on 2700 acres of County-owned property. The North Ravine Cell is the replacement landfill for the nearly full Hidden Hollow Landfill.

In 2005, Ada County contracted with Fortistar Energy to burn the natural byproduct at the Hidden Hollow Landfill – gas – which is used as fuel to generate electricity. Fortistar can generate roughly 3.2 mega-watts of electricity – enough to power about 2,400 homes. In 2010 Fortistar paid Ada County $260,786 for gas produced by rotting garbage which was converted to electricity and sold to Idaho Power. Yet, the rate paid to Fortistar by Idaho Power is substantially lower than the rate to be paid Dynamis.

Dynamis, according to its website, is composed of “…a group of highly committed professionals that are dedicated to clean renewable energy through waste recovery systems.” If their website is to be believed, Dynamis is “…your best source for value-driven, environmentally sound, global turnkey waste to energy services.” Dynamis owns “…state-of-the-art proprietary waste-to-energy technology.” Their “…patented process reduces reliance on fossil fuels, decreases harmful emissions and provides numerous immeasurable long-term benefits, clearing a new path toward a sustainable and cleaner world.” Who can argue with that?

In June of 2010 Ada County Commissioners Fred Tillman, Sharon M. Ullman, and Rick Yzaguirre took it upon themselves to sign a contract with Dynamis which says that Dynamis will design “… a 250 ton per day waste to energy facility…” referred to as the Project. The Dynamis website states that … “[o]ne of our 250 ton per day plants produces on average 15 megawatts, which means in theory we can provide power for 14,000 homes.”

Between July 15 and December 17, 2011, Ada County paid Dynamis almost 2 million dollars. These payments were for the design of the Project. None of these payments purchased any material or labor or permits that will be required to build the Project.

The Dynamis contract does not guarantee that the waste to energy Project will work or even that the waste to energy Project will probably work. Rather, the contract states that the almost 2 million dollar Project design is based upon “experimental technologies” and that after review of the Project design Ada County “…may not want to proceed.”

On November 1, 2011 the Ada County Commissioners entered into a second agreement with Dynamis. This time, however, Commissioner Vern Bisterfeldt refused to go along, but majority ruled. This agreement allows Dynamis to finance the Project, build it, own it, and operate a 54,400 square foot plant costing $60,000,000 on County land for $1 a year. The County will deliver 408 tons of waste daily to Dynamis at no charge. Dynamis will convert the trash to electricity which it plans to sell to Idaho Power, which brings us back to the Idaho Power application before the Idaho Public Utilities Commission.

Energy law requires Idaho Power to contract with Dynamis, but not at an inflated price which will ultimately be paid by Idaho Power customers. This “deal” favors Dynamis over Idaho Power customers. While science and technology make the Dynamis project possible, science and technology have not made the Dynamis project economically feasible.

The Ada County Commissioners’ rush to contract with Dynamis left little time for any analysis. The driving forces behind the rush to contract were government payments, tax incentives about to expire, and cash.

Approval of this “deal” will open the flood gates. The Dynamis “deal” is based upon a franchise business model designed to be repeated over and over again with local governments who are lured into approval by the “clean and green” mantra and the possibility of economic growth.

Any opposition to the Idaho Power application before the Idaho Public Utilities Commission runs the risk of being labeled as anti-clean, anti-green, and anti-environment. But these are not the issues to be decided. The real issue is whether we saddle the next generation of Idahoans with obligations that are not economically feasible. The simple question is: Why would Idaho Power agree to pay Dynamis far more than any other alternative energy provider?

The Idaho Public Utilities Commission is taking comment on the Dynamis “deal” through February 2, 2012. Comments are accepted via e-mail by accessing the Commission’s homepage at www.puc.idaho.gov and clicking on “Comments & Questions About a Case.” Fill in the case number (IPC-E-11-25) and enter your comments. Comments can also be mailed to P.O. Box 83720, Boise, ID 83720-0074 or faxed to (208) 334-3762. Be sure to join the list of “Interested Parties.”

The public’s only opportunity to express views on the Dynamis “deal” is to submit comments before February 2. As of today, there will be no public hearing for you to attend. Our Public Utility Commissioners will read and respect your comments, but only if you beat the February 2 deadline.

