Idaho Gov. Butch Otter is addressing the Idaho Chamber Alliance this morning, and he told the group of business people from around the state, "I believe we're looking at a good year. I tried to get that across in my State of the State. ... There's a lot of positive things going on."

Otter said December state revenues were strong, and there could be news about January revenues next week. "So if we establish a trend ... we'll know more about our future, exactly where we're going to be able to go, not only with funding the proper and necessary roles of government, but also with tax relief, where it's going to go." Otter said, "Over the summer ... I had a multitude of legislators come in and talk to me about where they would like to see some tax relief." He reiterated that his "druthers" would be first to drop the state's individual income tax rate to match the corporate tax rate, then, in the future, as revenues allow, move both rates down together. That would cost the state treasury a little over $13 million a year.

"I am positive. I'm bullish on this year and where we're going, because I see a lot of optimistic signs, I see a lot of faith," Otter said. "I see a confidence coming back."