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All Blog Posts
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Even though the Legislature has concluded its 105 day regular session rumors abound that a special session is likely to be called by the Governor as early as next week. There is a lot of speculation, but some suggest that lawmakers would like more time...
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As the legislature draws to a close several key questions still remain, for instance, should the legislature raise taxes to close the budget gap? Here are at least four tax proposals that are being kicked around in Olympia: HB 2377 - a sales tax increase...
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This week both the Senate and House released their proposed plans to close the State's budget deficit. How do you feel about their proposals? Are they focusing their cuts in the right areas? Are the cuts too deep? Should the Legilsature raise taxes...
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HB 2322, introduced today by Rep. Chase, appears to allow a legislator to actively campaign for or against ballot measures that are placed on the ballot by the legislative body. So does this mean that a tax on the ballot is eminent this year? Also, how...
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Have you ever wondered how much some of the proposals introduced by lawmakers will cost? Well, there is a simple way to find out! Check out this website that is maintained by the Office of Financial Management, https://fortress.wa.gov/ofm/fnspublic/ ...
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T his past Thursday was the cutoff for bills to pass from their chamber of origin in the 2009 Legislative Session. Make sure to look and see if the bills that you were tracking are still alive or now dead. The next round of cutoffs will begin on March...
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The Governor is proposing to eliminate several State Boards and Commissions and to merge several Agencies that serve in duplicate roles. Do you think this is a good move by the Governor? What Boards or Commissions would you eliminate? What Agencies do...
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This week the Legislature will be holding public hearings on several bills that are all part of the State repsonse to climate change. The list includes: HB 1490 - concerning land use and transportation infrastructure, HB 1747 - requiring increased green...
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According to the latest news, Microsoft has announced layoffs. This news was greeted with headlines that the unemployment rate in Washington has moved beyond the 7% mark. So what will it take to turn the economy around? Will it be through government spending...
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We are a little more than a week in to the 105 day session, yet more than 600 bills have been introduced. There has been a little bit of everything so far, including bills to deal with the budget deficit, climate change and education reform. There have...
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Yesterday, Governor Gregoire delivered her inagural address to the State Legislature. During her speech she focused on reforming government, at one point stating, "too much of what served the people well in 1940 or 1960 or 1990 does not serve the...
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Senate Democrats outline their plans to create 25,000 new jobs in our state. The center piece to their plan appears to be the creation of "green jobs". How would you define "green jobs"? Are "green jobs" really different...
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It was announced late yesterday that Gov. Gregoire has reached an agreement with officials from King County and the City of Seattle on an option to replace the aging Alaskan Way Viaduct. The group has chosen to replace the current elevated Viaduct with...
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The 2009 Legislative Session begins today, January 12th, 2009. What are your goals for session? How should the Legislature handle the growing budget crisis? Outside of the budget, what should be the top priority of the Legislature? Share your thoughts...
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Over the course of the past month Washington residents have been feeling the effects of severe winter weather. Throughout the severe weather local and state emergency response crews have been called upon to provide relief and assistance. The Mayor of...
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