The full text of the Commission’s order in this application, along with other documents related to this case, are available on the Commission’s Web site at www.puc.idaho.gov. Click on “File Room” and then on “Electric Cases” and scroll down to the above case number.

The Ada County Commissioners can be reached at (208) 287-7000.

Jon M. Steele, Runft & Steele Law Offices

1020 W. Main ST. Ste. 400, Boise, Idaho 83702

Phone 208 333 9495

Local Option Tax Will Be Considered By Legislature

 By  David R. Frazier

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 public hospitals.

The so-called “local option sales tax” is already allowed in resort towns under 10,000 population–such as McCall, Donnelly and Ketchum. The latest move is to allow the tax hike in cities of ANY size. Previously, the big issue has been the percentage of votes needed to hike the sales tax. Cities were after a simple majority to institute the tax and the legislative leaders wanted a 2/3 majority.

Here’s a thought:
Since the Idaho recall law requires 20% of REGISTERED VOTERS to sign a petition just to get a politico whom they want out of office on the ballot, why not use the same threshold for a vote on local option taxes–approval of 20% of registered voters? Good for the goose is good for the gander.

Congress currently has an approval rating of a mere 11-15% of citizens and with campaign donation laws so loose that businesses can donate massive amounts to candidates, incumbents are nearly “bulletproof.”

Local politicos run mostly unopposed, or with only token opposition–they claim it is due to voter satisfaction. The GUARDIAN suspects people are simply beaten down and apathetic. The rise of the Tea Party on the right and the Occupiers on the left attest to dissatisfaction at all levels of government.

Years ago when the legislature changed the recall petition law from “20% of those voting in the last election” to “20% of registered voters,” they made it nearly impossible to remove the bad guys. Perhaps tax hikes should be just as difficult. The recent Boise City election had a turnout well under 20% of registered voters.

Is it really wise to allow people with such a low voter approval the authority to tax and spend on the entire populace unless we can remove them from office easier than gathering signatures from 20% of registered voters?

Urban Renewal, Gateway Drug To Corruption

Urban Renewal is very similar to "EARMARKS" in the way it is administered.  The IPT had a question to all county legislators in the Sunday paper about any possible plans to fix urban renewal laws in Idaho.  It is clear most legislators do not get the inherent problems with urban renewal.  Yes, there were some changes to the laws this past session in 2011 but it remains a government entity without accountability or oversight of taxpayers who get stuck paying the bills for these "earmarks".

Nearly $55 million gets spent by these agencies for all manner of things that would not pass muster with voters if put to a bond election each year in Idaho.  Additionally, commissioners of urban renewal boards are appointed and answer to nobody for their actions with our tax dollars.  Newly appointed Rep. Gayle Batt appears to have a very good handle on fixes needed.  Commissioners for these agencies should stand for election just like trustees for College of Western Idaho, local school boards, highway districts, etc.

Urban renewal taxes impact every county and city taxpayer even when they aren't in the UR district.  Property taxes siphoned off by UR have to be made up to pay for all the things property taxes support like schools, city and county taxes, police, fire and other essential public services.  This gets done via higher and higher levy rates for all county property owners.  Property taxes are so high now that most taxing districts are into a "cap" on taxes along with levy rates perceived to be outrageous to most taxpayers.

Urban Renewal tax dollars are thrown around at all manner of pop-up-targets over the lives of the agencies.  Money thrown around by these agencies become nothing more than a gateway drug to corruption by the givers and takers of this money.

Urban renewal has created a culture of developers, businesses and other entities knocking at the doors of these agencies with their hands out for money to sweeten their projects.  All this has led to growth not paying for itself and downloading growth costs onto all county taxpayers.  Caldwell and Nampa have such high property taxes it has reached the point investors are reluctant to invest in our communities due to these onerous and ongoing tax burdens.  They can go one foot inside Ada County and the tax structure is 30-40% less.

In Caldwell we have over $10 million going to the YMCA, at least $7 million or more to TVCC, a college that is redundant to CWI.  CEURA  meeting minutes show a number of developers collecting millions to hundreds of thousands for their projects.  In Nampa we have a $14.5 million police station built with no voter approval and a $30+million library going in next without voter approval.  In Boise a million dollar gift to the developer who has taken over the "Big Hole" project, the Ada County Courthouse for nearly $100 million, in Rexburg a $7million swiming pool project are some examples.

