Here's a link to my full story at spokesman.com, on how the final numbers, out today, show that after anguishing over deep budget cuts, Idaho ended the fiscal year well ahead of projections for state tax revenues, with an $85.3 million year-end surplus. That means public schools will get an additional $59.9 million, and Gov. Butch Otter has decided to reverse this year's decision to put off a scheduled $10 bump-up in Idaho's grocery tax credit next year, at a cost of $15 million. It also suggests some of this year's painful budget-cut decisions might not have been necessary, though most won't be reversed.

Otter said he lost his $100 bet with former Gov. Cecil Andrus that state revenues would be closer to retired chief state economist Mike Ferguson's forecast than to Otter's and the Legislature's; the governor said he's glad to pay up. Otter spokeswoman Emily Anderson said he'll likely pay Andrus “sometime this week – since it was a real bet, he'll pay up. The governor is happy to be able to lose this  bet.” Andrus, who's in Canada on business today, issued this statement: "I'm happy I won the bet on two counts - it's good news for kids in Idaho schools and I'm always happy to take a hundred bucks off Butch. I only wish the entire 85 million dollars was going to education. I look forward to collecting - soon."

The improved revenue news comes after Otter and lawmakers made deep cuts to the state budget this year, including to schools and Medicaid services for the poor and disabled. Ferguson said, “In that sense I don't feel vindicated, because some pretty harsh things have been done, and it doesn't look too likely that they'll be undone.”