Tag Archives: Inslee

STATEMENT: Promise of good jobs defeated by Inslee’s climate agenda, says Braun

OLYMPIA… Senate Republican Leader John Braun offered this statement today after Northwest Innovation Works announced it is pulling the plug on a seven-year effort to construct a $2.3 billion methanol plant at the Port of Kalama.

“Knowing this announcement might come from NW Innovations doesn’t make it any less disappointing. Governor Inslee had supported this project until 2019, when he launched his presidential campaign as the ‘climate change’ candidate and did a quick flip-flop. When the Department of Ecology essentially derailed the permitting process a few months ago, the writing was on the wall.

“The economic boom seen in the Puget Sound area for most of the past decade never reached this part of the state. When NW Innovations came calling, with a solid plan, it was welcomed – until politics got in the way. If the bills passed during this year’s legislative session are any indication, the only things the governor’s climate agenda will produce are higher fuel costs for the people of Washington, regardless of their income level. There’s no reason to believe it will lead to the employment and economic activity Cowlitz County workers and families deserve. The promise of good-paying jobs in this part of Washington has been sacrificed on the altar of environmental activism.”

Braun heads bipartisan call for veto of new $133 million tax

Governor will block hastily approved tax ‘if he’s consistent’, says budget leader

OLYMPIA… A bipartisan group of high-ranking state legislators today asked Gov. Jay Inslee to veto a new $133 million tax that came out of nowhere to zoom through the Legislature just before its annual session ended April 28.

“This was bad policy to start with, and the fact that it was hustled through in little more than 48 hours makes it even less defensible. That’s not how our state constitution intends for laws to be made,” said Sen. John Braun, Senate Republican budget leader.

Joining him in the veto request are Sen. Mark Mullet, D-Issaquah, who heads the Senate committee on banking; Senate Republican Leader Mark Schoesler of Ritzville; House Republican Leader J.T. Wilcox of Yelm; and Rep. Drew Stokesbary, R-Auburn, who is Republican leader on the House budget committee.

Inslee has until May 21 to veto House Bill 2167, which would effectively double the business-and-occupation (B&O) tax on out-of-state banks; otherwise it becomes law and takes effect July 28.

In their veto-request letter the lawmakers detail how the policy in HB 2167 wasn’t made public until the final Friday afternoon of the 2019 session, yet was through the Democrat-controlled Legislature and on its way to Inslee just two days later. Along the way it bypassed both the Senate and House committees that address policies concerning banks.

They also cite Inslee’s veto of a 2017 manufacturing tax-fairness bill that had moved rapidly through the Legislature. In his veto message the governor wrote that the “tax reductions should be considered in a thoughtful, transparent process that incorporates public input and business accountability.”

“If he’s consistent, the governor will veto this tax increase for the same reason. And in doing so he’ll also protect the taxpayers from any chance of a lawsuit on the grounds that this tax is in violation of the U.S. constitution,” said Braun, R-Centralia.

“It’s as though the majority simply wanted more money to spend and said ‘let’s go after the big banks’ without giving any consideration to the legislative process envisioned by the state constitution.”

Braun renews call for transparency as secret negotiations begin on state-worker contracts

Closed-door negotiations began last week on state-worker contracts for the 2017-19 biennium, and Sen. John Braun hopes it is the last time the talks will be kept out of public view.

“Washington does a better job than most states when it comes to open government,” said Braun, R-Centralia. “However, the exemption of state-employee collective bargaining from the Open Public Meetings Act is something that needs to be changed. The last time these contracts were negotiated it resulted in a 300-million-dollar commitment from taxpayers without their input.”

Braun was the sponsor of this year’s Senate Bill 5329, which would require collective-bargaining meetings to be open to the public. Braun noted the secret talks are getting under way during the week when most people seeking statewide public office later this year are filing as candidates. The governor’s office will be among those on the ballot.

“The timing is probably a coincidence, but it serves as a reminder that the governor’s people are negotiating behind closed doors with organizations that not only represent state workers but also have political agendas as well,” he said.

“Other states are successfully engaging the public in these decisions and I don’t see why Washington shouldn’t do the same,” said Braun. “Our current system does not allow for any deviation from the commitments made in secret between the governor and public-employee unions. The Legislature can only approve or reject the agreements. That wasn’t the case before 2004 and if the people’s representatives are unable to give input on the contracts, we should at least have transparency in the process.”

Inslee seeks to expand Ecology’s reach, authority

I recently wrote a guest column in the Longview Daily News regarding the governor’s proposed changes to our state’s water quality standards and the challenges that presents. Please read below for excerpts and a link to the full story.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee’s announcement regarding Washington’s water quality standards includes a dramatic proposal that raises many red flags for communities and families throughout the state.

There is consensus that it is time to update our water standards. No one is suggesting that we should do less to protect our environment, but the goal must be to balance cleaner water with protecting family budgets and jobs. What we don’t need is another war on jobs with more uncertainty and threats of regulations that are impossible to measure or attain.

In addition to new rules on water quality standards, Gov. Inslee said that it was time to “take a broader approach to areas that are not currently regulated.” He defined those areas as “up stream at the source,” and that “the majority of toxins come from what we build.”

Read the rest of the guest column in the Longview Daily News, here.