The Idaho House of Representatives passed a memorial on Wednesday calling for talks between Idaho and Oregon about making rural Oregon counties part of Idaho.
Expanding Idaho’s borders to encompass parts of Oregon would allow rural conservative counties to become part of a Republican-controlled state, instead of a state dominated by urban progressives. 11 counties in southern and eastern Oregon have voted to join Idaho as part of the Greater Idaho movement to extend the state’s border.
A memorial is a declaration of legislative intent generally addressed to another governmental body. Memorials do not have the force of law.
Idaho House passes Greater Idaho bill, now moves to Senate https://t.co/Letco1qjla pic.twitter.com/Wl2pEypCdx
— Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) February 16, 2023
The movement is unlikely to be successful because border expansion requires support from both states and from the U.S. Congress, according to the Idaho Capital Sun. The state house, which voted 41-28 in favor, now hands the memorial to the Idaho senate, in which Republicans hold a supermajority. (RELATED: Arkansas Legislature Passes Official Working Antisemitism Definition)
“We are very pleased that the Idaho House passed HJM1 yesterday inviting the Oregon Legislature to begin talks about where it makes sense to put the border,” a Greater Idaho spokesperson told the Daily Caller. “Moving eastern Oregon counties into Idaho would be a win-win for the people of both states, and would give eastern Oregonians governance that matches our values and understands our way of life.”
Greater Idaho advocates believe both states would benefit from adding eastern and southern Oregon to Idaho. Adding parts of Oregon would increase Idaho’s budget, bring like-minded conservatives to the state, improve Idaho’s housing market and reduce the effects of Oregon’s drug decriminalization on local residents, while western Oregon would benefit by saving tax money and reducing government gridlock, the movement claims.
A poll of western Oregon residents taken in January 2022 showed only three percent believe retaining the rural counties is worth the tax burden. The majority of Idahoans support adding Oregon counties, according to a November 2021 Trafalgar poll of 1,100 residents.