Author Archives: ericcampbell

E-News: Session begins… and so has talk of tax increases

Dear Neighbors,

Greetings from the state Capitol!

Our 2024 session began at noon a week ago with a combination of ceremony and housekeeping. Although it’s my fourth session as your 16th District state senator, I can’t imagine that the opening-day traditions will ever get old — and as a member of leadership I’m more involved in those traditions than most.

The long drive to the Capitol from our 16th District was made easier by the knowledge that I would again, in contrast to the two pandemic-restricted sessions, be able to have face-to-face interaction with constituents, other lawmakers and stakeholders. The transportation investments secured in 2023 (Wallula-Walla Walla and West Richland-Red Mountain) are a prime example of how better decisions come from working together.

Because this year’s session is limited to 60 days, the deadlines for acting on legislation will come up quickly. Our top priority from now until we adjourn March 7 is to look at mid-course adjustments to the trio of two-year budgets – operating, capital, transportation) adopted during last year’s longer (105-day) session.

I wish I could say the ag-overtime issue will get sorted out this session. The law enacted in 2021 (one of many controversial moves made that year, when the public was shut out of the Capitol) has created a tough situation for the agricultural sector, and farmworkers also have concerns about the policy. For an update click here. As one of only a few farmers serving in the Senate, I’m doing all I can to help other legislators understand the finer points of the issue.

Beyond my work on ag – which includes filing SB 5813, part of the Senate Republican “Cultivate Washington” agenda – my focus this session will broadly be on public safety, affordability and a mix of education and children’s issues. A tax-exemption bill I introduced this week would make living in Washington a little more affordable for the widows and widowers of veterans; keep reading for that.

A web page showing the legislation I am sponsoring is here. You may choose between bills I’m prime-sponsoring and those for which I am a co-sponsor.

Tax alert: Proposals would allow larger increases… or easier passage
Just before the end of the 2023 session the majority Democrats introduced SB 5770, which would allow a tripling of the allowable growth rate for property taxes. It would end the voter-endorsed, bipartisan 1% cap that has controlled the growth of property taxes since 2007.

We figured the bill was simply being put on the table until 2024. Sure enough, it is scheduled for a public hearing in the Senate Ways and Means Committee this Thursday. That meeting starts at 4 p.m. Visit this page for instructions on how to register your opposition, submit written testimony, or testify in person or by Zoom. If you know others who might also want to be heard, please pass along this information along.

When SB 5770 surfaced, the sales pitch was that raising property taxes would allow investments in public safety and education. I would rather see consideration for SB 6090, a bipartisan bill I’m co-sponsoring. It’s a better way to help rebuild the public-safety infrastructure in our communities. And as a member of the Senate Early Learning and K-12 Committee, I object to the idea that a new tax increase is needed to support our state’s paramount duty: providing for education. Take care of education from existing revenue and prioritize other funding requests accordingly.

The price tag of SB 5770 could hit $12 BILLION. Washingtonians are paying more than enough taxes already. Their legislators must do better.

Then there’s Senate Joint Resolution 8207, which would significantly lower the threshold for passing school-district bond issues. My office began receiving dozens of emails about this even before the session began, and I’m sure other senators on both sides of the aisle did as well.

Even so, the bill flew through our Senate education committee this past week – as in public hearing Wednesday, committee vote Thursday. I couldn’t support it, and here’s the reason.

School bonds represent long-term debt, which is why Washington’s constitution requires two things to pass a bond issue: a specific level of voter turnout, and support from three-fifths (a 60% “supermajority”) of those voting on the bond issue. Those requirements ensure there is solid support across a community for what is often a multimillion-dollar obligation.

SJR 8207 would drop the 60% requirement to a simple majority (50% + one vote) AND do away with the voter-turnout requirement. Under those rules, if only 100 people vote on a school bond and 51 of them vote yes, every taxpayer in the district would be forced to pay the new bond-driven tax levy for 30 years. Does that seem equitable? Or is it equitable that SJR 8207 would apply only to school bond issues, while other taxing districts would need to stick with the higher threshold for approval? To me the answer is “no” to both questions.

Dozier bill would increase tax exemption
Today I introduced a bill to close a loophole in the state’s list of property-tax exemptions. SB 6238 specifically concerns a property-tax exemption that was created in 2005 to benefit the widows and widowers of honorably discharged veterans, yet has not kept pace with similar exemptions since then.

