Category Archives: Washington State Legislature

Washington State Democrats Vote to Oppose Eyman’s I-517

Posted on February 8th, 2013 | Comments Off on Washington State Democrats Vote to Oppose Eyman’s I-517

The Washington State Democratic Party voted at it’s February 2, 2013 statewide meeting in Olympia to oppose Tim Eyman’s Initiative 517. Initiative 517 is an initiative to the Washington State Legislature. The Washington Secretary of State has certified that I-517 received sufficient signatures.  As such it goes to the Washington State Legislature for consideration.  They have 3 options – ignore in in which case it goes onto the Nov. 2013 ballot, pass it in which case it becomes law, or pass an alternative in which case both I-517 and the alternative go on the Nov. 2013 ballot.

The following is a copy of the resolution the Washington State Democrats passed to oppose Initiative 517.

A Resolution Opposing Initiative Measure No. 517

WHEREAS perennial initiative promoter Tim Eyman of Mukilteo has sponsored and  submitted signatures for Initiative 517, a measure to the 2013 Legislature that has  purposely been written to make it easier and cheaper for Eyman to operate his profit- generating initiative factory under the guise of protecting the initiative process;

WHEREAS that after admitting in February 2002 that he stole more than $157,000 of his  own supporters’ money for his personal use and lied about it, Tim Eyman told the  Associated Press, “I want to continue to advocate issues and I want to make a lot of  money doing it”;

WHEREAS in that same interview with the Associated Press, Tim Eyman said, “This  entire charade was set up so I could maintain a moral superiority over our opposition,  so I could say our opponents make money from politics and I don’t”;

WHEREAS Public Disclosure Commission data shows that since 1999 and except for  2003 and 2006, Tim Eyman has promoted and qualified an initiative for the November  ballot every single year with the backing of powerful special interests like Great  Canadian Gaming, Bellevue developer and light rail opponent Kemper Freeman, Jr.,  Woodinville investment banker Michael Dunmire, Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase,  plus big oil companies such as BP, Shell, ConocoPhillips, and Tesoro;

WHEREAS each summer and autumn since 2003, Tim Eyman and his associates Mike  and Jack Fagan of Spokane have asked their followers and wealthy benefactors to  contribute to their “Help Us Help Taxpayers” compensation fund, which they divide up  for their own personal use;

WHEREAS Tim Eyman’s history of sponsoring and profiting from unconstitutional and  destructive initiatives demonstrates that he is primarily interested in making money  while wrecking the plan of government that our founders gave us, not improving the  lives of Washington’s people or strengthening Washington’s many diverse  communities;

WHEREAS Initiative 517 would extend from six to twelve months the period of time  permitted for signature gathering for an initiative to the people, allowing Tim Eyman  and his associates, Jack Fagan, Mike Fagan, Edward Agazarm and Roy Ruffino to make  collecting signatures for initiatives to the people a more profitable and lucrative year- round business;

WHEREAS Initiative 517 attempts to prevent Washingtonians from exercising their  First Amendment freedoms of speech and assembly in a “Decline to Sign” campaign by  making it a misdemeanor to maintain an “intimidating presence” within “twenty-five  feet of any person gathering signatures or any person trying to sign any initiative or  referendum petition”; and

WHEREAS Initiative 517 dubiously requires leaders of cities, counties, and other local  jurisdictions that provide for their own initiative process to place any initiative with  sufficient voter signatures on the ballot for a public vote at public expense, even if the  initiative in question concerns a matter that exceeds the lawful scope of the local  initiative power;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Washington State Democrats take a position  opposing I-517 before the Washington State Legislature and on the November 2013  ballot; and

THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Washington State Democrats  encourage all Washingtonians to join the coalition opposing I-517 and campaign actively for the defeat of I-517.


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Eyman’s Initiative 517 Certified for November 2013 Ballot

Posted on January 29th, 2013 | Comments Off on Eyman’s Initiative 517 Certified for November 2013 Ballot

Tim Eyman’s Initiative 517 was certified on January 23rd by the Washington Secretary of State’s office.  I-517  is an initiative to the legislature. If, as likely, the legislature chooses not to act on it, it will be placed on the November 5, 2013 ballot. The legislature has an option to put an alternative on the ballot with it.

The official ballot title and summary for I-517 is:

Ballot Title
Initiative Measure No. 517 concerns initiative and referendum measures.

This measure would set penalties for interfering with or retaliating against signature-gatherers and petition-signers; require that all measures receiving sufficient signatures appear on the ballot; and extend time for gathering initiative petition signatures.

