Lawmaker Forced to Pay Taxes

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Tax protesting lawmaker Phil Hart has been ordered to pay the state more than $10,000 in legal fees and costs stemming from his tussle with the Idaho State Tax Commission. The decision was handed down by the Idaho Supreme Court Tuesday. The Republican Representative from Athol was ordered to pay $9,960 in attorney fees and another $168 in costs to cover the commission's tab in the case. In June, the high court dismissed Hart's last-ditch request to consider his state income tax appeal. Months before, the court rejected Hart's claim that he should not have been held to a 91-day deadline to appeal a $53,000 income tax bill due to the state. Hart lost his bid for another term when he was defeated in the GOP primary in May.