Greater Idaho Moves a Step Closer
Posted on February 4, 2023 by Baron Bodissey
I posted last month about the Greater Idaho movement, which aims to move the border of Oregon to the west, allowing rural Oregonian counties to join Idaho, with which they are culturally and politically compatible. Initially there would be eleven counties that would switch from Oregon to Idaho, while others would be added later, possibly including several from northern California, and giving Idaho a Pacific coastline.
A bill to begin the consultation process with Oregon was formally introduced in the Idaho legislature earlier this week. Below is the press release sent out by Greater Idaho:
Greater Idaho Bill Introduced in Idaho Legislature
A bill that would invite Oregon to begin talks with the Idaho Legislature about relocating their state line was unanimously awarded a bill number, HJM 1, by the Idaho House of Representatives’ State Affairs Committee today after a short discussion. It was then read on the floor of the House. A full hearing before the committee was scheduled for February 13 at 9 AM.
Rep. Judy Boyle and Rep. Barbara Ehardt are the bill’s lead sponsors, and three cosponsors signed on to the bill immediately after it was printed. Rep. Boyle, whose district shares a border with Oregon, gave the committee several reasons to support the bill. She explained that her county has been overwhelmed by drugs since Oregon changed its laws on marijuana and decriminalized hard drugs. She said moving the state line would move the problem farther away.
Rep. Boyle cited a forthcoming final report on a major economic analysis that was funded by the Claremont Institute. The study found that relocating the state border would provide a net benefit to the government of Idaho’s budget of $170 million annually.
Lastly, she said that relocating the border would ease the intense influx of people to the current counties of Idaho, as some of the migration is politically motivated. The proposed relocation would increase Idaho’s territory by 74% while increasing the state’s population by 21% according to the “Greater Idaho” movement’s website greateridaho.org.
A video of this “print hearing” is here.
The bill introduced today [February 1] mirrors a bill introduced into this session of the Oregon Legislature by Senator Dennis Linthicum.
Also, the Greater Idaho movement has also announced a film contest to crowdsource its next YouTube ad.
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