Idaho Divorce Rate High Experts Suggest Several Reasons For Sixth Highest Rate For Failed Marriages

Divorce statistics belie Idaho’s reputation as a conservative, family-oriented state.

Idaho’s 1994 divorce rate - 6.2 divorces for every 1,000 people - is 30 percent higher than the national average. The state is tied with Alabama for sixth place, according to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare and the National Center for Health Statistics.

Washington, with 5.6 divorces for every 1,000 people, barely escapes the top 10. The 1994 numbers are the latest available.

Those numbers surprised even Rep. Tom Dorr, R-Post Falls, who unsuccessfully pushed legislation last session to make it tougher to get a divorce in Idaho. Dorr theorizes Idaho’s high rate is “attributed to excessive taxation which brings on financial stress,” he said.

Dorr isn’t sure whether he will try to reintroduce his controversial divorce bill next session if he’s re-elected.

Some experts blame Idaho’s brisk dissolution rate on the number of Idaho residents who marry young. They also say the fact that a person can file for divorce after living in the state for only six weeks also increases the number of dissolved marriages.

But researchers at the University of Idaho don’t see it that simply. Marrying younger may be a factor among many, said Nancy Wanamaker, a professor of child and family studies.

People marry young because of socioeconomic class, Wanamaker said. “The poorer you are the less likely you are to have alternatives,” such as college or other options after high school.

“The number one cause of divorce is arguing about money,” said Linda Fox, an family cooperative extension specialist at the UI. “Until three years ago, it was arguing about children.”

Neither researcher believes Idaho’s relatively short six-week residency requirement leads to more divorces. “What’s commonly commented on with divorce is it’s either accepted or it’s easy to do, but not necessarily how long it takes to file or get a divorce,” Wanamaker said.

And neither researcher believes that making divorces tougher to get will help anyone. “It seems punishing to me when it seems we need to be helping people sort through all of this,” Wanamaker said.

“We need to make people realistically aware of how challenging marriage and parenting are,” she said.

Fox offers a different tack. “Maybe we should make it harder to get married,” she said.

There is consensus on a few points. Idaho’s reputation as a wholesome family land is somewhat misleading.

“Often people don’t think we have a high divorce rate,” Fox said. “They think things are rosy” when they can be as tough here as anywhere.

Indeed, several of Idaho’s high profile politicians are divorced. U.S. Rep. Helen Chenoweth, one of several Republicans to vote for the Defense of Marriage Act this year, is divorced.

U.S. Senate candidate Walt Minnick likewise is divorced and U.S. Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, married a divorcee. Steve Symms, a former U.S. senator for Idaho is divorced. The list extends to state and local politicians.

Still, the seemingly high rates could be misleading. Nationally, the divorce rate is falling, Fox said. Idaho’s rising prominence as a divorce state may not indicate the number of divorces are increasing.

It may just be that Idaho is steady while the national rate is declining, Fox said.

Whatever the cause, experts agree Idaho’s high divorce rate costs children the most. That prompted the Idaho Supreme Court to set up a special working group last year on the issue of children and divorces.

This summer the group called for more awareness about how difficult high-conflict divorces are for children. The group also suggested faster trials, special legal representatives for children, and special rules to reduce conflicts.

“In general, we don’t consider it from the child’s perspective,” said UI’s Wanamaker. “Unless the conflict is explained to children, all of this conflict can stop their development.”

If parents are divorcing as a child enters kindergarten, for example, the child can spend the whole year stressed by the split instead of getting an education. “Adults make it easier by the way they explain it,” Wanamaker said.

Although adults are going through an extremely difficult time, they need to be educated about what effect they are having on their children, Fox added. “Regardless of the animosity one has for their spouse, the person is still the child’s other parent,” she said.

, DataTimes MEMO: Cut in Spokane edition

This sidebar appeared with the story: TOP 10 DIVORCE STATES Nevada - 9 divorces for every 1,000 people Arkansas - 7.1 Oklahoma - 6.7 Tennessee - 6.6 Wyoming - 6.5 Idaho and Alabama - 6.2 New Mexico - 6 Florida - 5.9 Kentucky and Arizona - 5.8 Mississippi - 5.7 Source: National Center for Health Statistics

Kootenai County and Idaho 1994 total number of divorces granted: In Idaho - 6,799 In Kootenai County - 695 1995 total number of divorces granted: In Idaho - 6,749 In Kootenai County - 656

The following fields overflowed: BYLINE = Ken Olsen Staff writer The Associated Press contributed to this report.