Legislature Deserves Credit, Praise

Statement

LEGISLATURE DESERVES CREDIT, PRAISE

By Governor C.L. "Butch" Otter

With a perspective born of little more than buying their ink by the barrel, pundits are writing that the 1st Regular Session of the 59th Idaho Legislature - my first as Idaho's governor - was contentious, dysfunctional, "do-nothing," and even the worst in a generation.

They are entitled to their opinions, but they ignore some far more important facts.

Unlike those pundits, I have nothing but admiration, respect and praise for each of the 105 men and women who put aside their private lives to participate as citizen legislators in a profoundly public process.

Republicans and Democrats alike deserve our thanks and our support for the jobs they do on our behalf.

Legislators from communities throughout Idaho could have avoided the long hours, difficult decisions and media scrutiny by staying home with their families and pursuing their personal agendas.

Instead, they chose to tackle the often thankless job of balancing competing interests, demands and needs in crafting public policies that go largely unnoticed by the people they affect - until something goes wrong.

Politics and governing are controversial by their very nature. Whether it's how best to educate our children or how best to meet our transportation needs, decisions that involve choosing one option over another inevitably leave some folks dissatisfied.

Sometimes nobody gets what they want. But that too is part of the process.

It's important to remember and trust that people with the civic virtue to get involved in that process also are sincere in their desire to do what's best, as they see it, for their constituents. That understanding, and giving individuals the benefit of the doubt, is the key to disagreeing without being disagreeable. It's how civilized people make progress.

And make no mistake, we are making progress.

From expanding community college and other higher-education opportunities to improving the pay of state employees, from providing substance abuse treatment alternatives to helping our first responders communicate more effectively, and from taking better care of the resources that taxpayer dollars have purchased to realigning some of those resources to better meet our future needs, the Idaho Legislature made great strides toward more effective, efficient and responsive state government.

So please join me in thanking your local legislators for their time, energy and effort, whether you agree with their positions or not. I know how hard they work and how sincerely they strive to make Idaho an even better place to live, work and raise a family.

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