This morning, the Idaho Freedom Foundation filed a complaint with the Bannock County prosecutor alleging that the Pocatello/Chubbuck School Board met illegally to discuss budget cuts. While the cuts in question -- reducing administrator pay -- may be appropriate, the law requires certain discussions to take place in public so that taxpayers can understand and weigh what's going on.
Solutions
School districts have yet to consider pay, benefit changes
May 10, 2010 | posted by Wayne Hoffman inAll across the state, local school districts are holding meetings, hearings and work sessions to figure out how they’ll come to terms with $128 million in cuts approved by the Legislature and Gov. Butch Otter.
Growth in government jobs reveals the crime against the private sector
May 03, 2010 | posted by Wayne Hoffman inThere are a lot of good people who work in government. Police officers. Teachers. Social Workers. Inspectors. They have jobs to do, and many of them do their jobs exceedingly well. The problem is government takes from the private sector in order to fund its operations, and today, it seems government has a say in just about every aspect of our lives. It extends beyond the proper role of government. We could use a good deal fewer people working in government and a good deal fewer government programs.
The true cost of Obamacare is liberty
April 26, 2010 | posted by Wayne Hoffman inThe Congressional Budget Office released new data Thursday estimating that by 2016, some 4 million Americans will face penalties for failing to buy health insurance as mandated under Obamacare. Additionally, the CBO estimated that 25 percent of those facing the penalty will be at the low end of the income scale; the penalty is expected to apply to about 400,000 Americans living below the federal poverty level (projected for 2016 to be $11,800 for a single person and $24,000 for a family of four).
Mainstream media outrage over conservative-sponsored news outlets
April 19, 2010 | posted by Wayne Hoffman inThe ghost of Herbert Morrison has returned. Morrison was the pioneer radio reporter who, in 1937, summed up the horrific crash of the Hindenburg with the now-immortal words, "Oh, the humanity." Reporters and editors in the media are pretending to leap from flames and bellow "Oh, the humanity" once again after an Associated Press story described how conservative organizations, such as the Idaho Freedom Foundation, are busy with their own upstart news operations. IFF has two reporters dedicated to coverage of state government issues at IdahoReporter.com.
Legislative process harmed by lies, unelected 'legislators' casting votes
April 05, 2010 | posted by Wayne Hoffman inThe Idaho Legislature is not Congress. Congress' reputation is worsening as the years go by. The recent passage of the thousands of pages of Constitution-subverting "healthcare" legislation -- which was read by no one ahead of time -- is sadly a symptom of a greater illness for what used to be "the finest deliberative body" in human history. Congress is simply out of control.
Taxpayers deserve transparency in 2010
April 01, 2010 | posted by Wayne Hoffman inHere's a simple proposition: Taxpayers have the right to know how every cent, every dollar is spent by their local and state governments. Even though that proposition is fairly simple, the state Legislature has struggled with even the smallest of measures to bring more government transparency to Idaho. Last year, the House split evenly on Hayden Republican Rep. Phil Hart's bill to require the state to start developing a spending database.
Taking a stand against mandatory health insurance
March 21, 2010 | posted by Wayne Hoffman inIt took me about an hour to fill out my Census form. Not because I'm stupid and the 10 questions stumped me. I marked how many people live in at my address, because that is what the Constitution designed the Census to answer. I refused to answer the question of whether I own my home, because it's really none of the federal government's business. And then I paused for a long time. I was really torn about telling the federal government my race.
IFF to stand with state in legal action to block health insurance mandate
March 18, 2010 | posted by Wayne Hoffman inIdaho Freedom Foundation Executive Director Wayne Hoffman said Thursday the IFF will stand with the state of Idaho and join in any legal action to keep Idahoans free from having to buy health insurance under a federally-passed health insurance mandate.
Legislature unwilling to eliminate agencies, goes with tax credit instead
March 15, 2010 | posted by Wayne Hoffman inThe state Legislature will conclude its work this winter having determined that there's not a single agency in all of state government that can be eliminated. The conclusion could be interpreted to mean that every last agency is a necessary and proper component of the state government and that there is no duplication of services or opportunities to combine agencies. I find that hard to believe, and many Idahoans would, too, I suspect. The real reason agencies have staying power is that agencies have constituencies who would be upset if their programs were dissolved.
