Gov. Otter’s boast about Idaho’s economy doesn’t add up – Reaching the governor’s ‘Project 60’ goal was largely a result of inflation, not growth.

When Gov. Butch Otter announced May 1 that he’d accomplished his aim of growing Idaho’s economic output to $60 billion before he left office, he saw that it was good.

"Almost five years ago, we established a specific benchmark for creating jobs and growing the state’s economy and I’m thrilled that we’ve achieved that goal despite weathering some of the toughest economic times in memory," the two-term governor said.

Left unsaid by Otter is the depressing reality that Idaho’s economy didn’t grow at all in his first six years in office. In fact, from calendar 2007 to calendar 2012, the state’s annual economic output fell from $51.4 billion to $51 billion in 2005 inflation-adjusted dollars.

By DAN POPKEY

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