Inside the Greater Idaho Effort

What started as a joke could become a reality if a group of dedicated Oregonians gets their way. Members of the group Greater Idaho presented their case to the Idaho Legislature this week. The critics in the media will continue their snide remarks on social media. However, these folks should be encouraged to continue with their efforts.  

Several influential legislators expressed their support for creating the third largest state in the union, reports Newser. Rep. Barbara Ehardt (R - Idaho Falls) “With everybody moving to Idaho, it isn’t lost on me the addition of landmass, water, resources, agriculture, timber; there are some appealing things to Idahoans, at least in my estimation, to even consider this.”

You can read the entire detailed report here. Former Speaker of the Oregon House, Mark Simmons of Elgin, Oregon testified in favor of moving the border, describing how it would strengthen Idaho by adding the deep-water port at Coos Bay to Idaho, making it less dependent on Oregon’s decisions regarding ports and the federal government’s upcoming decisions to perhaps eliminate locks on the Snake river. 

Mike McCarter, president of Citizens for Greater Idaho, told the committees that rural Oregon’s economy would boom under Idaho’s low-tax regulatory environment, making the area a benefit to Idaho’s state budget in a press release.