vision2020
Re: Highway 95
Tom Trail, in a post reprinted below, indicates that the decision to buy the land for a new Highway 95 has not been made. BL
Tom Trail wrote:
> Bill-the source of my information was Bruce Sweeney, Region II DOT Commissioner, and I may have quoted him slightly out of context. We were talking about a number of
> items last week here in Boise. When we talked about Highway 95 he said that DOT
> found it would be cheaper to buy land for a 4 lane highway as compared a widened
> 2 lane highway from Moscow to Lewiston. I may have given the impressoin that DOT
> was already underway in the buying process and this is incorrect. So if you would
> send this out it would help clarify the situation. Again, DOT is not out buying land
> along whatever route will be selected only that in looking at land prices it will cheaper
> for them or at least equivalent to buy land for a 4-lane highway.
>
> Rep. Tom Trail
>
> >>> Bill London (by way of Deb <DebTrail@infotrail.com>) <london@moscow.com> 01/29/01 03:33PM >>>
> 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
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