The Valley Signal


Government & Accountability Growth & Land Use Health & Safety

Section

Government & Accountability

City councils, county commission, recalls, and public records across Victor, Driggs, Tetonia, and Teton County, Idaho.


Deep Dive

An Independent Audit Said Driggs Overcharged Victor on Their Wastewater Loan

May 15, 2026

An independent CPA examination found Driggs overcharged Victor for years on their shared wastewater loan, the core of Victor's 2026 lawsuit.

An independent CPA examination jointly commissioned by Driggs and Victor concluded that Driggs overcharged Victor for years on the cities' shared wastewater loan, used a cost-allocation method the inter-city agreement does not authorize, and could not reconcile two of three quarterly bills the auditor tested. The report, signed by Cooper Norman in Idaho Falls on February 9, 2024, became part of the public record on March 27, 2025, when the Victor City Council voted to end the 26-year partnership and build its own treatment plant.

The finding that Driggs overcharged Victor is the documentary core of the breach-of-contract claims Victor filed in March 2026, set down two years before the suit.

Driggs and Victor share a wastewater treatment plant under a 2011 Inter-City Agreement that requires the cities to split debt service on a 2016 Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) loan and to share operating costs. The two cities jointly retained Cooper Norman to test compliance with both. The firm released to both mayors an "amended and restated" examination after Victor asked for additional detail on how the quarterly debt payments split between the wastewater plant and the trunkline.

An independent CPA examination jointly commissioned by Driggs and Victor concluded that Driggs overcharged Victor for years on the cities' shared wastewater loan, used a cost-allocation method the inter-city agreement does not authorize, and could not reconcile two of three quarterly bills the auditor tested. The report, signed by Cooper Norman in Idaho Falls on February 9, 2024, became part of the public record on March 27, 2025, when the Victor City Council voted to end the 26-year partnership and build its own treatment plant.

Read full story
Government & Accountability

What a Failed Road Levy Would Cost Teton Valley

May 15, 2026

VICTOR — Victor City Treasurer Jasmine Griffin told the City Council on May 13 that if Teton County voters reject the road levy on May 19, Victor will open its next budget year about $200,000 short on road funding, a gap the city would cover from its Local Option Tax.

The Special Road & Bridge Levy on Tuesday's primary ballot funds road work for four governments. The county's Road & Bridge department takes the largest share, roughly a million dollars, about a third of its road budget. The rest comes from state fuel taxes and vehicle registration fees. The cities of Victor, Driggs, and Tetonia divide the remainder in proportion to the property taxes paid within each. Victor's slice is the best documented of the three: the city budgeted $205,000 in road-levy revenue this year, the money behind Griffin's warning. A failed renewal would leave all four governments short. Teton County voters have approved the two-year measure in every cycle since 2010, and this year's version asks for up to $1.5 million per year, up from $1.4 million in 2024, to replace the current levy when it expires on September 30.

Read more
Government & Accountability

How Driggs Is Borrowing $25 Million for a Wastewater Plant Without a Bond Election

April 29, 2026

DRIGGS — Driggs is borrowing $25 million to rebuild its wastewater treatment plant without a bond election. The Driggs City Council adopted Resolution 421-24 on Sept. 3, 2024, authorizing outside counsel to file for judicial confirmation in district court. A confirmed judgment is the city's legal authority to take on the debt.

Idaho's Board of Environmental Quality adopts the final fiscal-year 2027 Clean Water State Revolving Fund priority list on June 1, locking in a $25 million SRF loan for the Driggs wastewater rebuild, with $6.34 million of principal forgiven and $18.66 million repayable over 30 years at 2.5%. The Signal's separate explainer, What ARPA, IIJA, and FEMA Paid for in the Driggs Wastewater Rebuild, covers which federal programs are inside that package.

Read more
The Week Ahead

The Two-Week Ahead: Five New Applications, the LDC Hearing, and Primary Day

May 11, 2026

DRIGGS — The week ahead in Teton Valley loads five development applications onto the joint Driggs and Teton County Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) docket for May 12, the centerpiece of a two-week stretch that also runs a full Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) meeting on May 11, the county's Land Development Code (LDC) public hearing on May 18, and the Idaho primary on May 19. The county had not posted cover pages for the May 11 BOCC and May 12 P&Z hearings to the eScribe portal as of Sunday night, but staff reports and supporting documents for every item are on file.

