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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Grading states for corruptibility

Washington gets B-, Idaho D-

OLYMPIA – Washington is among the least “corruptible” states in the nation, while Idaho placed 40th out of 50 in a scorecard released Monday. Two watchdog organizations, the Center for Public Integrity and Global Integrity joined with Public Radio International and journalists around the country to score the states on some 330 points involving a wide array of government activities. The scores were then tallied, and letter grades assigned. No state got an A. Among the five that received Bs was Washington, ranked third with a B-, and getting top grades for the way it handles political redistricting, internal audits of state government and disclosure of lobbyists’ pay and spending. Idaho also got As for its redistricting and internal audit processes. But it received Fs for a lack of laws that allow residents to keep its executive and legislative officials accountable, determine whether its civil service and pension fund are well managed, and having no agency assigned to monitor or enforce ethics laws. In the end, the state received a D-. Eight states failed. To see the report cards for Washington and Idaho click here.