Serving Franklin County, WA
Serving Franklin County, WA
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Each year, for a session lasting either 105 days (in odd-numbered years) or 60 days (in even-numbered years), legislators gather in Olympia to introduce, debate and vote on bills. While many people focus their attention on what the Legislature does each year, there is one final and crucial step in the legislative process that happens – the governor decides whether to veto part or all of a bill, or let it become law. Since this year’s legislative session ended March 7, Gov...
Monday featured opening-day ceremonies in the Senate and House chambers, followed by a joint legislative session in the House chamber on Tuesday for Gov. (Jay) Inslee’s final state of the state address. Because this is considered a “short session,” fewer bills will be introduced and considered than in last year’s 105-day session. The main objectives for legislators this year will be to create and pass supplemental operating, capital and transportation budgets. For me and my...
As parents know all too well, many students suffered learning loss when schools were shut down or relied on virtual learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. This “COVID learning loss” has resulted in lower test scores from Washington students in recent years. Unfortunately, not every possible solution has been deployed to address this problem. One of my Republican colleagues, 8th District Sen. Matt Boehnke, wrote a guest column on COVID learning loss. It mentioned a recent ana...
For several months, drivers and businesses have had to endure the sharp increase in fuel prices since the state’s cap-and-trade program – or “cap-and-tax,” as I like to call it – went into effect Jan. 1. But consumers, especially those who rely on natural-gas furnaces for heat, soon will feel pain in their wallets thanks to cap-and-tax. The state Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission recently approved a request by Puget Sound Energy to increase its natural g...
Over the past few years, our state has witnessed a steady rise in several types of crime. This has caused serious harm in many communities on both sides of the state, and many Washingtonians continue to live in fear that their families and homes and businesses will be touched by crime at some point. One key reason for the crime hike is the state’s low number of law-enforcement officers per capita. Washington ranks dead last among all 50 states and the District of Columbia. B...
It’s been a tough week around the farm with equipment failures that have delayed harvest a few days. I’ll get back on track. But while repairs are underway, I can’t help but think about others who won’t recover so easily from hits to their budgets – setting them back further and further every time they fill up at the gas station or get a paycheck. Many of our friends on the West Side of the state disregard rural folks in communities like ours. We see this every session t...
For some time now, many Washington workers have been upset about an upcoming payroll tax to fund the new long-term care program called “WA Cares”, created by Democrat majorities in the Legislature in 2019. That payroll tax finally went into effect July 1. Unless you applied for and received an exemption from this tax, you’ll see less money in your paycheck. The payroll tax is currently equal to $58 annually for every $10,000 in pay. The WA Cares program offers a lifet...
Ever since legislative Democrats passed a law (Senate Bill 5096) two years ago creating a capital gains state income tax in Washington, observers on both sides of the political aisle have been waiting for the controversial law to make its way to the state Supreme Court, where the court’s nine justices would decide whether the law was constitutional. Following a hearing in late January, the Supreme Court on March 24 issued its ruling, one that has opponents of this tax s...
Why are WA gas prices rising while prices in other states remain same? I’ll tell you why: Gov. Jay Inslee’s environmental laws, approved by legislative Democrats two years ago. You’ll recall that earlier I wrote about how wholesale gasoline and diesel prices had risen sharply in early January due to the “cap-and-tax” law that went into effect Jan. 1. During his weekly meeting with reporters last week, Inslee was asked about reports that his cap-and-tax legislation had alrea...
For the fifth straight year, I’ve introduced a bill that aims to help school districts in Washington address their building-maintenance needs. Senate Bill 5403 would allow school districts to create a “depreciation subfund” that can receive a transfer of up to 2% of a school district’s general fund each fiscal year. This bill would provide another path for school districts to handle building- or facility-maintenance needs. Sometimes it can be better for a school distric...
It’s no secret that crime has worsened throughout Washington in recent years, thanks to laws passed by the Democrat-controlled Legislature and a decrease in the number of law-enforcement officers in many communities. While we’ve seen a spike in many areas of crime, retail theft and other retail crimes are especially a problem. Retail crimes hurt not only stores and shops, but also consumers because these crimes force retailers to raise prices. The Legislature, the gov...
Many of you are aware that public safety in our state took a major hit last year when Democrats in the Legislature passed a “police reform” law that prevented law enforcement officers from pursuing criminal suspects in most situations. Since this bad law went into effect, police and other law enforcement officers typically have had to watch suspects drive off, sometimes in vehicles that they had stolen, instead of giving chase in hopes of apprehending and arresting them. One o...
In recent years, environmentalists have targeted natural gas, even though it is an affordable energy source for so many. Their efforts have failed in the Legislature. But, apparently, Gov. Inslee and his environmental allies found another way to restrict natural gas use. Last Friday, the State Building Code Council, whose members are appointed by the governor, voted 11-3 to change state energy rules by requiring new businesses and apartments to mostly use heat pumps to warm...
Last week, I wrote that two bills addressing the state’s flawed and controversial long-term care program (nicknamed the “short-term care program”) and the costly payroll tax (dubbed the “long-term tax”) funding it had come over to the Senate after being passed by the House. The Senate fast-tracked these two measures this week, as the Ways and Means Committee held public hearings on them Monday and then approved them Tuesday. The full Senate yesterday passed the two bills, se...
My first session was way back in 1993, and as a freshman state representative, I was very humbled and excited about being elected to serve the people of the 9th District in the House. Now, almost 30 years later, I’m still humbled and excited to serve you and other 9th District residents, even if I’m now considered to be a Senate veteran. This year’s legislative session started Monday and is scheduled (by our state constitution) to last 60 days, finishing on March 10. This...
It’s no secret that Gov. Jay Inslee wants the removal of the four federal dams on the lower Snake River between Clarkston and the Tri-Cities. Back in December 2018, his proposed 2019-21 operating budget included $750,000 for a state study on breaching Ice Harbor, Lower Monumental, Little Goose and Lower Granite dams. U.S. Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Dan Newhouse, officials from electric utilities, ports and groups representing agriculture and economic development all oppo...
Mr. Ed Schweitzer, who founded and leads Pullman-based Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, recently pointed out how the new long-term care tax will have an extra-bitter taste for people who call Idaho home but work in our state, in border cities like Clarkston or Pullman. Those include a significant number of SEL's employee-owners, he wrote in a letter to Gov. Inslee, who will be forced to pay the tax but can never benefit from it if they don't reside in Washington. His...
Everybody associates March 17 with St. Patrick's Day, that one holiday in which we are all encouraged to wear green. Around the Capitol last week, March 17 brought a different meaning of "green." That morning, the state Economic Revenue and Forecast Council announced the first state-revenue forecast for this year showed a surprisingly large increase of $3.3 billion through the 2021-23 budget cycle and $5.2 billion over the next four years. It is the largest positive quarterly...