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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Otter outlines plan to boost Idaho economy

Governor wants to attract foreign money, gun makers

Associated Press

BOISE – Idaho Gov. Butch Otter wants to boost the state’s economy 18 percent before he leaves office by attracting foreign investment and weapons makers, among other things.

Otter, speaking Thursday at a Boise Metro Chamber of Commerce luncheon, said the plan will increase the Idaho economy to $60 billion.

“Complacency is a recipe for disaster,” Otter said. “We must not be satisfied (just) being better off than most states.”

He said Idaho “has not been immune from the national economic downturn,” noting that the state’s own economic forecast predicts that the “next couple of years will be the most challenging in decades.”

The plan is called Project 60, and Otter said its goals include completing public infrastructure projects and recruiting people with the skills businesses need to expand.

Otter’s term ends in 2011, and he hasn’t said if he will run for a second term.

John Church, an economist in Boise, said reaching the $60 billion goal would likely take longer than 2011.

“The economy would have to start perking pretty fast for it to happen in one term,” he said. “But that kind of growth in Idaho’s gross state product would not be unprecedented. If he gets a second term, he could do it handily.”

To reach the goal, Otter said the state could encourage Canadian companies to relocate to Idaho, where they could have an easier time finding workers.

The state has also been making efforts to attract gun makers by touting state laws aimed at promoting gun ownership and manufacturing to some of the 200 small arms manufacturers in the nation that rack up about $2 billion a year in sales.

Besides favorable manufacturing and tax regulations, Idaho’s Constitution was amended in the 1990s to protect gun owners and manufacturers from licensing and registration.

Other possibilities, Otter said, include attracting foreign investment by taking advantage of a weak dollar, and trying to lure industries such as boating, recreational vehicles and snowboarding to the state.

He said Idaho has done better than other states in the last 20 years because the state’s economy has become more diversified, moving away from its dependence on agriculture and natural resources.

One successful attempt to attract foreign companies is the French-owned energy services company Areva NC Inc., which has selected eastern Idaho for the company’s proposed $2 billion uranium enrichment plant.