It would raise the income eligibility for this targeted exemption to equal the standards already in place for the program that offers property-tax relief to senior citizens and disabled veterans in our state. My bill also would double the relevant income thresholds, which fairly approximates the level of inflation seen in the past 20 years.

This won’t make a noticeable dent in the state budget but it will offer equity and fairness to a select and deserving group of Washington residents who have been left behind. I will work to get this into law so it can take effect for 2025!

It was my pleasure this past week to join Senate Republican Leader John Braun and Senate Republican Caucus Chair Judy Warnick for a meeting with Mr. Makoto Iyori, who recently became Consul General of Japan in Seattle. During our conversation he showed a keen interest in agriculture and tourism – two things I know something about as a farmer and member of the Washington Tourism Marketing Authority. I’m hoping to arrange for him to visit our 16th District later this year!

Teens, apply to serve as a page for the Senate
One of the most enjoyable parts of being a senator is sponsoring students as Senate pages during the legislative session. These teens serve for one week, receiving an unmatched civics education while meeting others their age (14-16 years old) from around the state – and receiving a paycheck as well! Each senator is allowed to sponsor a certain number of pages, and I still have slots open.

Click here to learn more about the Senate page program, including how to apply; this video shows what it’s like. If you know teens who would be interested, they may also contact Myra Hernandez, Civic Education Director (Myra.Hernandez@leg.wa.gov​ or SenatePageProgram@leg.wa.gov) or my office.

***

I am working to make living in our state more affordable, make our communities safer, uphold our paramount duty to provide for schools, and hold state government accountable. I’ll work with anyone who shares those goals and wants to find solutions.

Please reach out to my office with your thoughts, ideas and concerns on matters of importance to you. If you don’t already, also consider following me on Facebook. I am here to serve and look forward to hearing from you.

Perry Dozier
State Senator
16th Legislative District

E-News: Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

I’ll keep this brief, knowing what a busy time of year it can be.

The next legislative session begins two weeks from Christmas Day. If you have any ideas for legislation, please get them to me using the contact information in this message.

I’ve “prefiled” two bills for the 2024 session. One is SB 5813, my “agricultural literacy” bill, which stems from the Cultivate Washington agenda I and other Republican senators unveiled in November (a link to the news conference is here, and more information is on our Cultivate Washington webpage).

The idea of this bill is to instill in our junior/senior high students a basic knowledge of growing things and of the importance of agriculture as well as the opportunities available for young people in the field of agriculture. In my view, it will help perpetuate our agricultural sector if more people understand that most of the food they see in the grocery store comes from farms, and how those crops and livestock wouldn’t exist without people to tend and raise them.

As the lead Republican on the Senate committee that addresses banking issues, I’m also prime sponsor of SB 5801, which has to do with “special deposit accounts” at banks. If you work for a financial institution or have another reason to be curious about what the bill would do, let me know and I’ll be happy to get you an explanation. Otherwise, this is one of those policy changes that has a very specific purpose and simply isn’t going to affect most folks.

These bills will be considered as formally filed on the opening day of the session, at which time other lawmakers may sign on as co-sponsors.

If you didn’t receive this in your mailbox recently (or just want to see it on your screen instead) click here – it’s my preview of the 2024 legislative session.

***

I am working to make living in our state more affordable, make our communities safer, uphold our paramount duty to provide for schools, and hold state government accountable. I’ll work with anyone who shares those goals and wants to find solutions.

Please reach out to my office with your thoughts, ideas and concerns on matters of importance to you. If you don’t already, also consider following me on Facebook. I am here to serve and look forward to hearing from you.

Have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Sincerely,

Perry Dozier
State Senator
16th Legislative District

Update from Olympia: Our pro-agriculture agenda, and more on carbon-law situation

Dear Neighbor,

Greetings from the state Capitol!

Even though the “interim” period between legislative sessions won’t officially be over until January 8, when the 2024 session begins, it unofficially ended for me with the Thanksgiving holiday (I hope yours was a happy one). Between an all-day Senate Republican meeting on Tuesday and the Senate’s “Assembly Days” in Olympia yesterday and the day before, more of this week went to legislative business than not.

I’m Republican leader on the Senate Business, Financial Services, Gaming and Trade Committee, which met yesterday to talk about home equity agreements, lending rules, the “creative economy,” state contracting and more.

