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Idaho cities can start applying for $54 million in federal relief funds
Idaho cities with populations of fewer than 50,000 people will begin receiving their share of $54 million from the federal American Rescue Plan Act, Gov. Brad Little and State Controller Brandon Woolf announced Monday in a press release. Almost all Idaho cities have a population small enough to be eligible for the funds. Little and […]
Are you a young person passionate about education? This advisory council seeks applicants
The first cohort of Idaho Superintendent of Public Instruction Sherri Ybarra’s Student Advisory Council is open for applications, according to a release from the Idaho State Department of Education. Ybarra’s goal is to gather a panel from across the state that represents Idaho’s diversity in grade level, background, interests, culture and school size, among other […]
Idaho unemployment down to 3% in May
Idaho’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dropped slightly, from 3.1% in April to 3% in May, according to a press release from the Idaho Department of Labor. The state’s overall labor force grew by one-tenth of a percent, the second consecutive month of labor force gains. Six industries saw significant job losses, including natural resources (-2.5%), […]
Idaho Rep. Russ Fulcher announces kidney cancer diagnosis
Rep. Russ Fulcher, who represents Idaho’s First Congressional District, announced on his Facebook page Thursday that he has renal cancer, which affects the kidneys. “No one likes to hear the ‘C’ word, especially when having a discussion with their physician, but as many of you have previously experienced … sometimes it happens,” Fulcher wrote. According […]
Given short notice, Treasure Valley cities to remain open for new Juneteenth holiday
With short notice mere hours after President Joe Biden signed a law making June 19 a national holiday, the mayors of Boise, Nampa and Meridian announced city operations would be open as normal on Friday, while the state’s executive branch agencies will be closed. June 19 is celebrated as the end of slavery in the […]
University of Idaho guarantees profit to Alaska Airlines to bring back direct Boise flights
Alaska Air announced Thursday it will add a direct flight between Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport and Boise beginning Aug. 18. The route has not been available as a direct flight for about a decade, according to a news release. The change is part of an agreement between Alaska Air and the University of Idaho, which is […]
We don’t review tax exemptions in Idaho. Could models in neighboring states work here?
Editor’s note: This is Part II of an ongoing series examining the various aspects of Idaho’s tax exemptions and lack of a legislative review process. Part I can be found here. With the exception of Nevada and Wyoming, Idaho is surrounded by states with varying degrees of a state-level review process for tax exemptions and […]
Did you get a text about unemployment claims? Delete it, Idaho Department of Labor says
The Idaho Department of Labor is warning residents about unemployment insurance text scams that are an attempt to steal personal information to file fraudulent unemployment claims. According to the release, the Idaho Department of Labor has not been hacked or experienced a data breach. If you receive a text with a link regarding unemployment insurance, […]
Idaho held an innocent man on death row for 18 years. Now it’s paying for that.
How much will the wrongful conviction of a death row inmate who spent nearly 20 years behind bars cost the state of Idaho? Close to $1.4 million. The sum will be awarded to Charles Fain, who was released from death row in 2001 after he was exonerated by DNA evidence in the 1982 sexual assault […]
Idaho’s urban areas are booming. One city’s population grew 7.5% last year.
About 10% more of Idaho’s residents live in the state’s urban areas than they did in 1980, according to the Idaho Department of Labor, and that trend of population growth is continuing. The state had the fastest growing population in the nation at 2.1% between 2019 and 2020, with much of that growth concentrated in […]
New federal broadband benefit could assist nearly one-third of Idahoans
Many Idahoans could be eligible for discounted broadband service through the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program, according to a news release from the Idaho Department of Commerce. The $3.2 billion program launched in early May and provides temporary financial assistance of up to $50 per month for broadband internet service plans, or up to $75 per […]
There’s a cement shortage, too? Yes. And it halted road repairs in northern Idaho.
Repairs to a section of Idaho Highway 13 near Grangeville have stalled because of a cement shortage related to a Canadian plant outage and weather, Idaho Transportation Department officials said. The road work near Harpster Grade began in May. Repairs involve pulling up the asphalt surface of six miles of Highway 13, mixing it with […]