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PRESS RELEASE
 April 9, 2002
EFF files suit against NEA OLYMPIA, WA - The Evergreen Freedom Foundation filed a lawsuit in the Thurston County Superior Court yesterday against the National Education Association. The foundation’s lawsuit charges the national union with taking money from agency fee paying* teachers in Washington state and illegally using it to influence state elections. EFF decided to file suit after staff of the Washington State Public Disclosure Commission found NEA guilty of violations and recommended the Attorney General seek a settlement with “substantial” penalties, but stated that: “If a settlement cannot be reached . . . staff do not recommend that the Attorney General proceed with litigation based on the current budget cutbacks and the cost of such litigation.” EFF was alarmed at the apparent willingness of PDC staff to let the NEA off lightly for violations that affect the integrity of state elections and the free speech rights of thousands of teachers. “Asking nicely doesn’t give the union much incentive to enter a settlement,” said Bob Williams, EFF’s president. “PDC staff found a Washington citizen (Tim Eyman) and a multi-million dollar national union guilty of violating state laws, and they’re ready to throw the book at the citizen and let the union off easy.” The NEA’s Washington state affiliate was found guilty of breaking the same state law last year when Washington’s Attorney General filed a lawsuit based on a complaint filed by EFF. The judge called the WEA’s violations “intentional” and ordered the union to pay a $400,000 fine, $190,000 in legal fees, and to refund thousands of non-member teachers a total of $200,000. * Agency fee payers are teachers who are not members of the union but are still required to pay fees equal to 100 percent of the union’s mandatory dues. Washington state law expressly prohibits the union from spending any of that money for political purposes without individual authorization from teachers. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Read EFF's complaint against the NEA Read the PDC's findings of guilt against the NEA Contact: Marsha Richards, Communications Director, (360) 956-3482
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1 Part Honesty; 2 Parts Arrogance 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]?" - Rep. Jim McIntire (D - 46) Despite the arrogance of some state officials, Washington's constitution is clear: "All political power is inherent in the people..." |