Read more
Government & Accountability

Idaho Clerks Have 60 Days to Verify Signatures on Reproductive Rights

May 6, 2026

Idahoans United

Read more
The Week Ahead

The Two-Week Ahead: Sweetwater Returns as the LDC Window Closes May 11

May 1, 2026

The week ahead in Teton Valley packs three of the spring's biggest civic items into a single Monday. On May 11, Teton County commissioners are scheduled to rule on whether neighbors have standing to reopen the Sweetwater Subdivision approval, the written-comment window on the county Land Development Code rewrite closes at 5 p.m., and Idaho DEQ holds a virtual info meeting on the $25 million wastewater funding package that ranks Driggs first on the state's draft list. The following Tuesday, Driggs Planning and Zoning takes up the 171-lot Corona Valley Subdivision. The window closes Sunday, May 17, a quiet day before May 19, the heaviest civic day on the spring calendar.

Read more
Government & Accountability

Victor Rescinds the Evans Wastewater Land Deal

April 30, 2026

VICTOR. The Victor City Council rescinded the Evans wastewater land deal at a special meeting, repealed the January annexation, and adopted an ordinance to exclude the parcel from the city limits. The City Attorney's April 29 staff report says the city and the seller "have agreed in principle to terminate" the contract; the rescission agreement includes de-annexation as a term. The council voted unanimously.

Read more
Government & Accountability

Commissioners Balk at Broad Exclusivity in Proposed RAD Franchise

April 28, 2026

DRIGGS — Two of three Teton County commissioners questioned the breadth of exclusivity in a proposed new RAD franchise agreement at a Friday work session, with the third reluctant to disturb a working relationship. Commissioners declined to act, pushing the discussion toward amending the existing contract. The fallback is putting waste collection out to competitive bid for the first time since 2015.

Read more
The Week Ahead

Week Ahead: April 27 – May 10

April 25, 2026

The week ahead in Teton County puts three separate hearings in the courthouse on Monday: a Board of County Commissioners business meeting, a reconsideration of the Sweetwater Ranch Subdivision after a resident petition, and the first town hall on the new Teton River recreation ordinance. Idaho organizers face a Thursday deadline to turn in signatures for the reproductive rights ballot initiative. Wildfire Awareness Day lands Saturday, May 2. The following week opens with a Driggs City Council meeting on May 5 and goes quiet through the weekend of May 9–10.

Read more
Government & Accountability

Inside the Victor Wastewater Vote: The Case for Going Back, and Why it's Closed

April 24, 2026

VICTOR. The Victor wastewater fight reached its next milestone Wednesday when City Council voted 3-1 to amend the fiscal 2026 appropriations ordinance by $2,625,366 and to disburse $1,984,035.25 to close the Evans purchase, a 40-acre parcel at Highway 33 and 7000 South, the site of the city's planned independent Class A treatment facility. Councilors Sue Muncaster, Emily Sustick, and Stacy Hulsing voted in favor. Councilor Amy Ross dissented. Mayor Will Frohlich was absent.

Read more
Government & Accountability

Victor Drops its Public Records Policy and Leaves the Coletti Dispute Unresolved

April 24, 2026

VICTOR. City Council on Wednesday directed staff to discontinue Victor's standalone public records policy and administer requests under Idaho Code Title 74, but left the substantive questions driving the work session to a future meeting, including how the city treats third-party IT pass-through charges, who reviews disputed bills, and whether resident Ashley Coletti will get another hearing on the balance she is contesting.

Read more
Government & Accountability

Driggs Wastewater Funding Tops State List at $25 Million

April 24, 2026

DRIGGS — Idaho DEQ placed Driggs wastewater funding at the top of its draft Clean Water State Revolving Fund priority list for fiscal year 2027, making the city eligible for up to $25 million to rebuild its treatment plant.

Read more
Government & Accountability

Victor Council Approves $2 Million Evans Land Purchase for Wastewater Plant

April 23, 2026

The Victor City Council voted 3-1 Tuesday night to approve a $2 million Evans land purchase for the city's planned wastewater treatment facility and, in a separate vote, ratified the city's pending lawsuit against the City of Driggs on the same margin.

Read more
Government & Accountability

Victor Ethics Complaint: Attorneys Clear Consultant's Dual Roles, $25,000 in 2025

April 16, 2026

VICTOR — A Victor ethics complaint against the city's one-person consulting firm prompted two attorneys to examine whether a conflict of interest exists. Both concluded it does not. The consultant, Troy Butzlaff of Athenian Partners LLC, has held overlapping contracts as interim city administrator, capital and special projects manager, and executive director of the Victor Urban Renewal Agency since 2021. Out of "an abundance of caution," City Administrator Jeremy Besbris wrote in an April 8 email responding to the complaint, the consultant was asked to make a disclosure to the VURA board.