The challenge to Legislators is to scrap this ill conceived set of laws and get back to voter approved bond elections for all these projects. Concentrated power of UR agencies in the hands of a few people has given us all manner of goofy things.  The best local example is the Idaho Center. It remains a project that can't pay its way and is a millstone around the necks of Nampa taxpayers.

Urban Renewal laws in Idaho stand in complete juxtaposition to the Idaho Constitution Artilcle VIII sec. 3 requiring 2/3rds majority of voter approval for  nearly all things going beyond one budget cycle.  Cities are using UR as way around voters and abuses are numerous.

Here's a link to the IPT Legialator story: http://www.idahopress.com/news/local/idaho-lawmakers-prepare-for-legislative-session/article_e1909462-39ca-11e1-9a61-001871e3ce6c.html

Tax Cap on Taxing Agencies At Or Near Maximums

We talked about the "TAX CAP" earlier on the Caldwell Guardian.  Here is a table for your review:


You can see just how close nearly every taxing entity is to the maximum taxes they can extract from taxpayers.  Next year will be budget crunch time.  The numbers above are multiplied against the total assessed values of property withing the boundaries of each entity.  If assessed values go up this year then look for your taxes to go up as well.  Right now, the tax cap prevents the annual 3% increase.  The biggest tax all but ignored is government spending at all levels despite economic conditions.

Canyon County Assessor is in the process of trying to assign values to all taxable property in Canyon County.  We typically get these new notices in the mail after the May election cycle.

“Buying” New Business Not Worth The Price For Taxpayers

Our friend Dave Frazier (Boise Guardian) has once again given us much to think about the very first day of the new year ahead of us.  

By David R. Frazier January 1, 2012

We’ve all heard of the husband who purchased a new boat the couple couldn’t afford so the wife gets even by remodeling the kitchen and installing new carpet they also couldn’t afford.

 That same silly fiscal policy is being advocated by government and editorial writers from Idaho Falls to Boise–if a business isn’t financially sound enough to survive on its own, give them some cash and tax breaks from citizen’s pocketbooks. After all, if Idaho doesn’t attract these firms, they will go to the “competition” in California, Oregon, or elsewhere.

Micron holds its “jobs” club over the heads of policy makers and gets all sorts of tax breaks–meanwhile the government pays all the workers who were laid off when jobs went offshore.

The Chamber of Commerce’s “Boise Valley Economic Partnership” is drumming up support for a $5-10 million fund to pay businesses to locate in the area. This, after their previous $5 million scheme to attract “high paying jobs” fell flat. Businesses don’t come here to pay higher wages.

Guv Butch is proposing a fund for local entrepreneur start ups. That’s better than helping the Chinese Communists and out of staters, but still not a good place to spend public money. If the idea and product are good, investors will buy in and profit.

In Twin Falls politicos are tripping over themselves as they pony up public promises of about $29,000,000 for a Chobani yogurt plant–a culture unto itself. That area has a history of attracting–and closing businesses.

Pocatello is about to fall victim to an ill-fated solar panel plant backed by the communist Chinese, but not backed with enough cash to pay their electric bill to Idaho Power. Hoku is teetering on the brink of financial failure despite massive infusions of urban renewal funds diverted from schools, the city and county. They also are beneficiaries of state and federal funds.

A hearing before the Idaho Public Utilities Commission over the proposed shut off of electric service to Hoku will be an interesting indicator regarding whether regulators go with the politicos and the POTENTIAL of “jobs” or rule to allow Idaho Power to cut its losses from a deadbeat customer.

Despite repeated promises, hoopla, and assorted pandering Boise can’t even get a Whole Foods chain store going. No doubt the folks at the Co-Op won’t shed tears over that news. If they have the money and Boise looks like a place to do business, Whole Foods would beat down the door of city hall with fists full of cash.

Citing Boise’s “proximity to west coast ports,” there was a big media push a month ago for a Zonda electric bus factory in Boise. The company had even moved its headquarters here. Don’t stand in line for tickets to ride that coach.

The overall message from we GROWTHOPHOBES is similar to that of former Gov. Cecil Andrus who opposed deal sweeteners: “If you have the money to pay your taxes and a fair wage, we welcome you with open arms. If you are shopping for rubes willing to PAY you to come here, please take your business elsewhere.”