Thanksgiving is here, and the holiday season has begun! That means Christmas, New Year’s and other holiday parties and celebrations are the order of the day, in peoples’ homes, at work, and in the halls of government.
Thanksgiving is here, and the holiday season has begun! That means Christmas, New Year’s and other holiday parties and celebrations are the order of the day, in peoples’ homes, at work, and in the halls of government.
By Wayne Hoffman
This week, Lynn Moses starts his federally-supervised probation after serving time in prison for a crime only the federal government could dream up.
Moses is an ordinary Idahoan who became a convicted felon after performing flood control work on a creek in order to protect lives and property.
Just because a town is small, or the amount of taxpayer dollars in question is small, doesn’t mean big philosophical issues don’t arise from time to time. In New Meadows, the question is whether giving the city’s four full-time employees the day after Thanksgiving off as a paid holiday is a well deserved token of appreciation, or a misuse of taxpayers’ dollars?
In addition to the money that Idaho has received under the federal stimulus plan, the state was apparently awarded a number of additional congressional districts…34 to be exact!
I'm a bit of a policy wonk. I think one of the more entertaining things I can do is curl up on the sofa with a nice government dataset, a packet of interagency memos and an enthralling volume of departmental budgets. I believe that the 1939 Idaho session laws are as enjoyable a read as Harry Potter. And I mean that as a compliment to J.K. Rowling.
A lesson in economics: If you don't buy Fruit Loops, clipping a coupon for a dollar off of Fruit Loops doesn’t actually save money. Sure, the coupon lets you buy cereal for some amount less than you would have, but you’re still spending money you may not have to spend.
State legislators, county commissioners, school board members and city councilmen are coupon clippers, and the federal government is the Sunday newspaper, famous for offering all sorts of great deals to the policymaker in search of a bargain.
This week, part-time state government employees begin taking on a bigger responsibility for their health insurance costs, a move that I've said before makes sense for the folks paying the bill – the taxpayers.
But the problem with the ongoing dispute over whether part-time state employees should pay higher premiums than their full-time peers is this: it's just a fraction of the discussion state lawmakers should be having.