It’s not just a couple of disgruntled Democrats anymore who want to know what the Idaho Tax Commission is up to. The 13,000-member Idaho Education Association and two other teachers’ groups last week joined state Rep. Shirley Ringo, D-Moscow, and her attorney, Robert Huntley, in a lawsuit over secret tax deals at the commission. “We take the allegations very seriously,” John Rumel, general counsel for the Idaho Education Association, told the Spokesman-Review of Spokane, Wash. “The representative’s allegations indicate that because of some sweetheart deals and corrupt practices, a substantial amount of funds that should be going into the coffers of the state are not getting there.” Dubious compromise settlements are cutting into tax revenue for education, Rumel argues, in a year when state funding for schools is down 7.5 percent/Twin Falls Times-News Editorial Board. More here.

Question: Should the Idaho Tax Commission be investigated for possible sweetheart deals with industry that may be costing the state millions in tax revenue?