007: GARVEE Blows Up in Idaho’s Face

Issue: Big highway plans falling short: Too little money is available for even scaled-back Connecting Idaho projects, raising specter of more cutbacks or even tax increases /Shawna Gamache, Idaho Statesman

James Bond: Tuesday morning, the Idaho Statesman has a front page, above the fold story about the failed Garvee Bonding Scheme ramroded by former Governor Kemthorne. The story is the deathknell of the program. Kempthorne’s Garvee scheme was full of “inflated promises,” his “cost estimates were too low,” and his “borrowing limits were too high.” Lawmakers were snookered by Kempthorne and his army of construction industry lobbyists. Now, they want out. Sadly, there is more to the story, and that is the utter destruction of the Idaho Transportation Department. Why are we no longer building roads anymore? What happened? Garvee happened, that’s what. Instead of ITD’s huge staff of engineers and planners doing the groundwork, Kempthorne’s scheme resulted in vast quantities of money being funneled to those who lobbied for the program to the planning work. We’re paying them to plan while ITD toils, and nothing is being built! Now, lawmakers are being asked to significantly raise taxes (primarily Idaho’s already high gasoline taxes) to cover roadbuilding costs. What a mess the Republican Legislature allowed us to get into, at Kempthorne’s behest. What a mess!!!

DanG: So Phil Hart was correct when he came out against GARVEE two years ago and everyone thought he was nuts? Figures …

DFO: Even a broken clock is right two times a day, DanG. James Bond is the one who deserves the hat tip here for persisting that GARVEE was hookum while others, mainly myself, criticized him. Mea culpa.