Idaho is most moved destination 2 years in a row, will it change the state forever? (Boise: transplants, tax)

[harrishawke]

Last time I visited Idaho Falls and Boise, it has become much more diverse than ever before. With a record number of incoming transplants (many from California), will the states politics and demographics change forever? One thing I liked about Idaho was that many people thought independently, was not a fan of big Gov't, and loved freedoms. I hope the state doesn't turn into an expensive high tax state like much of the country. For people that live in the state, is it changing for the better, or worse?

https://www.idahostatesman.com/enter...248294365.html

[Mister Torgue]

Originally Posted by harrishawke

Last time I visited Idaho Falls and Boise, it has become much more diverse than ever before. With a record number of incoming of transplants (many from California), will the states politics and demographics change forever? One thing I liked about Idaho was that many people thought independently, was not a fan of big Gov't, and loved freedoms. I hope the state doesn't turn into an expensive high tax state like much of the country. For people that live in the state, is it changing for the better, or worse?

https://www.idahostatesman.com/enter...248294365.html

Wow, that is a little disappointing and depressing at the same time. I'll sit back and watch this trend (and topic) as well since it impacts me and my family.

[nm9stheham]

This article is dumb in that it purports that the United Van Lines survey is somehow showing that ID is the 'moved moved to' state.

The referenced documents from United Van Lines just looks at the % of total moves in and out of a state, not the actual total moves in or out of a state. So if a state had 200 moves in, and 50 out, that would be 80% 'move-ins' and would top the list. But the actual impact for a net move-in-over move-out would be tiny for a net incoming moves of 150 compared to the overall population. So this survey ranking is no way to judge the numbers of incoming people.

Journalists are no smarter than the average person, and this demonstrates that fact. They just gotta fill space and time, and articles like this rate no better than 'internet click-bait'.

[MTJoe]

"Will it change the state forever?"
This is inevitable. When you have a large influx of people from a different area they tend to bring their ideas, ideals, habits etc. Good or bad, it's bound to cause change.

[mistyriver]

The influx of people already has changed the state.

https://www.hcn.org/issues/45.8/how-...ed-north-idaho

[MTJoe]

Originally Posted by mistyriver

The influx of people already has changed the state.

https://www.hcn.org/issues/45.8/how-...ed-north-idaho

Interesting article. Side note: There are 2 pages to the article...it's easy to think it ends on page 1. Unfortunately can't read the comments without a subscription.

[highplainsrunaway]

A very interesting article.

Since the article is 8 years old, can any of you "locals" out there comment on the current climate?

[Clark Fork Fantast]

Originally Posted by harrishawke

Last time I visited Idaho Falls and Boise, it has become much more diverse than ever before. With a record number of incoming transplants (many from California), will the states politics and demographics change forever? One thing I liked about Idaho was that many people thought independently, was not a fan of big Gov't, and loved freedoms. I hope the state doesn't turn into an expensive high tax state like much of the country. For people that live in the state, is it changing for the better, or worse?

https://www.idahostatesman.com/enter...248294365.html

Originally Posted by highplainsrunaway

A very interesting article.

Since the article is 8 years old, can any of you "locals" out there comment on the current climate?

We've had several threads discussing that issue lately, from a cultural as well as an economic angle. You may want to browse some of our recent threads.

https://www.city-data.com/forum/idah...-continue.html
https://www.city-data.com/forum/idah...hailey-vs.html
https://www.city-data.com/forum/bois...ffordable.html

[banjomike]

I'm not sure of the true cause, but this is one big recent change...

he South Fork of the Snake has been open season on its Rainbow trout for years. The objective was to thin the numbers of Rainbow, an introduced species to Idaho, to protect the native Yellowstone Cutthroat trout.

The South Fork is the Cut's last great strongholds. They are equals to the Rainbow as a game fish, and are as vital a keystone species to the health of our major rivers as the sockeye salmon, our other great native fish.

The problem with the Rainbow is they mature faster in Idaho's colder waters, so they become apex predators in all the smaller creeks and streams that are the Cutthroat's spawning grounds. But if given more time to mature, the Cut will grow to similar size to the Rainbow, so they are as good for trophy fish.

The other problem with the Rainbow is eradicating them. Mature rainbow will move into the deep waters of lakes and become lake trout that spawn in the lakes, then spread into all the rivers in a lake drainage as fingerlings. Rainbow won't ever become totally eradicated now, as they have been here for far too long, but the Fish & Game Dept. believes they can be controlled, as they inhabit the entire state and the Cuts do not.

The Cutthroat is a regional species, and now, one of the rare ones that has managed to survive in numbers large enough to prevent them from falling into the Threatened Species death spiral. While there is a catch limit on the Cutthroat, they are still legal to catch and keep, though catch and release is preferred and is mandatory in some streams.

Young Cutthroat don't prey on other fish as exclusively as the Rainbows, and have adapted to the food sources in our creeks, their spawning grounds. So they keep our headwaters in their proper ecological balance.

The Rainbows will strip a creek out of all their competition, and they are pickier eaters. So if a disease hits them, the only game species in an entire waterway can die off, leaving a region's headwaters in a dangerously unbalanced state.

Apparently, even the open season hasn't produced enough human fish killers, possibly due to the pandemic, so Fish & Game plans to start an aggressive electrofishing effort beginning in May.
The objective is to remove 30%, about 12,000 fish, from the Yellowstone region's Idaho waterways. Once the number of Rainbow is down to 10% of the total fish population, Yellowstone's waters will become stable and in their natural state once more.

Our waters have simply been too abundant and too clean for their own good over the past 20 years. Fish & Game doesn't want to remove so many game fish. They would rather see those fish caught by sportsmen and women.

How many fish live in the South Fork?
A survey last fall pegged the number at 6,302 fish per mile in the upper Palisades, above the dam. About 43% of them are Rainbows.

The South Fork also has a 3rd trophy species, the Brown trout, which make up about 1,200 fish per mile. But the Brown's spawning comes in the fall, so they don't compete nor threaten the Cutthroat very much.

[MTJoe]

So...are you suggesting an "eradication program" for non-native Idahoans?