Government Transparency

Four Idaho Websites Get National Award For Government Transparency

Adam Cotterell — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 21:48:55 +0000

Three Idaho school districts and a county have been honored for their websites. The non-profit government transparency organization Sunshine Review gave its annual Sunny Awards to the 247 government websites it deemed most transparent.

The Boise, Blaine County and Caldwell School Districts made the list. Canyon was the only Idaho county to show up.

Idaho Launches Government Transparency Website

Emilie Ritter Saunders — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 17:24:13 +0000

In an effort to become more transparent, the state of Idaho has launched a new website that details state spending and revenue. Transparent.Idaho.gov was created by the state controller’s office, after the state continually received failing grades on its openness.

Last year during ‘sunshine week,’ StateImpact Idaho reported on two separate transparency report cards — one gave Idaho an "F", the other a “D-".

Clawbacks In Connecticut: What Idaho Could Learn From How One State Handles Breaks For Business

Emilie Ritter Saunders — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 17:36:08 +0000

Every state, including Idaho, offers tax breaks, grants or subsidies to businesses in hopes of spurring economic development.

But the states vary widely in terms of what they do when a company doesn’t create as many jobs as it agreed to, or otherwise follow through with its end of the incentive bargain.

Companies Receive Idaho Training Grants, But Make No Long-Term Promises

Emilie Ritter Saunders — Mon, 25 Jun 2012 14:00:00 +0000

Last month, Transform Solar announced that it was closing and laying off about 250 people at its facility in Nampa. As StateImpact reported, the manufacturer of high-tech solar cells, had received $1.68 million in workforce training grants from the state of Idaho — money that the company will not have to pay back.

Update: Transform Solar Received $1.68 M In State Training Grants Before Announcing Layoffs

Emilie Ritter Saunders — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 15:53:44 +0000

Earlier this week, Micron-owned Transform Solar, a maker of high-tech solar cells, announced it’s closing and laying-off at least 250 people over the next three months.

What Some States Do To Disclose Tax Incentive Info

Emilie Ritter Saunders — Fri, 04 May 2012 20:22:54 +0000

A recent report from Pew Center on the States lists Idaho among 26 states ‘trailing behind’ when it comes to evaluating tax incentives. That is, having a mechanism in place to take a closer look at the state-specific incentives and exemptions on a regular basis, and to evaluate if they’re doing what they were intended to do. In most cases, t

Q&A: Who Gets Idaho's Tax Breaks? Why Details Are In The Dark

Emilie Ritter Saunders and Scott Graf — Fri, 04 May 2012 13:30:00 +0000

StateImpact Idaho has rolled out a series of stories this week on tax incentive transparency in Idaho. That is, what is and isn’t public information when it comes to business tax credits and exemptions.

Almost always, tax incentives are created in the name of economic development. But in Idaho, little information is available about whether these incentives create jobs and grow companies.

Open Government Advocate: Tax Incentive Details Should Be Public Info

Emilie Ritter Saunders — Thu, 03 May 2012 19:10:08 +0000

Good Jobs First is a non-partisan, non-profit government transparency advocacy group based in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1998 by Greg LeRoy, who is now executive director. LeRoy has been studying tax incentive transparency for more than two decades. We recently spoke with him to learn more about what he considers ‘transparent enough,’ and what states are doing to open incentive information to the public.

Study: Idaho 'Trailing Behind' On Measuring Tax Incentive Effectiveness

Emilie Ritter Saunders — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 16:34:28 +0000

A new 55-page report from The Pew Center on the States shows most states don’t really know if business tax incentives are boosting job growth.