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MSPC’s year in review
Legislative sessions across the Mountain States will kick off in January. We’re excited to see which of our policy recommendations...

Jason Mercier
Dec 26, 20244 min read


Policy wish list for Idaho's 2025 Legislative Session
Santa isn't the only one with a list this time of year. While we aren't in the business of making a naughty list, there are several...

Jason Mercier
Dec 17, 20242 min read


Results of the 2024 Idaho Poll
The Idaho Poll is released every other December ahead of the legislative session to provide critical information regarding the state's top p

MSPC Newsroom
Dec 13, 20241 min read


Voter turnout - which state does it best?
The data on voter turnout can help dispel myths about the voting policies in each state.

Chris Cargill
Dec 9, 20242 min read


Idaho should reform its ballot fiscal impact statement process
Idaho is one of 17 states  that requires a fiscal impact statement for a proposed ballot measure. While this is an important transparency...

Jason Mercier
Nov 17, 20244 min read


Legislative salary debate: how much is too much?
The roughly $5,000 hike means, collectively, Idaho would be spending about $525,000 more on legislative salaries. This represents .00009% of

Chris Cargill
Nov 14, 20242 min read


Bringing transparency to Idaho municipalities
One of the most important responsibilities of government is to ensure transparency. While some states and government agencies excel at...

Sebastian Griffin
Nov 11, 20243 min read


Should Washington and Oregon give their electoral votes to Donald Trump?
So far, Vice President Kamala Harris has won nearly 60% of the vote in Washington state. But under the National Popular Vote compact, Donald

Chris Cargill
Nov 8, 20242 min read


Update on 2024 ballot measures in the Mountain States
Earlier this year Mountain States Policy Center wrote studies analyzing several ballot measures across the region. Here are the current...

Jason Mercier
Nov 6, 20242 min read


Americans rejecting Ranked Choice Voting across the country in 2024
Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) was on the ballot this year in six states and voters are currently rejecting the controversial voting measure ...

Jason Mercier
Nov 6, 20242 min read


The main policy event is after the election
I don’t know about you, but I’m excited to go to my mailbox again and have it stuffed with bargain shopping deals instead of political...

Jason Mercier
Nov 4, 20241 min read


MSPC joins public records amicus
Mountain States Policy Center (MSPC) joined a public records amicus this week concerning the disclosure of state employee contract...

Jason Mercier
Oct 17, 20243 min read


Spokane’s Prop 1: The Community Safety Sales Tax
Like many cities across Washington state, the city of Spokane is facing a public safety crisis. Graffiti and garbage line many downtown...

Chris Cargill
Sep 30, 20244 min read


Montana’s CI-126 and CI-127: Enacting a Top 4 primary and 50% election threshold
This November, Montana voters will decide whether to adopt two separate constitutional amendments: CI-126 to require a non-partisan Top...

Jason Mercier
Sep 22, 20243 min read


Idaho’s Prop 1: Enacting Ranked Choice Voting and a Top 4 Primary for State Elections
This November, Idaho voters will decide whether to enact Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) for statewide elections while using a non-partisan...

Jason Mercier
Sep 17, 20244 min read


State worker contract secrecy benefits no one
Note: This is a joint op-ed with Elizabeth New ( Washington Policy Center ) and Jackson Maynard ( Citizen Action Defense Fund )....

Jason Mercier
Sep 9, 20243 min read


Open primaries bill introduced in Congress
The debate about open primaries may soon occur in the halls of Congress. A group of bipartisan lawmakers last month introduced the “ Let...

Jason Mercier
Aug 15, 20244 min read


Wyoming Governor appoints Public Records Ombudsman
Governor Gordon recently announced that he re-appointed Darlena Potter as the Cowboy state’s official Public Records Ombudsman. According...

Jason Mercier
Aug 5, 20241 min read


States should protect the integrity of the Electoral College
Seventeen states and the District of Columbia have joined in an agreement to award their Electoral College votes in a U.S. election to...

Chris Cargill
Aug 1, 20242 min read


Legal challenge filed to Idaho's open primaries/ranked choice voting initiative
As we previously reported, coupling the issues (open primaries and RCV) together in the same measure raises serious constitutional concerns.

Chris Cargill
Jul 26, 20242 min read
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