It could have been worse.

On his way out of office, former Gov. Dirk Kempthorne could have picked a nondescript scene of mountains and plowed farmland to represent Idaho on the state’s special 2007 quarter. Incredibly, the boring depiction of Southern Idaho landscape was one of the three finalists among 1,200 original entries. A second finalist was better but busy, with an outline of Idaho, graced by the state flower (syringa) and state insect (monarch butterfly) and the opening words to the state song: “And here we have Idaho, winning her way to fame.”

The winner features another state emblem, a little known one – the world-traveled peregrine falcon.

Few Idahoans know that the peregrine falcon is the state raptor. Or that the peregrine is one of the few success stories of the Endangered Species Act. Yet, it will be forever linked to Idaho now as a symbol as a result of Kempthorne’s unilateral decision to honor the raptor by picking a coin featuring a large peregrine head overlooking a smaller outline of the state, with the state capital of Boise designated by a star.

It could have been worse.

Kempthorne, the Idaho Commission for the Arts and the U.S. Mint could have narrowed the field to honor Idaho’s potatoes, as the state did for decades by including the words “Famous Potatoes” on car license plates. Or they could have repeated the mistake made by other states by choosing a specific location to reflect a large, diverse state, as Oregon did when it depicted Crater Lake on its quarter. Or they could have gotten caught up in a scheme with a goofy motto to promote tourism. The “SayWA” campaign of the Washington State Tourism Board comes to mind.

It could have been so much better.

After all, peregrine falcons aren’t unique to Idaho. They’re found on every continent but Antarctica. Nor do people associate peregrine falcons with Idaho. Mountain bluebird? Yes. Lakes? Yes. Mountains? Yes. Elk, appaloosa horses, Sacajawea? Yes, yes, yes. In spinning the disappointing choice Kempthorne made before he became U.S. secretary of the Interior, Gov. Jim Risch told the Idaho Statesman: “I didn’t see the other designs. I can’t say which one I’d have chosen.”

Risch isn’t alone. Few people saw the designs. Unlike Washington state, which appointed a 22-member commission and received tens of thousands of online votes before Gov. Chris Gregoire made the final choice, Idaho’s approach to its coin was secretive. The Idaho arts commission collected design submissions and recommendations from Idahoans, narrowed the field to 10, and then Kempthorne gave the U.S. Mint five suggestions for possible coins. He chose from the final three designs.

As a result, Washington has a quarter that features a leaping salmon, snowcapped Mount Rainier, an evergreen forest and the words: “The Evergreen State.” And Idaho is stuck with a peregrine falcon that was greeted by Idahoans Monday with an overwhelming: Huh? Or worse. On Tuesday, almost 70 percent of the respondents to a Statesman online poll said they didn’t like the design. Too bad they weren’t asked sooner.