Highway 95

[Bill London <london@moscow.com>]

According to my reading of the legislative report filed by Rep. Trail to this
list (below), the decision about the future of Highway 95 between Moscow and
Lewiston has been made.  The Transportation Department is now buying land for
the new route.
I thought that a public meeting would be held this spring to decide between a
new route over the shoulder of Paradise Ridge and a straightening of the
existing road.
Will that hearing take place?  Will it be a sham?
BL

RepTrail wrote:

> Dear Visionaries,
>
> Last week I reported about the family in Potlatch being held hostage by a
> moose. Monday six of Fish and Games finest rolled into the rescue. However,
> their sharpshooter missed the tranquilizer shot from 20 feet, and the moose
> took off for the Potlatch River. The Moose Team immediately took off is
> pursuit, but lost track of the moose along the river. On the way back to
> Highway 95 the team was startled when an ostrich ran across the road in
> front of them (probably an escaped ostrich from a game farm). The Moose
> Team (instead of the A Team) then received a call that a wolf had been
> spotted near Viola. One can't complain about wildlife diversity in Latah
> County.
>
> 1. Highway 95 -- I've received a report from the Department of
> Transportation indicating that about $346 million will be spent on Highway
> 95 through 2004. I will have the report and maps of the projects to hand
> out next Saturday when Sen. Schroeder, Rep. Young, and I hold town meetings
> in Potlatch (10:00 am) and Troy (1:00 pm - at the Elementary School).  DOT
> reports they are buying right of way land for a 4-lane highway from Moscow
> to Lewiston.
>
> 2. Taxes -- There are a number of excellent components and tax features in
> the Governor's package; however, a number of rural legislators and citizens
> who feel that more property tax reduction should be included are developing
> some initiatives. I support completing the property tax reduction
> initiative started by Gov. Batt, and also the new proposal to eliminate
> personal property tax on farm, timber, mining, and construction
> equipment.  This would have fiscal impact of about $16.5 million per year
> and would help our depressed farming and timber industries.  I'm also
> supporting reducing the sales tax on groceries.
>
> 3. Minimum Wage for Farm Workers  --  The hearing on the Governor's bill is
> set for Tuesday.  I suspect we will have over 200 people to testify.  We
> currently have 600,000 Idaho workers covered by the minimum wage.  Farm
> Bureau studies indicate fewer than 1% of farm workers are paid below
> minimum wage and that it is no longer an economic problem for them  --  so
> why not include farm workers? Studies indicate that most farm workers are
> below the poverty level and if the Governor wants to help stimulate our
> rural economies then let's do the right thing.
>
> 4. Industrial Hemp  --  I'll be introducing my industrial hemp legislation
> next Friday. The basic bill is a concurrent resolution to send to the
> Secretary of Ag and our Congressional delegation indicating that the
> Legislature supports legislative initiatives to legalize the
> crop.  Industrial hemp is an excellent alternative crop for farmers and
> environmental sound as well.
>
> 5. Education  --  we heard SPI (Superintendent of Public Instruction)
> Marilyn Howard present the Department's school budget this week and Monday
> we will hear from the Governor's representatives about his education
> budget.  Beginning teacher's salaries are one of the big issues.  Idaho
> starts teachers at $22,000/ year. Dr. Howard recommends $24,500 and the
> Governor less. Both Rep. Gary Young and I support a goal of $30,000 as the
> starting salary. There will probably be several initiatives to make this a
> legislative goal and come up with some creative ways to speed up the
> process.  Rep. Young and I have requested data on how many of our school
> teachers are below the poverty level.  We are losing more and more of our
> teachers to other states that pay higher salaries and also offer signing
> bonuses.  I'm also co-sponsoring a piece of legislation that would help
> teachers pay off part of their school loans.   This would help both
> recruitment and retention.
>
> 6. Idaho Public Television  --  There are still some legislators that would
> love to see Idaho Public TV go away.  A recent study concluded that if IPTV
> was privatized it would no doubt fail without further state support.  The
> study found the system to be one of the most widely viewed nationally for
> the size of it potential audience, and it also gets more viewers to donate
> more money to support operations than other public TV systems in similar
> markets.  The Governor has included over $6 million in his budget for
> digital conversion.  If this is not approved by JFAC then IPTV is basically
> history. We will have more hearings this week, and, of course, I will be
> supporting all efforts for IPTV.
>
> 7. Religious-Freedom Act  --  Debates and arguments continue over Idaho's
> Religious-Freedom Act.  We have several bills which would provide for civil
> rights and child protection concerns under the current law.  Business
> interests have concerns about zoning and planning and possible
> employer-employee litigation.  The interesting feature is that before this
> law was passed that religious groups in Idaho generally got along well and
> the Attorney General reported no complaints from citizens concerning their
> religious freedoms.  Now that the bill is in place, the various church
> communities are divided over the issue.
>
> A more serious aspect is that legislation that would amend the current bill
> will probably not even be heard in committee.  Sen. Darrington, Chair, of
> the Senate Judiciary and Rules Committee said he won't hold a hearing on
> this topic that has generated more discussion and debate than any other
> legislative matter this year.  Although I understand that the legislative
> chairs have the privilege to hold a bill, I also believe that to do so in a
> case where there is such public debate and interest, infringes on our First
> Amendment Rights.  One of our early presidents said, "The demise of a
> nation begins when free discussion and dialog over important public issues
> are thwarted by the political process and those in power."
>
> Rep. Tom Trail, district 5
> ttrail@house.state.id.us
>
>   I would like constituents to contact me by e-mail me with their ideas,
> comments and recommendations.
>
> Legislative newsletters and additional materials and information can be
> located on my web
> and home page http://www.infotrail.com/idaho