News Digest:
Tuesday, April 8, 2008 10:37 AM PDT
GOOD AFTERNOON
OREGON
Kulongoski willing to sue if LNG ports not good for Oregon
EUGENE (AP) — Gov. Ted Kulongoski says he is ready to go to court to make sure any liquefied natural gas facilities slated for Oregon are needed and safe. Kulongoski was reacting to a letter from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission responding to state concerns over proposals to build facilities at the mouth of the Columbia River and at Coos Bay to unload LNG from ships and feed it to pipelines serving the West Coast.
IDAHO
Otter gives mixed
review on Legislature
BOISE (AP) — Gov. C.L. ‘‘Butch’’ Otter is giving a mixed review, both for lawmakers and his own performance, of the 2008 Legislature.
Otter says he is disappointed lawmakers failed to make any progress toward funding the state’s $240 million shortfall in transportation needs. And he blames a downturn in revenue for squelching his plans to bolster state worker salaries and college scholarships.
Boise airport juggles growth needs amid less federal money
BOISE (AP) — Government and economic development leaders in Boise say they are facing a difficult dilemma in trying to expand the city’s airport at a time when financing for those projects will only get tougher. They also say projects on the drawing board for the Boise Airport suffered a setback this month when the Idaho Legislature failed to pass a constitutional amendment designed to make it easier for the city to raise money for airport projects. Boise Mayor Dave Bieter says the challenge is finding ways to keep vital an airport he contends serves the most ‘‘remote city of its size’’ in the nation.
‘‘Boise depends more than most of its peers on air transportation for commerce, communication and tourism,’’ Bieter said.