Should this measure be enacted into law? Yes [ ] No [ ]

Ballot Measure Summary
This measure would define terms concerning interfering with or retaliating against petition-signers and signature-gatherers, and would make such conduct a criminal misdemeanor and subject to anti-harassment laws. The measure would require that all state and local measures receiving enough signatures be placed on the ballot, limiting pre-election legal challenges. The measure would also extend the time for filing initiatives and gathering signatures from ten to sixteen months before the election when the vote would occur.

View Complete Text PDF

Initiative 517 is not needed and should be rejected by both the Washington State Legislature and the voters.

Initiative 517 – which Tim Eyman calls the “Protect the Initiative Act” is really the “Protect Tim Eyman’s Profit Machine Initiative“.   Tim started initiative efforts in 1995 and by 1999 they had become his primary business.  This is an initiative meant to increase Tim’s business of putting right wing conservative measures on the ballot in Washington State.

I-517 is Tim Eyman’s attempt to increase his initiative business to a year round activity, guarantee more markets for his initiatives by requiring cities and counties to put them on the ballot, and eliminate any opposition to people signing his measures by expanding anti harassment laws to try to unconstitutionally limit free speech rights of others.

As explained on the website opposing Initiative 517:

Initiative 517 has three main provisions:

  • It would double the period of time permitted for signature gathering for an initiative to the people, allowing Tim Eyman and his associates, Jack Fagan, Mike Fagan, Edward Agazarm and Roy Ruffino to make collecting signatures for initiatives to the people a more profitable and lucrative year-round business.
  • It attempts to prevent Washingtonians from exercising their First Amendment freedoms of speech and assembly in a “Decline to Sign” campaign by making it a misdemeanor to maintain an “intimidating presence” within “twenty-five feet of any person gathering signatures or any person trying to sign any initiative or referendum petition”.
  • It dubiously requires leaders of cities, counties, and other local jurisdictions that provide for their own initiative process to place any initiative with sufficient voter signatures on the ballot for a public vote at public expense, even if the initiative in question concerns a matter that exceeds the lawful scope of the local initiative power.

Laws already exist to deal with harassment within our state. What Eyman is proposing is to expand those laws so that anyone opposed to his initiatives would be prevented from coming with 25 feet of a petitioner. This is a violation of free speech. Because words like intimidation and harassment can take on many common meanings, the first amendment rights of citizens opposing a measure, such as merely urging people to read a measure  before signing it, could cause them to be subject to arrest.

USlegal.com for instance says the following about harassment, which should give any free speech advocates cause for concern regarding giving petitioners special rights superior to those of other citizens.

“Harassment is governed by state laws, which vary by state, but is generally defined as a course of conduct which annoys, threatens, intimidates, alarms, or puts a person in fear of their safety. Harassment is unwanted, unwelcomed and uninvited behavior that demeans, threatens or offends the victim and results in a hostile environment for the victim. Harassing behavior may include, but is not limited to, epithets, derogatory comments or slurs and lewd propositions, assault, impeding or blocking movement, offensive touching or any physical interference with normal work or movement, and visual insults, such as derogatory posters or cartoons. 

Now the problem is that of course anyone who stands say 5 feet away from a petitioner with a sign that says “Read this initiative before you sign it. It is a terrible initiative” or something to that effect would obviously “annoy” a petitioner. The petitioner could consider it a “derogatory poster”. The petitioner could consider it a “hostile environment”. But if the sign holder is not physically assaulting a petitioner or blocking a petitioner from having people sign a petition, why should the sign holder lose his right of free speech. Why should he be harassed and threatened with being arrested. Tolerance and fairness is required on both sides. Free speech for all is guaranteed under the US Constitution, not just those on one side of an issue.

Eyman wants to create a special class of free speech rights for paid petitioners so he can, without public debate, more easily secure a place on the ballot. It is his business and he is asking for special rights for helping his business put more money in his pocket. Next he will be claiming that only his side should be able to speak publicly at public forums regarding the merits of an initiative since anyone speaking against his initiative  is “harassing”him.

As former Secretary of State Sam Reed wrote in his official statement in 2012 on the secretary of state’s website regarding “Filing Initiatives and Referenda in Washington State”

“Do I have the right to urge people not to sign a petition?
Yes, as a matter of freedom of speech. Opponents of an initiative or referendum can certainly express the opinion that it would not be a  good idea for a voter to sign a petition. An opponent, however, does
not have the right to interfere with the petition process. In fact, it is a gross misdemeanor to interfere with somebody else’s right to sign a petition, and there are also laws against assaulting people. You can certainly express your opinion, but you must remember that other people have rights to their opinions as well, including the right to sign petitions you may not like.
This principle works both ways, of course. Neither side of an initiative or referendum campaign has the right to prevent the other from expressing opinions.”   