Read more
The Week Ahead

Week Ahead: Targhee Open House, Victor P&Z Hearings, and the Evans Property Vote

April 15, 2026

Victor P&Z commissioners will hear two continued applications Wednesday night, the council faces a critical vote on the Evans property closing April 22, and the Grand Targhee expansion open house anchors a week packed with public input sessions across Teton Valley.

Read more
Government & Accountability

Victor Wastewater Hearing Pushed to September

April 8, 2026

DRIGGS — The judicial confirmation hearing for the Victor wastewater borrowing plan has been rescheduled to September 11-13, expanding from a single-day hearing originally set for April 7 to a three-day proceeding, according to Teton County Court records.

Read more
Government & Accountability

Driggs City Council Approves Park-and-Ride Contract, Trail Easement, White Antler Plat

April 8, 2026

DRIGGS — The Driggs City Council approved a $428,211 park-and-ride construction contract, a trail easement across school district property, the first-phase final plat for the White Antler subdivision, and new parliamentary rules at its Tuesday meeting.

Read more
The Week Ahead

Week Ahead: Wastewater Hearing Delayed as Driggs, Victor Councils Meet

April 6, 2026

DEVELOPING: The judicial confirmation hearing on Victor's petition to borrow $35 million for an independent wastewater treatment facility, scheduled for April 7 before Judge Steven Boyce, has been delayed. The Valley Signal is requesting details on the reason and rescheduled date. Updates will follow.

Read more
Deep Dive

The Wastewater Numbers Behind Victor's $35 Million Bet

March 31, 2026

VICTOR — The wastewater numbers in the Victor-Driggs fight start at $35 million, the figure that has dominated the debate since Mayor Will Frohlich announced plans to build an independent treatment plant. Critics call it reckless. The recall petition cites it. Councilmember Amy Ross, the lone dissenting vote on the judicial confirmation, warned in January that she doesn't think "anyone understands the full financial implications of $35 million in debt."

Read more
The Week Ahead

The Two-Week Ahead: Judicial Confirmation Hearing Leads April Calendar

March 30, 2026

VICTOR — Spring break empties the valley this week, with no government meetings scheduled. The week of April 6 brings Victor's judicial confirmation hearing for a $35 million wastewater plant and packed city council agendas.

Read more
The Week Ahead

The Week Ahead: March 23–29

March 22, 2026

In the week ahead, five things to watch in Teton Valley: a county commission meeting, a land-use workshop on subdivision rules, and two public hearings in Victor.

Read more
Deep Dive

Victor v. Driggs: Inside Teton Valley's $65 Million Wastewater Breakdown

March 20, 2026

For more than 25 years, the cities of Victor and Driggs have shared the Driggs wastewater treatment system. That partnership is now the subject of a major lawsuit, a mayoral recall effort, and more than $65 million in proposed infrastructure spending between the two cities. This is how it happened, what the lawsuit says, and what comes next.

Read more
Government & Accountability

Judge to Decide Victor Wastewater Borrowing April 7

March 19, 2026

Update: The Victor Wastewater Hearing was Pushed to September as of April 7, 2026.

Read more
Government & Accountability

County Commission Unanimously Adopts Revised Juvenile Ordinances After Backlash

March 23, 2026

DRIGGS — The Teton County Board of Commissioners voted 3-0 on Monday to adopt revised juvenile ordinances covering runaways and minors "beyond control of parents." The revisions follow a sharp community backlash after the commission first adopted the ordinances in December.

Read more
Government & Accountability

Teton County Road Levy Returns to May Ballot as State Cuts Raise the Stakes

March 23, 2026

DRIGGS — Teton County voters will decide on May 19 whether to renew the Special Road & Bridge Levy, a two-year funding measure that has appeared on primary ballots every cycle since 2010. This year's request: $1.5 million per year, up from the $1.4 million approved in 2024.

Read more
Government & Accountability

Juvenile Ordinance Revisions Up for Review at March 23 Commission Meeting

March 19, 2026

DRIGGS — Teton County commissioners will review proposed revisions to the controversial juvenile ordinance provisions on runaway and "beyond parental control" cases at their meeting this Sunday, March 23.

Read more
Government & Accountability

Recall Petition Filed Against Victor Mayor Over Wastewater Fight

March 19, 2026

VICTOR — A group of Victor residents is attempting to remove Mayor Will Frohlich from office, filing a recall petition with the Teton County Clerk on March 10.

Read more

Sections

  • Government & Accountability
  • Growth & Land Use
  • Health & Safety

The Valley Signal

Independent journalism for Teton Valley

More

  • About us
  • Contribute
  • Contact

© 2026 The Valley Signal · Victor, Idaho