Economy

If you’ve noticed Idaho’s gas prices edging up in the past week, you’re not alone. After hitting a low of $2.94 earlier this month, AAA Idaho reports the average price per gallon is now $3.06. But even though the rise in prices may not be welcome, it's not surprising.

The high price of silver is bringing one of the Northwest's oldest silver mines back online. The Sunshine Mine in north Idaho is known for one of the worst mining disasters in the nation’s history. It will resume production in late 2014.

A year ago, Governor C.L. "Butch" Otter created a task force to examine ways to examining the future of nuclear energy in the state.

The Leadership in Nuclear Energy Commission, more commonly known as the LINE Commission, released an initial list of recommendations in early December.  Next week, the group will make public its final recommendations. 

On Morning Edition Friday, we spoke with EarthFix reporter Aaron Kunz for a preview. 

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Phone companies aim to lift Idaho's 13-year-old restriction forbidding them from cold-calling existing customers, arguing it's crippling their ability to market high-speed Internet.

But Attorney General Lawrence Wasden is already criticizing the push, arguing residents who joined Idaho's million-number "Do Not Call" list shouldn't have to fear erosions of their privacy.

Land-line companies Frontier Communications and Century Link are lobbying for the changes during the 2013 session.

After the bruising "fiscal cliff" negotiations wrapped up earlier this week, Idahoans will take home less from their first paycheck in 2013.

Now that presents have been opened, it's time for another tradition of the holiday season: bags upon bags of trash.  One garbage collector in north Idaho says he sees reflections of the economy in this year’s haul.

At the transfer station in Shoshone County, Idaho, signs of the holidays are all around Vince Peterson.

“Mostly the amount of cardboard, plastic," he says.  "Wrapping paper goes wild.”