As of Monday we can begin filing legislation. I haven’t decided whether to put any bills in the hopper during the prefiling period, but if I do, my Senate colleagues will have until the session’s first day to decide whether they want to sign on as co-sponsors. I’ll also have time to look at what others have filed and decide whether I will eventually want to add my name to the sponsor list. Either way, the bills I introduced during our 2023 session are also still in play for 2024. That list can be seen here.

Here are some other updates since my September report to you.

Agriculture needs our support; ‘Cultivate Washington’ would deliver

Between labor costs, fuel costs, uncertainties about water availability, the state’s management of predators, and more, it’s no wonder agricultural operations in our state are closing at a rate we’ve never seen.

Republicans serve the legislative districts where most of Washington’s farmers, growers and ranchers do business, so it’s appropriate that a group of Senate Republicans recently stepped forward with an agenda for supporting agriculture in our state. We call it “Cultivate Washington,” and spent 40 minutes sharing it with well over a dozen news reporters back on November 14. A link to the news conference is here, and more information is on our Cultivate Washington webpage.

Legislators can do much to improve the business climate for Washington agriculture. We look forward to advocating for our agenda during the 2024 legislative session.

New issues with cap-and-trade law confirm need for reforms

In October I alerted the news media about a letter I’d sent to the director of the state Department of Ecology, expressing my concern about a lack of transparency in the cap-and-trade program her agency administers. You and I deserve to know who is buying the carbon-emission “allowances” the state is selling at ever-increasing prices, and in my view the Climate Commitment Act (the cap-and-trade law’s formal name) requires Ecology to disclose that information in a way that isn’t happening. My concern is detailed here in what I sent to the press; it contains a link to the letter.

Word of my interaction with Ecology traveled down the Columbia to Goldendale and Delmer Eldred, host of “The Klickitat Voice” podcast. He invited me on for a discussion about the Climate Commitment Act that lasted most of a half-hour and also covered the CCA fuel-surcharge issue that is hurting Washington’s agricultural sector. I invite you to listen to it here.

The Ecology director’s response to my letter was not encouraging but also not unexpected. I haven’t decided what my next move will be, but there’s still time to decide, as this is not the only reform the Climate Commitment Act needs.

In the meantime, Ecology’s director also wants to pursue linking Washington’s carbon policies to those of California and the Canadian province of Québec, claiming it will create a “successful, stable carbon market” – but I’m not hearing her explain how that will ease the pain on Washington drivers’ wallets.

My interest in reforming the Climate Commitment Act is shared in this recent newspaper editorial that also mentions a citizen initiative filed to repeal the law. The initiative will come before the Legislature if enough signatures are verified.

I don’t endorse all of the newspaper’s reform ideas but I do look forward to being able to debate the CCA in a way we could not in 2021, when the public was literally barred from the Capitol and legislators were forced to meet remotely. It also will be a more informed debate, because we know from the past year what the carbon law means at the pump and in the marketplace. That’s a big change from three years ago, when the discussion was mostly limited to speculation about what the law would mean.

K-12: Let’s discuss transparency and responsibilities

Speaking of debates, I encourage you to read this opinion piece from Sen. Brad Hawkins, Republican leader on our Senate Early Learning and K-12 Education Committee. In responding to a newspaper editorial about school funding, he thoughtfully lays out the need to have a conversation about how “education” is defined. His argument includes this observation:

“Frankly, it is becoming increasingly difficult to differentiate where school responsibilities end and where family and community responsibilities begin. This approach only prompts philosophical debate and encourages more parents to pull their children from public schools, which they have been doing in high numbers.”

Enrollment in Washington’s public K-12 schools is down 42,000 students from the pre-pandemic level. While that can likely be attributed to the shortcomings of remote instruction or, as Senator Hawkins notes, the frustrating blurring of responsibilities, it doesn’t help if schools are less than transparent about how and what children are being taught.

Teens, apply now to serve as a page for the Senate

The term “page” isn’t heard much these days outside of parliamentary systems… or libraries. It may be an old-fashioned term for someone who serves as a courier or messenger – but then again, our Legislature’s page programs do date to 1891, just two years after statehood.

