Protected employee pensions?
Volume 13, Number 6
February 5, 2003 Barbara A. Bullock, president of the Washington (D.C.) Teachers' Union
(an affiliate of the American Federation of Teachers), was recently accused
with other high-ranking union executives of bilking union members out several
million dollars in dues...
Putting prisoners before
working families? Volume 11, Number 38
December 17, 2001 At first blush, a program that strives to reduce the cost of incarceration
and provide inmates with marketable skills for re-entry into society sounds
like a win-win situation. For this reason, it is hard to fault those legislators
who backed the creation of Correctional Industries (CI). However, especially
in light of growing state unemployment, lawmakers need to seriously reconsider
the wisdom of taking needed jobs away from law-abiding citizens and giving
them to criminals through mandatory contract awards. CI is, in essence,
a state-sanctioned monopoly...
Business Matters - Part 7: Time to grow beyond GMA Volume 11, Number 32
November 8, 2001
Since 1990, Washington state has restricted its land use as a result of the Growth Management Act (GMA). In that same time, however, there has been an increase of 1.4 million residents in the state. Though GMA originally sought to provide a framework for counties and cities to plan for the needs of an increasing population, in attempts to improve community business climates it has instead evolved into a major hindrance, especially for rural counties...
Business Matters - Part 6: Common sense regulatory reform Volume 11, Number 31
November 5, 2001
It looks like the state may finally be taking seriously the regulatory nightmare that Washington businesses face. The first step toward reforming Washington’s current regulatory system (which bleeds businesses to death by a thousand paper cuts) was House Bill 2049, signed into law on May 7, 2001...
Business Matters - Part 5: Unemployment Insurance - A hand up or a hand out? Volume 11, Number 30
October 30, 2001
Washington’s Unemployment Insurance (UI) program has a noble sounding mission: The mission of the Unemployment Insurance Program is to enhance the well-being of the state workforce and business community through the timely and equitable payment of benefits and the collection of taxes and overpayments. The program promotes economic security for individuals, their families and their communities, and assists employers to maintain a stable workforce...
Business Matters - Part 2: Tapping the state’s water potential Volume 11, Number 25
October 2, 2001
A water crisis in the rainy Northwest? Sounds more like an oxymoron than a serious threat to our state’s economy and business climate. While it is true that we are enduring what could be Washington’s worst drought since 1977, it is our state’s own water policies that played the biggest role in leaving state businesses high and dry...
Business Matters - Part 1: Harnessing new energy Volume 11, Number 24
September 14, 2001
Once known for its abundant energy supply, Washington has now fallen into an energy crisis largely of its own making.....
Unemployment Insurance: A Hand Up or A Hand Out? Volume 11, Number 23
September 10, 2001
The UI program has five major problems that need to be resolved: 1) high rates, 2) high benefits, 3) perverse incentives, 4) lack of accountability and enforcement, and 5) insufficient return on federal contributions....
Business Matters - Intro: How is Washington Anti-Business? Volume 11, Number 22
September 4, 2001
No one should have been surprised by Boeing’s recent corporate exodus. Company officials were waving a red flag as early as October 1999...
Earthquake Relief - Action Needed Now Volume 11, Number 9
March 9, 2001
How well will state and local governments respond to the needs of the people and businesses who need assistance because of the earthquake?
Department of Printing Violates Law EFF Requests Prosecution by Attorney General Volume 11, Number 1
January 3, 2001
It appears the state Department of Printing (DOP) has violated the law by illegally retaining and spending millions of dollars in excess state funds that should have been returned to the General Fund...
Online Auctions: Another Tool for Savings Volume 10, Number 28
August 22, 2000
Imagine an auction in which sellers bid to be awarded government contracts and with every bid the purchase price for the goods or service lowers until the specified market time expires...
Who's Unemployed in Washington State? Volume 10, Number 27
June 23, 2000
The news on employment in Washington state has been good recently, but not the news about unemployment insurance...
Washington State Tobacco Settlement Volume 10, Number 26
June 15, 2000
Only five cents out of every dollar of the tobacco settlement that Washington state will receive in this biennium will actually go into a smoking cessation program...
Collective Bargaining for State Employees Volume 10, Number 16
March 1, 2000
One of the governor’s highest priorities is to sign into law a bill expanding collective bargaining for state employees. Existing state law already allows state employees to collectively bargain with respect to grievance procedures and personnel matters...
A Little Remodeling Project Volume 10, Number 7
February 7, 2000
The supplemental capital budget includes $110,000,000 for what is called "legislative building preservation and renovation."
Y2K Czar needed now Volume 8, Number 9
December 11, 1998
Washington state government is considered a nationwide leader in Y2K preparation with 55 percent of our state’s "mission critical" systems reporting compliance...
For policy highlighters published before 1997, please contact our office.
At a March 23, 2005, House Appropriations hearing on a bill to gut the voter-approved I-601 spending limit, Rep. Jim McIntire (D) asked a supporter of I-601’s two-third supermajority requirement for the legislature to raise taxes the following question:
"Can you name a time when we [legislators] have actually not just set it [supermajority requirement] aside by majority vote? I mean, this is in many respects a procedural motion that has no bearing. It’s a statutory constraint that cannot constrain any legislature that chooses as a majority to set it aside . . . have we ever used a supermajority [to raise taxes]?"
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