Governor Otter gets earful on rural woes
Dan Popkey
January 28, 2010
Idaho Statesman
SHOSHONE - Gov. Butch Otter fielded questions about budget cuts, vole infestations, higher utility bills, fears of flooding, hunger, unaffordable health care and taxes.
"It just seems like no matter how hard we try it just keeps getting tougher and tougher," said John Uhrig, a rancher and horse trainer from Shoshone. "I'm looking for that little bit of advice, that little bit of encouragement that says, 'Yes, we're all in this together.' "
Otter told Uhrig and others at his 36th Capital for a Day that Idaho's best hope is unity. "We gotta realize that the only way we're going to get through this is working together, that we are a family, but we just happen to be a family of a million-and-a-half people."
Questioned by Vernon Johnson of Shoshone, Otter defended cutting the state's $1.6 million support for Idaho Public Television.
"I don't mind hearing from you, 'Don't cut PBS.' But I need you to go a little bit further. What should I cut then?"
Johnson replied that he favored increases in beer and wine taxes rejected by the Legislature last year. Said Otter: "I hear absolutely no appetite for raising any taxes."
Otter parried a question about higher entrance fees in state parks, saying, "If I've got to make a decision between your going to that park for free or spending that $6.2 million in the classroom, the classroom wins."
Otter said he wants to invest in education and economic development to "continue to build a world-class work force."
"I don't know what else we can do," he said, citing 9.1 percent unemployment and a record 180,000 Idahoans receiving food stamps.
"What we do have is the will to make this thing work, the will to help each other, everybody, get though this economic downturn. So when that bright day comes, we're going to leap out of this, not just crawl out of it."
Ray McClure of Shoshone credited Otter for doing a good job, noting he brought two dozen top state officials to take questions for six hours. "I like the plethora of ties and ladies' dresses up there," he said, referring to a string of tables at the Lincoln County Community Center peopled by Otter aides.
But McClure said government intrudes. "I don't want to be taxed by the government because I have a beer, or because I want to buy a bullet, or because I want to have a '73 Dodge Charger that only gets four miles to the gallon," he said.
McClure called for term limits and mentioned Keith Allred, the Democrat seeking to unseat Republican Otter, who has been a top elected official since 1987, serving as lieutenant governor, congressman and governor.
"I just think people are ready for change," McClure said.
Otter responded that he knows every incumbent is at risk. "There's just a general frustration with government," he said. But he added, "We do care what you say, we do care how you feel. That's why we're here."
A discussion on health care took up most of the two hours after lunch, with Otter defending his opposition to Democratic health reform bills, saying they don't do anything to contain costs.
Some lamented the failure of compromise. Said Earl Olson: "I'm sure health care (reform) is dead, probably for the next 50 years."
While health care accessibility is a concern across the country, the grim mood in farm country has different roots than in urban Idaho.
Larry Velasquez, a farmer in Gooding, is fighting voles that ruin his hay crop.
Infestations are cyclical, said Bill Hutchinson of the Department of Fish & Game, and West Nile virus has killed predators, including raptors, magpies and seagulls. Velasquez can't use poison because the hay can't be eaten, so he may have to wait out the cycle.
Electric costs are a problem, said Shoshone Mayor J.R. Churchman, who said his Idaho Power bill has risen 18 percent in a year. "Idaho Power's lawyers are just a helluva lot better than the (Public Utilities) Commission's," he said.
Merrie Williams of Dietrich said her husband, an electrician, has a neuromuscular disease that's left him disabled. Federal stimulus money paid for weatherizing their home, Williams said, but she fears for senior citizens who won't call for help.
Aging Commission Director Kim Toryanski offered energy assistance, and Otter said his aim is to consolidate social services. "Folks just don't know where to go to surrender in order to get that assistance," he said.
Phil Vaught of Shoshone asked for help in clearing red tape to allow removal of trees from the Little Wood River. "We need an answer to this," Vaught said. "This town's going to flood."
Otter said his staff would help with permits.
Jay Thurber, who runs the Head Start program in Shoshone, said closing Health & Welfare offices is a burden to those who must drive to Twin Falls for services. Otter said it's preferable to cutting staff.
For all the dreary reports, Otter's optimism is sound, said Ted Uhrig of Shoshone, John Uhrig's father.
Ted Uhrig was born in December 1932, perhaps the darkest time in the Great Depression, during the four-month gap between the election of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his inauguration.
Ted Uhrig is convinced America will recover. "I seen it happen - '32 was bad, probably worse than now. We came out of that and we'll come out of this. It's gonna be tough, but we'll survive."
Dan Popkey: 377-6438
Originally posted at http://www.idahostatesman.com/localnews/story/1058773.html
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