One of the most enjoyable parts of being a senator is sponsoring students as Senate pages during the legislative session. These teens serve for one week, receiving an unmatched civics education while meeting others their age (14-16 years old) from around the state – and receiving a paycheck as well! Each senator is allowed to sponsor a certain number of pages; I will have the privilege of sponsoring up to six students during the 2024 session, which begins January 8 and ends March 7.

Click here to learn more about the Senate page program, including how to apply; this video shows what it’s like. If you know teens who would be interested, they may also contact Myra Hernandez, Civic Education Director (Myra.Hernandez@leg.wa.gov​ or SenatePageProgram@leg.wa.gov) or my office.

Because I always seem to learn something from them, I visit as much as possible with the students I sponsor as Senate pages — even during breaks in our work in the Senate chamber.

***

I am working to make living in our state more affordable, make our communities safer, uphold our paramount duty to provide for schools, and hold state government accountable. I’ll work with anyone who shares those goals and wants to find solutions.

Please reach out to my office with your thoughts, ideas and concerns on matters of importance to you. If you don’t already, also consider following me on Facebook. I am here to serve and look forward to hearing from you.

Perry Dozier
State Senator
16th Legislative District

Senator says Ecology must be open about program driving up fuel prices

OLYMPIA… While raking in more than $1 billion from the carbon-pricing program that is behind Washington’s crushingly high fuel prices, the state Department of Ecology isn’t being fully open about who is buying and holding the carbon credits. A state senator says that has to change.

The state’s Climate Commitment Act requires Ecology to post information about carbon-allowance holding accounts on a searchable public website. In a Sept. 26 letter to agency director Laura Watson, Sen. Perry Dozier points out how what is believed to be the first post fails to include names of account holders, making it “useless” to the public and lawmakers.

“To be clear, the very information that the Legislature intended to make available when it enacted the CCA is being withheld by the department as it enforces the CCA,” wrote Dozier, R-Waitsburg.

While Dozier is not a member of the Senate Environment, Energy and Technology Committee, he notes the CCA is the lone topic on the agenda for the committee’s Monday meeting and expects concerns about the agency’s inadequate reporting will also be raised then. Ecology’s lack of openness is particularly troubling to Dozier because the agency has already broken the promise that farm diesel and fuel used by Washington’s maritime industry would be exempt from the CCA fuel surcharge.

Dozier’s request comes as Gov. Jay Inslee clings to a claim that his long-desired cap-and-trade policy is not the reason Washington motorists continue to pay more than $5 for a gallon of gasoline or diesel while prices are far less in neighboring Oregon or Idaho.

Carbon allowances function like permits to emit carbon, and may be bought, sold, traded, or transferred to another registered entity. Under the CCA, the allowances are held in accounts, and information about the contents of each holding account is to be public.

By providing the public with what his letter calls “the bare minimum” of information about those accounts, Dozier says, Ecology is adding to the controversy that has hung over the CCA since Democrat lawmakers pushed it through during the pandemic-lockdown 2021 legislative session. The distrust has increased as Washington gas prices began to soar this year.

“Unfortunately, the department’s holdings report is not searchable, does not allow the public to follow along, and provides no insight into the participation of various entities in the program, including general market participants…  In the presence of incessantly high gas prices, public perception of the CCA going forward will heavily depend on the program’s transparency,” Dozier’s letter continues.

In 2022 policy analysts outside the Inslee administration predicted the CCA would cause a significant increase in gas prices once the auctions of carbon allowances began this year. Inslee responded with the now-infamous claim that the new law would add “pennies” per gallon and might even lead to lower gas prices – yet the cost associated with the CCA is now estimated at 51 cents per gallon, as fuel suppliers continue adjusting their prices to recoup the growing cost of the allowances they purchase.

Dozier explained his request to Ecology is driven by a general interest in government transparency and holding state agencies accountable, plus his particular concern for how the CCA is being implemented.

“This is not about outing the private companies and public institutions that have been put over a barrel by the CCA and given no real choice except to pay up,” Dozier said. “At a fundamental level it’s about ensuring public access to the details of transactions involving government, the same way we should be able to see who holds any government-issued permit. These aren’t Swiss bank accounts, but Ecology is treating them that way.

“The CCA deserves special attention because it’s causing more pain at the pump and adding to the affordability crisis in our state while becoming a golden goose for state government. Turning carbon emissions into a commodity has enriched the state by over a billion dollars in a matter of months, with more sales to come this year. When a new line of business becomes that lucrative so quickly, it’s even more important to see the details so the public can keep a close eye on who is doing what.

