'Consider us refugees': Oregon residents ask Idaho legislature to move borders, include them

BOISE, Idaho - Some people living in rural parts of eastern Oregon asked Idaho lawmakers Monday to work on moving the borders and making their counties part of the Gem State.

The group Greater Idaho is leading the charge to move the eastern counties of Oregon into Idaho.

On Monday, supporters of the idea made their case before the Idaho House State Affairs Committee.

"This is not a common practice," said Rep. Barbara Ehardt. "It's probably an uphill battle, but it makes sense."

Rep. Ehardt spoke in support of House Joint Memorial No 1.

Linked here, it would ask the Oregon Legislature and the congressional delegation from Idaho and Oregon to support moving the border.

The declaration says "Rural Oregonians are becoming increasingly frustrated with their state government and the trampling of their values and are seeking a state government that is more in line with their rural values and resource-based economy."

Mark Simmons from Oregon spoke on behalf of those disgruntled residents.

He's a rancher from Elgin, Oregon who served as Oregon's Speaker of the House more than two decades ago.

"We want to see the kind of law that reflects faith, family, moral virtue, self-reliance, hard work, the things that Idaho is based on, applied on our side of Oregon," Simmons said. "Consider us refugees. We would like to be good neighbors to the folks on the west. While they continue with their social engineering experiments … go ahead, just leave us out.”

The proposal cites Oregon's drug policies, saying rural Oregonians don't agree with those policies.

Rep. Ehardt thinks moving the borders will move things like drugs and abortion farther away.

"Oregon won’t come with any Oregon laws. It would be all Idaho laws. Every last one of em," she said. "The beauty of that… we have a little bit of a drug problem right on the side of our border. A lot of Idahoans are going there and getting drugs. That will be pushed hundreds of miles away."

Several of the Oregon counties have held votes supporting the change.

But, getting it to happen would take cooperation from the legislatures in both states and from the U.S. Congress.

Monday, the Idaho House State Affairs Committee voted unanimously to bring the discussion to the full House.

It's hard to say exactly what this massive change in geography would cost. The measure proposed in Idaho only authorizes the Idaho legislature to begin talks with Oregon.

Oregon lawmakers have introduced a similar measure.

It has not moved out of committee.

[IdiotBoxProductionsTV]

Let’s make it happen and take eastern Washington next!!!

[JW-dowc]

As an Idahoan I'm all for Greater Idaho.

[kaw]

I just recently cracked a joke about how Californians are basically refugees to Washington. I didn't mean for it to become reality, I apologize.

[KingBob_]

I hope this happens cause I live in Idaho so I want it to be bigger and better and richer

[robertkoretsky]

Then they can be banned from coming to the Oregon Health & Sciences University hospital, where they get state benefits.

[johndidier]

We only have timber and cattle...We don't need to experiment. We do however, will be needing all other Government Services, benefits, subsidy s, materials due, money due, etc.

[cindeeblake]

What the heck? Are they crazy? I agree absolutely no intelligent life in Idaho or Eastern oregon

[mineolahome]

Let these people go!!! This needs to be done in the US as a whole. National divorce!!

[Raiche]

They could just move except they're trying to have their cake and eat it too.