Here is part of the  language Eyman is proposing to add

(1) A person is guilty of disorderly conduct if the person: …

(e) Interferes with or retaliates against a person collecting signatures or signing any initiative or referendum petition by pushing, shoving, touching, spitting, throwing objects, yelling, screaming, being verbally abusive, blocking or intimidating, or other tumultuous conduct or maintaining an intimidating presence within twenty-five feet of any person gathering signatures or any person trying to sign any initiative or referendum petition. (2) Disorderly conduct is a misdemeanor. 

So most of the language would fall under current harassment law but “the maintaining an intimidating presence within twenty-five feet of any person gathering signatures or any person trying to sign an initiative or referendum petition” is so vague and subjective that it can easily be abused by any petitioner who wants to stop anyone opposing them .  This proposed initiative is not needed and is a threat to free speech.  It is frankly unconstitutional .

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Turncoat Democrats Rodney Tom and Tim Sheldon Turn State Senate over to Republicans

Posted on January 15th, 2013 | Comments Off on Turncoat Democrats Rodney Tom and Tim Sheldon Turn State Senate over to Republicans

On Monday two Washington State Senators elected as Democrats  became Turncoats and turned control of the Washington State Senate over to the elected Republican minority. So much for party loyalty and adhering to the supposed principles and beliefs they ran on. The print edition of the Seattle Times headline says it all – “Senate power shifts into GOP hands“.  The two Democrats who bolted the Democratic Party are Rodney Tom of the 48th LD in Medina and Tim Sheldon from Mason County.

Yesterday culminated a month long process that was already in play and not a surprise. Calling themselves the Majority Coalition Caucus is a joke.  The GOP heavy “coalition” is comprised of the 23 Senators actually elected as Republicans and two Senators elected as Democrats but who have now joined with the Republicans to run the Senate.  This shift gave the new “majority” a 25/24 vote margin and the ability to take over.

Rodney Tom was originally a Republican who switched it appears now mostly in name only to the Democrats when he ran last time. Tom and Sheldon both benefited heavily personally in this power switch with Tom becoming the new “majority” leader and Sheldon the president pro tempore. Both Tom and Sheldon were involved in a similar power shift at the end of last year’s budget process in the Legislature.

Rodney Tom is up for election in two years and the Democrats in the 48th LD last week passed a resolution condemning Tom for his actions:

The following resolution was adopted by the 48th Legislative District Democrats by a vote of 30-8, including Senator Tom’s vote against.

–Phil Kouse, 2013-2014 Chair

State Senate Leadership Rightfully Belongs
to the Elected Democratic Majority

Whereas

the 48th District Democrats, according to our bylaws, exist “to contribute to the growth, development and influence of the Democratic Party” and to “support … those candidates who, by their records and reputations, are in general agreement with the [party] platform;” and

Whereas

State Senator Rodney Tom was elected as a Democrat in 2006 and 2010 with the endorsement of, and financial and volunteer support from, the 48th District Democrats and other Democratic organizations and elected officials; and

Whereas

Senator Tom has announced his intentions to oppose ratification of the Senate leadership and committee chairs chosen by the elected Democratic majority, instead installing Republicans to chair important committees, including Healthcare, K-12 Education, Judiciary, and Ways & Means; and

Whereas

Republican control of the Senate would be a barrier to enacting legislation that advances Democratic goals and values, such as funding for K-12 education, broadened access to higher education, mental health counseling, insurance parity for reproductive care, and implementation of the Affordable Healthcare Act (“Obamacare”);

Therefore, be it resolved

that State Senator Rodney Tom is advised to vote to ratify the leadership chosen by the elected Democratic majority caucus; and

Be it further resolved

that by failing to vote for this leadership slate, Senator Tom will be thwarting Democratic values and the will of the people, rendering himself ineligible for our future endorsement and support under our bylaws.

Adopted this 9th day of January 2013, by the 48th District Democrats

A similar resolution is being considered by the King County Democrats and it is expected that the Washington State Democrats will likewise condemn Rodney Tom when they meet the beginning of February. Rodney Tom’s actions have pretty much guaranteed that if and when he runs for re-election in 2014 that this seat will be hotly contested. Likewise Democrats statewide will need to make a concerted effort to try and pick up other Senate seats to ensure that they have a real Democratic majority.