“Instead of pushing for legislation to force a closer look at the oil industry’s finances, the governor should be more concerned that his own agency is flouting the law he wanted by failing to fully open its own books.”

Dozier noted the mandate for transparency was added to the CCA when it first came before the Senate, through a Republican amendment that was publicly endorsed by the bill’s Democratic prime sponsor.

“The senators who spoke in favor of this reporting requirement wisely said we need to follow this very confusing and cumbersome system to understand its full implications. Ecology is obstructing the public’s view. It needs to do better by following both the letter and the spirit of the law,” he said.

Dozier’s letter concludes by encouraging the agency director to reevaluate the holding-accounts report and upgrade the next version. While he did not ask for a direct response, the 16th District lawmaker said it’s disconcerting that more than a week has already passed without Ecology offering any meaningful response to his request, considering the agency is already in hot water over the fuel-surcharge issue and the public outrage over how the CCA is driving up fuel prices.

“I’m not expecting a thank-you note from Ecology for pointing out where it’s falling short. But seeing how the agency keeps fighting us on the fuel-surcharge promise, despite my proposing a bill, I hope my letter is enough to fix this new issue. There’s something very wrong when you keep needing more legislation just to get the executive branch to follow the law.”

E-News: Mid-interim update on fuel prices, ag issues, parents’ rights and more

September 2023

Dear Neighbor,

Greetings from here at the ranch! Legislators refer to the months between our annual sessions as “interim,” and if you look at when the 2023 session ended (late April) and when the 2024 session begins (early January), we’re not much past the halfway point of this particular interim. That makes it a good time for an update, as my previous report to you was in July.

Now that summer is behind us, I hope it was a safe and productive season for you and your loved ones. It’s been a busy time at our place on top of harvest, the local meetings and community events that go with being your senator, and…welcoming a new family member. We’re happy and thankful to now have a daughter-in-law!

Also, it’s been nice to know how budget appropriations that were on my list when this year’s session began are already bearing fruit. I’m thinking specifically of the Columbia Valley Center for Recovery (formerly called the Three Rivers Behavioral Health Recovery Center), which received $5 million in the new capital budget, and the SR 224 Red Mountain Vicinity project. The public works director for West Richland let me know recently how the additional $5 million put into the new state transportation budget is just what they needed to stay within budget and on schedule.

Climate Commitment Act still inflating gas prices

While Washington no longer has the highest gas prices in the nation, the average cost of regular gas in our state is still north of $5/gallon. That’s also true for the average price in Walla Walla County, although Benton and Franklin are averaging less.

The governor insists this is due to profiteering by the oil industry. If so, why could I have saved $1.30 per gallon for diesel this week by buying it south of the state line? If maximizing profits is truly the intent, it makes no sense to jack up prices in our state but not in Oregon… or Idaho, where the prices are lower still.

Governor Inslee’s argument doesn’t fly with me, but then again he also claimed the full implementation of his Climate Commitment Act would only increase the cost of gas by “pennies” – instead of the 50 or so cents that seems to be the reality.

It might be different if the cap-and-trade approach at the heart of the CCA truly put a cap on the price of carbon. However, at the latest quarterly auction of “carbon allowances” (by the Department of Ecology) on August 30, the “settlement price” was up 12% from the May auction, which in turn was up 16% from the February auction. By refusing to put a cap on the price, the state basically forces fuel suppliers to continue adjusting their prices to recoup the growing cost of the allowances they purchase… and that means more pain at the pump.

Since those auctions began this year, the state has already raked in more than $1 billion, with another auction coming in December. It’s a much bigger haul than was projected by legislative budget writers, and makes the CCA look less like a real carbon-reduction strategy and more like a backhanded gas tax.

Governor Inslee, who pushed for a cap-and-trade policy for years before the CCA was passed in 2021, also claims his approach is the “ultimate measure to cut the cost of gas” and gives people “the choice to be powered by something else” – a reference to things like electrified public transit.

The ag workers I see leaving the fields and orchards each day at this time of year don’t have the option to ride e-buses and don’t own electric cars to plug in at a publicly built charging station. The CCA’s effect on gas prices is gouging everyone, taking money out of the pockets of those who can least afford it. And that’s before you get to how prices at the grocery store are being inflated due to the CCA’s effect on shipping costs.

