Rigged.RED Card
KCRCC Accountability
Kootenai County, Idaho
Home›November 2024›Phil Hart

Phil Hart

November 2024 · Idaho Senate District 2
KCRCC November 2024 Ballot Card
RIGGED
33 party insiders put this candidate on the Rigged Red Card
Documented Record

Stole timber from state school land

1996 - 2010
  • Court documents show he took timber from state school endowment land to build his Athol log home in 1996.
  • He had still not paid the judgment against him 14 years later.
  • He sent $2,450 labeled a "voluntary donation" rather than payment, leaving state officials puzzled.
  • He still owed $17,827 when the statute of limitations on the lien expired.
Sources (2)

Tax protest ended with the IRS auctioning his home

1996 - 2016
  • He stopped filing federal income tax returns in 1996, arguing the income tax was unconstitutional. He lost that lawsuit.
  • His combined federal and state tax debt approached $1 million.
  • A judge dismissed his second bankruptcy filing, which proposed paying $106 a month on a debt exceeding $600,000.
  • He settled the federal debt at about $586,000.
  • The IRS auctioned his log home on the Kootenai County Courthouse steps for $182,000.
Sources (3)

Disqualified over residency in 2018; challenged again in 2024

2018 - 2024
  • The Idaho Supreme Court upheld his disqualification from the 2018 primary for not living in the district.
  • In 2024, constituents formally asked the Secretary of State to investigate his residency.
  • A private investigator's evidence suggested he lives at a Hayden business office outside his district.
  • His registered Kellogg address had been under construction for years with no occupancy permit.
Sources (2)

Votes against Benji's Law, special education, police budget

2024 - 2026
  • Voted no on HB 776 (Benji's Law), requiring 12-hour child welfare checks for newborns whose parents have documented abuse histories.
  • The bill was named for 12-day-old Benjamin Lemke. The Senate passed it 27-8.
  • Voted against a $5 million fund for children with severe disabilities like autism and brain injuries.
  • Voted against the Idaho State Police budget bill.
Sources (3)

Ethics hearings and a catalogued record

2010 - 2024
  • The 2010 ethics hearings led to his removal from the House Revenue and Taxation Committee.
  • Four Republicans filed against him in 2012. A prominent business PAC endorsed his opponent.
  • His 2024 opponent publicly catalogued the record: timber theft, IRS seizure, disqualification, and the residency challenge.
Sources (2)
Kootenai County, Idaho
What Can I Do? Prepare to Vote.
Make Your Vote Count →
Harm Caused to Our Community North Idaho College Lakeland School District Community Library Network Wasted Taxpayer Dollars