Between now and then don’t expect much to get done by the legislature on raising new revenue or repealing unneeded and costly tax loopholes.  If action is to be taken in these areas it will have to be undertaken through an initiative from the people or at best a referendum by the legislature.  The problem is that Republicans are so knee jerk anti-revenue, cut government only, that things may well get worse before they get better for the state budget and the state economy.

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Another Tim Eyman Initiative Coming Your Way in 2013

Posted on December 12th, 2012 | Comments Off on Another Tim Eyman Initiative Coming Your Way in 2013

Chances are pretty good that another Tim Eyman initiative will be on next year’s ballot. It’s been under the radar and has gotten little scrutiny.  Initiative 517 – called the “Protect the Initiative Act” is an initiative to the Legislature. It’s basic provisions are to extend the time allowed  to collect signatures by an extra six months, make it a misdemeanor to interfere or harass signature gatherers, allow more local initiatives  and prevent pre-election legal challenges to initiatives. The deadline to collect signatures and turn them in is January 3rd, 2013.

Eyman filed I-517 on May 4th, 2012 and quietly piggybacked it on his I-1185 campaign signature gathering efforts. As noted in the Tacoma News Tribune on September 6, 2012,  a complaint was filed with the Washington State Public Disclosure Commission charging that as a result of this piggybacking, I-517 illegally used money intended to pay for Eyman’s I-1185 signatures. The TNT noted that  “Through July alone, the campaign picked up 144,000 signatures …” of some 320,000 required by Jan 3, 2013. To date the Public Disclosure Commission (PDC) has not acted publicly on this complaint. One can well argue that this is a self serving initiative to benefit Tim Eyman and his initiative business. It is special interest legislation that would give Eyman the ability to do more initiative campaigns and at a lower cost. That is hardly what Washington State needs – more Eyman initiatives.

According to the most recent Public Disclosure Commission reports, Eyman has raised no money to fund this initiative.  Instead he reports that all the signature gathering to date paid for has been in kind donations by others. The bulk of the money spent in kind has been by an out of state conservative foundation called  – Citizens in Charge out of Lakeridge, VA. To date they have donated in kind some $168,806.38 out of a total of $305,454 reported in kind total. Here is a breakdown of reported in kind donations from the PDC reports.

Citizens in Charge, Lakeridge, VA – $168, 806.38

People’s Petitioning, Edmonds, WA – $42,712

First Amendment, LLC, Olympia, WA – $7267.50

The remainder of the money, some $86,305 is now listed as individual in kind donations, mostly by paid signature gatherers. This is Eyman’s  attempt to get around the complaint that signature gatherers for I-1185 subsidized signature gathering for I-517. The problem is, if you read some of the e-mails involved, that appears to be a big question. Paid signature gatherers for I-1185 were told among other things that they had to also get signatures for I–517 or they would be fired.  Here is that part of the story as reported by the Tacoma News Tribune:

The PDC is investigating whether I-517 illegally used part of the money intended for I-1185.

That’s what’s alleged by critics such as Rick Walther. The Auburn signature gatherer says he was fired for refusing to reduce payments to his subcontractors for I-1185 signatures unless they also collected for I-517.

He said he and other gatherers were expected to take the money out of what had already been promised to them for the business-backed measure.

“All this money’s still coming from 1185,” Walther said of the arrangements. “There’s no new money for 517. They’re just moving funds around.”

The campaign denies using any money from I-1185 – instead leaning on petitioners’ interest in the topic to drive a volunteer effort. …

Directing the I-517 effort is Edward Agazarm, nicknamed “Eddie Spaghetti,” a fixture of Washington’s ­voter-petition industry.

His emails don’t exactly make it sound like a volunteer effort.

“If you don’t bring in equal numbers you are fired,” Agazarm wrote to another ­signature-gathering contractor, in what critics say is an order to collect a voter signature on I-517 for every signature petitioners were paid to collect on I-1185.

“Every petitioner in the state should get free SIGNATURES ON IT or else they should be fired, then stoned to death in a public square,” he said in another email.

So one has to ask why the PDC has not yet acted on this complaint with formal charges of some sort or referred the matter to the State Attorney General for more severe action than the PDC can impose.  The e-mails are pretty explicit that paid signature gatherers were coerced into collecting signatures for I-517 in order to be paid  for I-1185 signatures. Will Eyman  once again just get a slap on the wrist and continue on his merry way carrying on his initiative mill that helps pay his personal bills or will the PDC act forcefully by referring this matter to the Washington State Attorney General?