Ag update: fuel surcharge, overtime head list of issues

Speaking of the Climate Commitment Act, a pair of commitments made to the agricultural community are found deep in section 10 of the law… and unfortunately, the Department of Ecology isn’t holding up its end.

One states “motor vehicle fuel or special fuel that is used exclusively for agricultural purposes by a farm fuel user” is exempt from coverage by the law; the second requires Ecology to “determine a method for expanding the exemption to include fuels used for the purpose of transporting agricultural products on public highways.”

It became clear during this year’s legislative session that Ecology wasn’t complying, which caused me and other Republican senators to introduce SB 5728 in February. The bill went nowhere, and months later, Ecology is echoing the governor’s line; in this news report the agency blames fuel suppliers for the gouging of our ag community.

The broken commitment on the CCA fuel surcharge would have been an outrage even if this year had been a good one for Washington agriculture. But between the higher inflation rate driving up the cost of putting in crops, and the commodity prices and lower yields many have seen, the last thing our ag sector needs is more cost for simply operating equipment, and for trucking/shipping.

Washington agriculture also needs relief from the overtime law adopted in 2021. The farming operations I’ve visited say it’s a huge issue, and a seasonal exemption would be a big help… but a bipartisan bill to allow that went nowhere. As this NPR report explains – using a local asparagus operation as an example – workers who thought they would be helped by the change have come to a different conclusion. Unfortunately, labor advocates are acting like they know what’s best for the workers.

New school year, but no new rights for Washington parents

For three years I’ve proposed legislation that would, among other important things, require school districts and public schools to post certain assessment results online… instead of forcing parents to navigate this section of the Superintendent of Public Instruction’s website. Last year my bill finally got a public hearing in the Senate K-12 education committee, on which I serve, but the chair did not allow a vote.

After seeing the results of the student assessments from this past spring, I can understand why the state’s largest teachers’ union, the Washington Education Association, has SB 5024 on its list of proposals that “do not align with WEA’s priorities and present a concern.” The “at grade level” metric for students closest to graduating – this past year’s 10th-graders – shows students are far from recovering from the learning loss in English and math:

English:

  • Students meeting the standard for their grade level was unchanged from last year (50.7%)
  • In spring 2021, the figure was 47.7%, but pre-pandemic (spring 2019) it was 59.6%

Math:

  • 39.1% of students met the standard for their grade level, slightly higher than last year (37.7%)
  • In spring 2021, the figure was 30.4%, but pre-pandemic (spring 2019) it was 48.9%.

When SPI Chris Reykdal, the state’s top K-12 official, released the test results earlier this month, he offered almost no comment about the numbers, choosing instead to start with this: “Our students enter our school buildings each day and add new learning and skills to their toolbelt… Each and every student is learning year over year!”

Talk about stating what should be obvious. No wonder The Seattle Times recently criticized Superintendent Reykdal for “cheerleading mediocrity.”

Test results aside, my “parental bill of rights” legislation would also ensure parents and legal guardians have the right to:

  • Access to what their children are being taught, including but not limited to classroom and school-sponsored activities, access to curricula and instructional materials used within the curricula, and access to these materials for review either online or through an alternative method;
  • Information on who is teaching their children, including guest speakers and presenters who are not employed by the school;
  • Access to the names and organizations/affiliation of those with curriculum-related contracts with the school district or public school and are receiving public funding;

SB 5024 also would direct the Washington State School Directors’ Association (the statewide school-board agency) to update a model policy and procedure regarding accessibility through remote participation in and recordings of school board meetings, and encourage school districts to act accordingly.

K-12 funding in our state is based largely on enrollment, and many districts have had to tighten their belts because parents have gone elsewhere to get their children educated. Maybe that would change if districts made it easier for parents to be active and involved in their child’s education.

My bill is not about parents driving curriculum, but about schools being more transparent with parents… about creating better avenues for parents to access their children’s education and become better acquainted with district policies. Although powerful interests are opposing this legislation, I’ll keep trying.

Will court ruling force change in 16th District boundaries?

Our legislative district borders three others – the 9th, 14th and 15th. In the past several weeks, federal judges finally ruled on legal challenges filed last year regarding the boundaries of the 15th District, which shares a boundary with ours from west of Prosser to north of Benton City.

