Browsing all posts in Wayne Hoffman.
The siren song of a higher minimum wage sounds good
I recently had an unemployed teenager in my car. He complained about how he was struggling to find work. And then we got into a discussion about the minimum wage. He pointed out that Washington state’s minimum wage is $9.19 an hour, and yet Idaho’s minimum wage is $7.25. How wrong it is, he said, [...]
Oh no, it’s a letter from the Idaho State Tax Commission
In the 1990s, it wasn’t uncommon for lawmakers to laud the tax collectors and auditors of the Idaho State Tax Commission. It is better to deal with the State Tax Commission, legislators would say, than the federal government and its Internal Revenue Service. That has changed, even reversed. Now, lawmakers openly talk about how the [...]
No good deed goes unpunished: Don’t mess with the statist lottery
Philip Allaire had a really great idea. Using his skills as a businessman, Allaire posed a plan to help the Nampa School District escape from a $5 million deficit. He created a nonprofit, Enriching Endowments, proposed selling raffle tickets for homes he purchased and would use the proceeds to pay down the school district’s accounting [...]
Shoshone County voters wise to reject creation of urban renewal district
Shoshone County taxpayers reached a notable conclusion in the May 21 election: More government won’t mean more economic opportunity and prosperity. I suspect that advocates of urban renewal will try again. I’m more hopeful that advocates of urban renewal in other parts of the state, including those in Nampa, will take note: If your project [...]
Wayne gives a civics lesson while pleading not guilty
It seems I offended a great number of people with last week’s column regarding my speeding ticket that a quick follow-up appears appropriate. First, as an update, I entered a plea of “not guilty” a few days ago. It seemed problematic for me to admit I violated Idaho Code 49-654(2)(E) for excessive speeding when that [...]
I violated a speeding law that does not exist
I got a speeding ticket the other day. I was driving between meetings in Kootenai County when a state police officer pulled me over. But the ticket made me wonder. I wondered why the state of Idaho has a law that fines people $155 for speeding. It turns out, it doesn’t; I broke a law [...]
Internet sales tax still a bad idea
Throughout our state, Idahoans are turning hobbies or talents into a sources of income, developing websites to sell their creativity or ingenuity or products to customers in other states. This is the free market at work. This is what entrepreneurialism and capitalism are all about—the resourceful small businessman using the web to make ends meet, [...]
Idaho should reconsider its support of Common Core
As Idahoans engage in a statewide conversation about K-12 public school improvement, I want to add another discussion point to the mix: The state should reexamine its participation in national education standards known as Common Core. I say this despite my deep respect and friendship for Idaho Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Luna, a supporter [...]
Personal political rhetoric not wanted here
During the heated debate on the state insurance exchange, I made it a point to tell people that my chief political rival on the issue, Gov. Butch Otter, is a friend of mine, and still is. In the midst of battle during the winter, I saw Butch at a function in Weiser and we embraced [...]
Legislature makes strides toward transparency, but more work is needed
Would you please indulge my inner nerd for just a moment before I get to this week’s topic? Thank you: In an episode of the original Star Trek series, Kirk and Spock beam to a planet with a mystical portal through time. The two gaze in bewilderment upon the gateway as sepia tone images of [...]