Here is more specific information on I-517:

Protect the Initiative Act
Ballot Title
Initiative Measure No. 517 concerns initiative and referendum measures.This measure would set penalties for interfering with or retaliating against signature-gatherers and petition-signers; require that all measures receiving sufficient signatures appear on the ballot; and extend time for gathering initiative petition signatures.Should this measure be enacted into law? Yes [ ] No [ ]Ballot Measure Summary
This measure would define terms concerning interfering with or retaliating against petition-signers and signature-gatherers, and would make such conduct a criminal misdemeanor and subject to anti-harassment laws. The measure would require that all state and local measures receiving enough signatures be placed on the ballot, limiting pre-election legal challenges. The measure would also extend the time for filing initiatives and gathering signatures from ten to sixteen months before the election when the vote would occur.View Complete Text

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Reasons to Vote NO on Initiative 1185

Posted on November 3rd, 2012 | Comments Off on Reasons to Vote NO on Initiative 1185

 Here is a list of articles and editorials giving reasons why to VOTE NO on TIM EYMAN’S INITIATIVE-1185:

Budget and Policy Center – Six Reasons Why Supermajority Requirements to Raise Taxes Are a Bad Idea
http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=view&id=3678

Washington Budget and Policy Center – Supermajority Law’s Damaging Legacy: I-1185 Would Renew A Policy That Has Eliminated Jobs and Thwarted Economic Recovery in Washington State http://budgetandpolicy.org/reports/supermajority-laws-damaging-legacy

SeattlePI.com –  Chamber – Surprise ‘no’ to Eyman Initiative  http://blog.seattlepi.com/seattlepolitics/2012/09/12/chamber-surprise-no-to-eyman-initiative/

The News Tribune – I-1185 Voters: Don’t also Expect more state services
www.thenewstribune.com/2012/09/14/2295776/i-1185-voters-dont-also-expect.html

Northwest Progressive Institute – Initiative 1185 – an Attack on Democracy

Initiative 1185: An attack on democracy

Everett Herald – Vote No on Eyman’s I-1185
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20121004/OPINION01/710049968#Vote-no-on-Eymans-I-1185

Crosscut – I-1185: Will the Circle be unbroken on Eyman tax measures?
http://crosscut.com/2012/10/12/elections/110902/eyman-initiative-i1185-election-voter-guide/?_cs=1#c38276

The Daily World – Endorsements-“No” on 1185 & 502, yes on gay marriage“-    http://thedailyworld.com/sections/opinion/columnist/endorsements-%E2%80%94-%E2%80%9Cno%E2%80%9D-1185-502-%E2%80%9Cyes%E2%80%9D-gay-marriage.html

Majority Rules – Corporate Oil and Beer Profits Fuel Eyman’s I-1185 Signature Drive http://www.majorityrules.org/2012/06/corporate-oil-and-beer-profits-fuel-eymans-i-1185-signature-drive.html

Permanent Defense – complete text of King County Superior Court Judge Bruce Heller’s decision in LEV v. State, the lawsuit filed by teachers, parents, and lawmakers against Tim Eyman’s Initiaive 1053.
http://www.permanentdefense.org/materials/searchable-text-of-ruling-in-lev-v-state/ –

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Posted in Economy, Elections, Initiatives, Tax Exemptions, Washington State Legislature

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Kathleen Drew is a Progressive Majority Endorsed Candidate

Posted on September 5th, 2012 | Comments Off on Kathleen Drew is a Progressive Majority Endorsed Candidate

Kathleen Drew, who is running for Washington Secretary of State, is a top priority race for Progressive Majority. Washington State was one of the first states that Progressive Majority got involved in.  They have has a good record of helping to elect progressive candidates and are now involved in campaigns in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas in addition to Washington.

Besides Kathleen Drew, here are the other candidates Progressive Majority is prioritizing for help in the Nov 6, 2012 General Election:

Steve Bergquist, State Representative, District 11

Roslynne Reed, Mason County Commissioner, District 2

Marcus Riccelli, State Representative, District 3

Tom Riggs, State Representative, District 10

David Sawyer, State Representative, District 29

Yoshie Wong, State Senator, District 28

 Linda Wright, State Representative, District 39

Here is the short writeup Progressive Majority put up about Kathleen Drew.

Kathleen Drew Kathleen Drew is running for Secretary of State in the state of Washington. She is the only Democratic woman running for constitutional statewide office this year and if elected, will be the first Democrat elected Secretary of State in Washington since 1960. A long-time resident of Washington, Kathleen has a long record of public service marked by the successful advocacy for issues ranging from ethics to environment. In 1992, Kathleen was elected to the State Senate, becoming the youngest woman ever to hold that office. As a public servant, Kathleen wrote the state’s ethics laws for state employees and elected officials and worked with three west coast governors to promote ocean health.

