News Digest:
Wednesday, October 8, 2008 10:44 AM PDT
GOOD AFTERNOON
IDAHO
Idaho governor pitches pay-to-drive program
IDAHO FALLS (AP) — Idaho Gov. C.L. ‘‘Butch’’ Otter says the state could raise money for needed transportation projects by charging drivers for how much they drive.
Otter described the proposal to about 150 people attending an Idaho Falls City Club Forum on Monday, the Post Register reported.
‘‘I believe in user-based pay,’’ Otter said.
Under the plan, people would disclose their vehicle’s mileage when they register the vehicle. Each year, state officials would subtract the current year’s mileage from the previous year’s mileage and charge the driver accordingly. The more mileage a driver reports, the more he or she would pay. Idaho’s roads and bridges need improvement, Otter said, and the state Transportation Department needs more money to make those improvements, even if it means raising taxes.
OREGON
Oregon ranks 9th for business tax climate
EUGENE (AP) — Oregon remains in the top 10 among states for business taxes. Oregon is ranked No. 9 by the Tax Foundation for its 2009 state business tax climate index.The nonprofit and nonpartisan foundation is based in Washington, D.C., and has been examining government fiscal policies since 1937. For the past six years, the group has published an annual ranking of states based on the taxes that matter most to business: corporate tax, individual income tax, sales tax, unemployment tax and property tax.
Lebanon schools,
superintendent part ways
LEBANON (AP) — Lebanon school Superintendent Jim Robinson has resigned effective immediately after the school board approved a $400,000 settlement package.
The package includes Robinson’s salary and benefits through the remainder of his contract in 2012 and health insurance through his 65th birthday in March 2013. His current salary is $123,443. Under the terms of the settlement, the district agreed to remove the 60-year-old Robinson’s last evaluation, which graded him poorly, from his personnel file.