The upshot is that while the 15th is a “majority-minority” district, it falls short of the standard in section 2 of the federal Voting Rights Act – meaning race was not considered enough when the boundaries were reset in 2021 (as part of the statewide redistricting that occurs following each federal census). The court says the boundaries must be redrawn.

A recent Tri-City Herald editorial does a good job of explaining the nuts and bolts of the situation, but since that was published, the majority leaders in the Senate and House have decided against having the state Redistricting Commission handle the job of redrawing the lines – even though state law clearly says that’s what should happen.

This is a mistake. Our Legislature has a civic duty to reconvene the Redistricting Commission – which was created by Washington voters 40 years ago, relieving the Legislature from the responsibility of redistricting and essentially eliminating opportunities for the “gerrymandering” that gives one party an advantage in elections.

Why would anyone think it’s better to let a single judge or a judge’s appointee redraw the map behind closed doors, instead of having a bipartisan committee do the job out in the open? As this might cause a change in our 16th District, I will keep you posted.

***

Please remember I am here to serve you. Although we may not always be able to meet face to face, I encourage you to reach out to my office and to share your thoughts, ideas and concerns on matters of importance to you. Please, if you don’t already, follow me on Facebook. I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

 

 

 

 

Perry Dozier

Republican ag leaders highlight hypocrisy of Democrats on gas-price debacle

Sen. Perry Dozier

OLYMPIA… Agricultural-policy leaders from the Senate Republican Caucus are weighing in on attempts to gaslight the public on why Washington’s gas prices remain highest in the nation.

While Gov. Jay Inslee and other Democratic elected officials tried to lay blame on the oil and gas industry during a news conference today, Senators Ron Muzzall, Judy Warnick, Perry Dozier and Mark Schoesler pointed out the hypocrisy of Democrats about their “cap-and-gouge” carbon-pricing scheme and its impact on the state’s agricultural producers. The carbon law was passed in 2021 but did not take full effect until 2023, triggering a steady rise in Washington gas prices. Washington overtook California for the nation’s worst gas prices a month ago.

“The governor and supporters of this money-grab are the only ones surprised that their carbon tax would result in higher prices at the pump,” said Muzzall, R-Oak Harbor, the ranking Republican on the Senate’s ag-related committee. “There’s a great deal of unhelpful finger-pointing going on while our ag industry is hurting. It’s hypocritical that farmers are stuck paying nearly 50 cents more per gallon for gas in costs that they were legally exempted from, while the governor gets to be chauffeured in his taxpayer-funded luxury SUV.”

The row over a fuel-surcharge exemption for Washington’s agriculture, timber and marine industries is ongoing as state regulators seem unable to follow the law’s requirements. When pressed on the issue, Inslee has flippantly said that these affected groups should seek reimbursement from the oil and gas industry themselves.

“Proponents of this scheme promised to maintain the exemption for ag fuel and broke that promise,” said Warnick, R-Moses Lake. “During recent town halls, I heard near-unanimous frustration and opposition to what the governor and these politicians are doing to rural and minority communities that I represent. Taking money out of working families’ pockets to line the state’s coffers doesn’t reduce carbon emissions, but it does make our state even more unaffordable.”

Washington has operated a similar state fuel tax refund program for the same industries for years, leaving Republican lawmakers and the public scratching their heads as to why the legally required rebates are unattainable.

“The governor has zero business talking about accountability on fuel prices. He hasn’t even held his own administration accountable for how his policy has gouged our state’s agricultural and maritime sectors. For months he and members of the Democratic majority ignored Republican efforts to end the surcharges on exempt fuels that are not only unfair but illegal,” said Dozier, R-Waitsburg, who prime-sponsored an unsuccessful piece of legislation to ensure the exemption is followed. “Farmers are price takers – they can’t be expected to absorb higher fuel costs while the governor and Ecology have dragged their feet on making things right. It’s completely unacceptable.”

The average price of regular unleaded gas in Washington is $4.928 today, compared to $4.588 in Oregon a gallon and $3.892 in Idaho. Assertions by Inslee and other Democratic lawmakers of price gouging and profiteering are debunked by the price disparity, while the effect of the higher fuel costs on overall business expenses puts Washington’s agricultural sector and other employers at a disadvantage.