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2012 Candidates Endorsed by the King County Democrats

Posted on June 17th, 2012 | 1 comment

The following is a list of candidates and ballot measures endorsed by the King County Democrats in Washington State for 2012. If you click on their name, it will take you to the candidate’s  website. Washington State has an all mail ballot election. The last day to mail ballots for the Primary is Tuesday August 7, 2012.  The last day to mail ballots for the General Election is November 6, 2012.

 

National Office

Barack Obama –  President

Maria Cantwell –  Senate

Laura Ruderman –  Congress –  WA CD #1

Jim McDermott –  Congress – WA CD #7

Karen Porterfield –  Congress – WA CD #8

Adam Smith –  Congress – WA CD #9

 

WA State Office Candidates:

Jay Inslee –  Governor

Bob Ferguson  –  Attorney General

Jim McIntire  –  Treasurer

Peter Goldmark –  Commissioner of Public Lands

Kathleen Drew –  Secretary of State

Greg Nickels –  Secretary of State

Mike Kreidler –   Insurance Commissioner

Craig Pridemore –   Auditor

 

WA State Legislative Candidates

Rosemary McAuliffe – Senate LD 1

Derek Stanford –  House LD 1  Seat 1

Luis Moscoso –  House  LD 1 Seat 2

Mark Mullet –  Senate LD 5

David Spring –  House LD 5 Seat 2

Zack Hudgins – House LD 11, Seat 1

Steve Berquist –  House LD 11, Seat 2

Bobby Virk –  House LD 11 Seat 2

Bob Hasegawa –  Senate LD 11

Roger Flygare –  House LD 30 Seat 1

Rick Hoffman –  House LD 30 Seat 2

Brian L Gunn –  House LD 31 Seat 2

Cindy Ryu –  House LD 32 Seat 1

Ruth Kagi –  House LD 32 Seat 2

Tina Orwall – House LD 33 Seat 1

Dave Upthegrove –  House LD 33 Seat 2

Joe Fitzgibbon –  House LD 34 Seat 2

Reuven Carlyle –  House LD 36 Seat 1

Sahar Fahti –  House LD 36 Seat 2

Noel Frame –  House LD 36 Seat 2

Gael Tarleton –  House LD 36 Seat 2

Sharon Tomiko Santos –  House LD 37 Seat 1

Eric Pettigrew –  House LD 37 Seat 2

Maureen Judge –  Senate LD 41

Jamie Pedersen –  House LD 43 Seat 1

Frank Chopp –  House LD 43 Seat 2

Roger Goodman –  House LD 45 Seat 1

Gerry Pollet –  House LD 46 Seat 1

Sarajane Siegfriedt –  House LD 46 Seat 2

David Frockt –  Senate LD 46

Bud Sizemore –  House LD 47 Seat 2

Ross Hunter –  House LD 48 Seat 1

Cyrus Habib –  House LD 48 Seat 2

 

Judicial Candidates – Washington State Supreme Court

Susan Owens –   Position 2

Steve Gonzalez –  Position 8

Bruce Hilyer –  Position 9

John Ladenburg –  Position 9

Sheryl McCloud –  Position 9

Judicial Candidates – King County Superior Court and Sheriff

Bill Bowman – Position 19

Scott Johnson – Position 20

Elizabeth J Berns – Position  25

Sean O’Donnell – ourt Position  29

Kim Allen –  Position  30

Ken Schubert – Position  40

Judy Ramseyer – Position  46

John Urquhart – King County Sheriff

Ballot Measures

King County Prop 1 – Children and Family Services Center Capital Levy – YES – on Primary Ballot

Seattle Prop  1 –  Regular Tax Levy Including Seattle Public Libraries –YES  – on Primary Ballot

Referendum 74 – Marraige Equality – APPROVE

Initiative 502 – License and Regulate Marijuana  – YES

Initiative 1240 – Charter Schools – NO

Initiative 1185  Tim Eyman’s 2/3 vote for revenue – NO

 

 

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Corporate Oil and Beer Profits Fuel Eyman’s I-1185 Signature Drive

Posted on June 12th, 2012 | 2 comments

It’s a strange combination but corporate oil and beer profits fuel the signature drive  for Eyman’s current initiative. Oil and water may not mix but it looks like oil and beer profits do. Latest reports from the Washington State Public Disclosure Commission show corporate interests dumping in most of the $964,713 reported for Eyman’s I-1185 campaign to re-enact a 2/3 voting requirement by the legislature to raise revenue.

