IDAHO: Why it beats Washington

Choosing to live in Idaho instead of Washington state was a no-brainer for me. Idaho has a population of approximately 1,585,000, while Washington has a population of approximately 6,725,000. Washington has 4.25 times the people of Idaho, yet Washington state’s cost of government per person living in Washington is $4,838, while Idaho’s cost of government per person is only $2,675. That is 81 percent higher for each person living in Washington.

The great thing about mathematics is that it never lies. However, the people giving mathematical answers (money answers) oftentimes lie to their audiences. As far as this taxpayer is concerned, Idaho state government is far from broken. The facts bear out that Idaho’s government is “running on all eight cylinders” and is performing very well.

Certainly, there is always room for improvement. However, Idaho taxpayers need only look to their western neighbors to discover just how much worse things could be. True; if you are a schoolteacher, policeman, fireman or government employee working in Idaho you certainly are not satisfied with your pay package, your medical package or your retirement package. I understand this, but on the other hand, since “other” Idaho taxpayers besides the ones listed above are also helping to pay your coveted financial packages, I believe we are all getting a much better deal than they are getting in Washington state.

America has always been the land of opportunity. Freedom to choose is part of this opportunity. If the choice is between Washington state cost of government and Idaho state cost of government, I for one will gladly choose Idaho. From the information I am getting concerning Idaho, there are going to be many more people choosing Idaho also in the coming years.

NATHAN PROWER

Bayview