Do lawmakers in Olympia really want to hear from citizens on the bills they are considering, or are they more interested in catering to the needs of lobbyists and special interests?

Although Washington’s lawmakers have adopted rules that appear to provide the public an opportunity to participate in the legislative debate, the casual way they routinely waive these rules shows they are often more responsive to lobbyists.

According to the House of Representatives, among its official goals is to “increase public participation, understanding, and transparency of the legislative process…” and “enact high-quality legislation through debate and collaboration that is thoughtful and responsive, and honors our diverse citizenry.” read more »

When President Obama signed the unpopular Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act last year, he made many promises, including that the law would increase health-care access and lower costs. As states begin the process of devising their annual budgets, it’s more clear than ever that those promises aren’t being kept — especially in our home state of Washington.

State officials last year debated opting-out of the federal Medicaid program so they could preserve flexibility in providing health-care services to needy families. Currently, Washington faces a projected $5 billion state budget shortfall. The alternative to opting out of Medicaid is the potential elimination of all state-only health-care programs such as the Basic Health Plan, prescription-drug coverage and the Disability Lifeline program. read more »

A pension-debt tsunami is threatening states across the country. According to the Pew Center, states are facing nearly $1 trillion in unfunded pension liabilities including retiree health-care costs. While our situation is not as bleak as it is in some states, Washington nevertheless faces significant pension pressures that must be addressed.

According to the state actuary, two of Washington’s nine pension plans are already in the red with unfunded liabilities totaling nearly $7 billion. This does not include an additional $8 billion in unfunded post-retirement benefit liability, primarily for retiree health care. Unlike pensions, however, these other retirement benefits are not a contractual right, meaning the Legislature has the ability to make changes as necessary. read more »

Introduction

In November the people of Washington will vote on Initiative 1107. The measure would repeal four of the tax increases enacted earlier this year by the legislature and signed by Governor Gregoire. If passed in November, Initiative 1107 would repeal the following taxes:

• Excise tax on carbonated beverages (soda)
• Sales tax on bottled water
• Sales tax on candy
• Increased Business and Occupation (B&O) taxes for certain food processors (narrowing of a preferential rate)

The tax on carbonated beverages (soda) is two cents per twelve ounce serving, and is scheduled to expire on June 30, 2013. read more »

Acknowledging the widespread dislike of the state’s onerous business-and occupation (B&O) tax Gov. Chris Gregoire recently said, “If you want to come forward with an alternative to the B&O tax system in the state of Washington, the welcome mat is out from me.”

Thank you, governor, for the invitation.

To answer the call for alternatives, we utilized economic modeling to determine the impacts of various replacement taxes, including the potential creation of an income tax. read more »

Washington lawmakers again face a multi-billion dollar budget deficit, meaning they will either increase the amount of money they collect from citizens each year, or re-evaluate the way they deliver services to the public. Increasing taxes during a recession would add economic hardship, while changing the way services are delivered offers part of the solution to closing the deficit without raising taxes. read more »

As lawmakers pass the half-way point of the 2009 Session and begin passing important legislation, do you really know what they are doing on your behalf? Sure, you can watch the floor debates and public portions of legislative hearings. You may even be able to read the text of an amended bill before it is voted on, if you pay close attention. read more »

Imagine the following scenario: It’s the day after the election and you open the morning paper to learn that the next governor won’t be known for weeks. Ridiculous? Unfortunately in Washington that is exactly what voters can expect for at least some of the state’s election races.

Last year, supporters of the school levy constitutional amendment were staring at defeat the day after the election, but eventually absentee bailouts showed the measure passed. read more »