This latest million dollar corporate campaign to restrict the Washington State Legislature’s ability to raise funds is happening despite the recent King County Superior Court decision declaring that the 2/3 vote restriction in Initiative 1053 is unconstitutional. The decision by Superior Court Judge Bruce F Heller was issued on May 31, 2012. While this decision  will likely be reviewed by the Washington State Supreme Court.  Judge Heller’s Memorandum Opinion is pretty clear and simple.

Heller decleared  that “The majority provision of Art. II, Section 22 is a clear restriction on the legislature’s power to require more than a majority vote for passage of tax measures. This restriction applies to statures  initiated by the legislature and to statues passed pursuant to voter initiatives,  While initiative measures reflect the reserved power of the people to legislate, the people in their legislative capacity remain subject to mandates of the Constitution,  Gerberding, 134 Wn.2d at 196.  RCW 43.135.024(1) is therefore unconstitutional.”

Despite this clear decision corporate interests persist in trying to prevent the Legislature from voting to directly raise revenue to fund basic state needs or to recoup revenue lost to non performing or under performing tax exemptions that are not benefiting  Washington state or its citizens.

On May 16, the Beer Institute  out of Washington DC dropped in $400,000 dollars to help pay Citizen Solutions, Eyman’s signature gathering firm.  BP Oil out of Chicago, Il added $100,000 as did Conoco Phillips Company out of Washington DC. The Washington Restaurant Association added $25,000.

Meanwhile the Association of Washington Business  acting to shield the true source of their money, paid $185,000 directly to Citizen Solutions. It was reported as an In Kind donation by Eyman. Where did the Association of Washington Business get the money from? Their public disclosure report shows that they received $100,000 from the  American Beverage Association in Washington, DC and another $100,000 from Tesoro Companies in San Antonio, Texas. In addition they got $50,000 from Equilion Enterprises in Houston Texas, and $50,000 from Shell Oil Company in Sacramento, California.

In a press report where Jay Inslee, the Democratic candidate for Governor of Washington accused the Assocation of Washington Business of collecting money from Tesoro to support Inslee’s Republican opponent Rob McKenna, the AWB  denied the accusation and said the money was passed on to Citizen Solutions to pay for collecting signatures on I-1185.

Big corporate interests are again looking out for their bottom line. Oil companies love it that Eyman is using his anti tax mantra to promote a measure that helps protect their profits.  Eyman is selling his snake oil potion to the citizen taxpayers of Washington State as something that benefits them. Unfortunately what it does is lock in a regressive tax system that soaks low income taxpayers and lets corporate profiteers off the hook for new taxes and prevents the legislature from repealing special interest tax breaks oil companies and others  enjoy.

Oil companies are opposing a State Legislative proposed  increase in the toxic substances tax that would have been used to clean up stormwater runoff contaminated by oil byproducts.  Here in Washington state oil companies are soaking up profits like mad as our gasoline prices are the highest in the nation.  We pay higher gas prices so they can pay Eyman to put in place a measure that would stop the legislature from charging them to help clean up an environmental problem caused by toxic oil in stormwater runoff entering our strearms, rivers and Puget Sound. Gas prices right now are the highest in the lower 48 states.

Three of the companies contributing to Eyman’s campaign are Shell oil companies.  Besides Shell itself, Tesoro Industries and Equilon Enterprises are affiliated with Shell. Equilion is doing business in Washington State as Shell Oil Products and has a crude oil refinery in Anacortes, Washington. Tesoro Industries also has a refinery in Anacortes and markets under the Shell name among others. In 2010 there was an explosion at the Tesoro Refinery at Anacortes, Washington that killed 5 workers.

Can Shell afford to help Tim Eyman? I suppose their  $8.7 billion dollar profit in the first quarter of 2012 left them with some spare change. BP Oil reported a profit of $5.9 billion and Conoco Phillips a profit of $2.9 billion.  To them a few hundred million to prevent the Washington State Legislature from having them help pay for cleaning up oil contaminated stormwater runoff is just another small investment in protecting their profits.

The taxpayers of Washington State, who are paying the highest gas prices in the United States, are the suckers unfortunately who suffer from both oil contaminated water and a regressive tax system that doesn’t tax the wealthy the same as lower income brackets. This is because Eyman’s 2/3 vote requirement for raising revenue or repealing corporate tax exemptions forces the legislature to cut public services like education and health care for seniors and children rather than do tax reform and make the system fairer and more equitable.

