As the Ironman tents are dismantled and spectators shelve their cowbells, Coeur d'Alene is preparing to host another event, this one more a marathon of policy and finance discussions.

Governors hailing from the left side of the country will congregate in Coeur d'Alene this week for the 2011 Western Governors' Association meeting, where they will swap concerns and ideas on regional issues.

On the agenda for discussion are veterans' needs, environmental health and improving energy efficiency.

"I think for all of us, it (the biggest issue) is the budget," said Jon Hanian, spokesman for Gov. Butch Otter, current WGA chairman. "All of these governors have been handed a very difficult set of economic circumstances. It's a difficult time to govern right now."

The bipartisan meeting scheduled from Wednesday through Friday at The Coeur d'Alene Resort will allow governors from 19 states and three territories to mull over such trials together.

Besides discussing the issues in their own areas, the officials will also vote on policy resolutions that will guide decision making over matters for years to come, said WGA spokeswoman Karen Deike.

"A lot deal with issues concerning energy policy, things dealing with water, wildlife," she said.

Some matters to be considered over the three-day meeting haven't been raised at WGA events before, Deike said, like increasing career and educational opportunities for veterans.

"Obviously we felt it was a very important thing to bring to the forefront, looking at unemployment rates and what states and the federal government could do to collaborate and expand these opportunities for veterans," she said.

The health of forests in the West also tops the list, she added, a high priority after raging wildfires that have struck in Arizona and New Mexico.

State leaders will take a look at the poor ecological status of some areas, and how susceptible they are to wild fires and infestations, she said.

Certainly an important issue for Idaho, Deike said.

"We're really looking at funding issues, policy issues, and other things that will really help us address and improve forest health," she said.

The event will include a presentation by the head of the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration, Deike added, and the governors will address protecting natural resources from climate variability.

"One of Otter's initiatives this year is also to look at improving industrial energy efficiency," she said, explaining that industrial sectors consume 35 percent of energy generated in the western states. "There's a lot of opportunity there for energy savings. They'll be talking about if there are things the states can do to make businesses become more energy efficient."

The meeting is also a chance for state leaders to meet and chat casually, she said, so they can express concerns and policies they want to move on.

"We have a lot of new governors this year, because of the election," she said. "This allows them to talk directly, not just through staff."

Coeur d'Alene has hosted the event once before, Dieke said, when Dirk Kempthorne was governor.

It's a tremendous opportunity for Idaho to host this gathering, Hanian said.

"To get governors and leaders of diverse backgrounds together to try to come up with some long-term solutions to some of the problems that have faced us, that's what the Western Governors Association has been about," he said.

Otter has found the WGA helpful in educating the rest of the country about problems in the West, Hanian added.

"The governor believes it's critically important to engage in the WGA, and he's been thrilled to be it's chairman for the last year," Hanian said.