IFF - Idaho Freedom Foundation

A public relations firm has been paid more than $200,000 since 2003 by the Idaho Judicial Branch, which is exempt from state rules that would require the deal to go out to bid.  According to public records obtained by the Idaho Freedom Foundation, the Gallatin Public Affairs (formerly known as the Gallatin Group) has received $25,000 a year for the last eight years.

The depressed price of recyclable materials on the global market, and the cost of shipping those materials out of state, means the profit margin for Idaho recycling companies is at the break-even point or less.  Furthermore, you're subsidizing that decreased  revenue with every trash bill you pay.

Some twenty-five years ago Ada County began assessing its motorists a fee for annual emissions tests. It continues to do so, but even after all these years, those complying with the law see a portion of their assessment going to track down those who do not comply with the law. In the past five years, for example, more than 13 percent of the amount dedicated to notices and enforcement has gone to notify those not testing their vehicles that they must do so, or else.

It’s funded by federal tax dollars to the tune of $1.16 billion this year alone, is authorized up to $2.5 billion under the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law, its effectiveness in improving kids’ academic performance is dubious, and no one outside the education establishment seems to know anything about it.  It’s the 21st Century Community Learning Center (21st CCLC) grant program, and it’s funded by federal tax dollars funneled through the Idaho Department of Education.  This year, $1.6 million dollars from the program went to eight Idaho school districts: Blackfoot, Coeur d’Alene, K

How many illegal immigrants are there in Idaho and what is their cost to the Idaho taxpayer?  Experts say determining how many illegal aliens are currently residing in the state is difficult.  According to sources interviewed by the Idaho Freedom Foundation, those estimates range as low as 40,000 and as high as more than 100,000. And, according to the Federation of Americans for Immigration Reform (FAIR), the estimated cost to Idaho taxpayers, even if the number is as low as 40,000, is $195 million.

Boise Mayor Dave Bieter wants approval for a city sales tax so more can be spent on transit projects and education. 

Lately, we've been hearing a lot about how the national debt is approaching the $13 trillion dollar mark.  But one accountant who’s been studying the federal deficit and national debt for nearly 20 years says $13 trillion is just a fraction of our real national debt, which is closer to $74 trillion.

When the contracted administrator of an urban renewal agency (URA) is awarded a separate contract to operate a business venture owned, in part, by the same URA, is it a conflict of interest?  That’s precisely the question in the city of Meridian, where the administrator for the Meridian Development Corporation (MDC) also manages the Ground Floor business incubator.

At a time when the City city of Boise is running a $4 million budget deficit, plans are in motion to spend a $900,000 windfall the city has received from the Union Pacific Railroad (UP).  According to the Idaho Statesman, UP has paid the city $915,349 for allowing the railroad to store its idle rail cars on the city’s spur line.  UP pays $40,000 per month for the use of the spur line.