 Washington voters and taxpayers  need to wake up to the reality that letting a minority of 1/3 of the Legislators in one House dictate tax policy benefits the wealthy and Big Corporations a lot more than moderate and low income working families. Why else are the Oil and Beverage Companies funding I-1185?  It’s their corporate profits that’s driving their actions, not their civic altruism.

Don’t sign I-1185 or vote for it if it makes the ballot. 

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Posted in campaign finance, Economy, Environment, Initiatives, Tax Exemptions, Washington State Legislature

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Washington Conservation Voters Make First Round of Endorsements for 2012.

Posted on May 11th, 2012 | Comments Off on Washington Conservation Voters Make First Round of Endorsements for 2012.

The Washington Conservation Voters has released their first round of endorsements for the 2012 elections.

The Primary Election is August 7, 2012.

The General Election is Nov. 6, 2012.

Here is their list of endorsed candidates:

Statewide

Jay Inslee, Governor

 

Legislative

Senate Candidates

Andy Billig (3rd-Spokane)

Sen. Karen Fraser (22nd-Olympia)

Sen. Christine Rolfes (23rd-Kitsap County)

Sen. Kevin Ranker (40th- Island County)

Sen. David Frockt (46th-Seattle)

House Candidates

Rep. Zack Hudgins (11th-Tukwila)

Rep. Marko Liias (21st-Lynnwood)

Rep. Kevin Van De Wege (24th-Olympic Peninsula)

Rep. Dave Upthegrove (33rd-Des Moines)

Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon (34th-West Seattle)

Rep. Reuven Carlyle (36th-Seattle)

Rep. John McCoy (38th-Everett)

Speaker of the House, Rep. Frank Chopp (43rd-Seattle)

Rep. Hans Dunshee (44th-Snohomish)

Rep. Ross Hunter (48th-Bellevue)

 

Thurston County

Sandra Romero, County Commissioner

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Big Oil Loves Tim Eyman

Posted on May 10th, 2012 | Comments Off on Big Oil Loves Tim Eyman

Big Oil loves Tim Eyman.  They love him so much they’re have given him $200,000 this year to protect their corporate profits and tax loopholes from the Washington State Legislature. They love it that he helped them two years ago prevent the Legislature from asking them to help clean up oil polluted stormwater in our state. They love it that voters said the Legislature needed a 2/3 vote to tax corporations and end profitable tax loopholes they have.

Eyman is busy carrying their water as he scurries to pay his minions to get signatures on I-1185 his “son” of 1053. I-1053 was passed by voters in 2010 and said the Legislature needed to get a 2/3 vote in both houses to raise new revenue or close any tax loopholes. For 2 years after an initiative passes it takes a 2/3 vote of the Legislature to amend an initiative. After that it takes a simple majority.

So Eyman is trying to put I-1185 before the voters to reset the clock for another 2 years.

The 2/3 vote requirement initially was in I-601 and then in I-960.  Both these measures barely passed 51% to 49%. Two years ago in the midst of the worst recession since the Great Depression and with high unemployment the measure passed with a 64% vote after opponents waited until the last few weeks to try to oppose it but it was too late.

Now voters can see the consequences of a no new taxes proposal which is what I-1185 is and what I-1053 is.  Austerity so to speak is another w0rd for protecting corporate profits while cutting services to the elderly, the sick and young kids.  Corporate interests like BP and Conoco Phillips continue to rack up huge profits and contribute to the increased concentration  of wealth in the hands of the few.

On April 4, 2012 BP Oil out of Chicago gave Eyman $100,000. Eyman immediately passed it on to his buddy Roy Ruffino at Citizen Solutions out of Olympia.  Citizen Solutions is paying signature gatherers $1.00 per signature and pocketing a fee for itself of course.

BP last year reported a net profit of $23.9 billion. $ 100,000 is peanuts to BP.

On April 20, 2012 Conoco Phillips added another $100,000,  Small peanuts to them also that they  can write off as a business expense. After expenses Conoco Phillips reported a 1st quarter Jan – March 2012 profit of $2.94 billion.

Isn’t it great that if you are a big corporation and you can buy yourself a place on the ballot and you can have friends like Tim Eyman to help you fool the public into supporting your corporate profits at the expense of diminishing public services that benefit the public.

Don’t sign I-1185!  Don’t support Big Oil’s power grab of the Washington State Legislature. Big Oil is not concerned about the well being of Washington State or its citizens. They are only concerned about increasing the bottom line of their business and their shareholders.

 

 

 

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Posted in campaign finance, Economy, Elections, Initiatives, Tax Exemptions, Washington State Legislature

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