“Even though the governor has been demonizing oil companies as the reason why our state has the highest gas prices in the nation, our neighboring states have much lower prices,” said Schoesler, R-Ritzville, a co-sponsor of Dozier’s legislation. “Oregon and Idaho don’t have cap-and-trade. It’s obvious that Washington’s cap-and-trade program is why our state has the highest gas prices in America. While most of the nation is enjoying gas prices below $4 a gallon, people in our state have been forced to pay about $5 a gallon for several weeks, and prices in Washington likely are going to keep rising.”

 

E-News: Affordability crisis deepens in WA, between gas prices and new tax on workers

On Tuesday morning I had the pleasure of taking part in a memorable ceremony for the B5 Community Learning Center in Kennewick. Often the shovels are put in the hands of the elected officials and others who have had roles in getting a project to the construction stage; this time the ground was literally broken by the immigrant children who will be served at the new B5 center!

Dear Neighbor,

Greetings from here at the ranch! It’s been almost two months since the Legislature adjourned for the second time this year… following a one-day “special” session to update our state’s drug-possession law. I’ve been busy catching up on ranch chores that couldn’t be done during our 105-day regular session, and some extra projects because we’re hosting a family gathering next month – many of you know how that is.

But I am your senator year-round, even when I am not at the state Capitol, which means attending meetings and community events, and continuing to listen to your concerns about government and the government policies that are affecting your life and family. I’m going to zero in on a couple of those in this newsletter. They unfortunately deepen the affordability crisis in our state, which has been a top concern for Senate Republicans for years.

‘Please do something to lower gas prices’

A constituent named Larry made a simple request in an email earlier this month.

“Please do something to lower gas prices. It is my understanding that Washington now has highest prices in the US. It is having an impact on me, and I can’t image the impact on those making minimum wages.”

He’s correct: Until about three weeks ago, California had the nation’s highest gas prices. Then Washington moved ahead – just in time for the extra driving many families do during summer vacation from school, as Senate Republican Leader John Braun noted in this public statement.

Another constituent, Michael, went more in-depth with his concern about gas prices.

“The state legislature needs to address this problem of rising gas prices immediately. Call a special session… Washington does not need the status of the state with the highest gasoline prices superseding California and Hawaii, let them reclaim this dubious distinction.   “THE TIME TO ACT IS NOW, NOT NEXT YEAR, NEXT LEGISLATIVE SESSION.”

Then there was this email from Helen, another constituent. Like Michael, she connected Washington’s high gas prices to a state law that was passed in 2021 but didn’t take full effect until 2023. It’s officially called the Climate Commitment Act (CCA) but known generically as “cap-and-invest,” “cap-and-trade” or “cap-and-tax,” depending on who is talking (to me it clearly functions as a tax):

“I am writing to urge you to act immediately to FIX Washington’s deeply flawed and enormously costly new cap-and-trade program that was launched earlier this year.

“Independent sources, such as Washington Policy Center and Washington Research Council (WRC) estimate that based on the May 31st auction price, the compliance costs for this program are adding 44 cents per gallon to the cost to manufacture gasoline and 55 cents per gallon to the cost to manufacture diesel.

“The Seattle Times reports that the Department of Ecology has collected almost $850 million in compliance costs so far this year. An independent analysis conducted by WRC also estimates the program could cost $1.5 billion by year-end. These costs are three times higher than originally estimated when the legislature voted cap-and-trade into law.

“I urge you to work with your legislative colleagues to fix this flawed program to make it work as intended in meeting our climate goals without placing enormous cost burdens on Washington families, small businesses, family farmers and working people across our state.”

The auction referred to in Helen’s message is how, under the cap-and-tax law, state government began selling carbon “allowances” this year. These “compliance costs” are passed on to us at the pump, which explains why Washington gas prices have continued upward all year while they’ve fallen in other states.

The message from Michael also suggested legislators had failed to ask, back in 2021, whether the Climate Commitment Act would cause gas prices to rise. I can assure him that many of us didn’t ask whether the proposed law would affect gas prices – we predicted it would.

I’ll also point out that this bill didn’t get a lot of attention outside the Capitol because that legislative session was held remotely, greatly limiting the public’s ability to be heard. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that controversial “reform” bills about law enforcement were slid through that session, as was the state’s capital-gains income tax.

As I replied to constituent Larry, I am careful about sounding overly partisan, but when it comes to gas prices in our state and the subject of energy/fuel in general, there is no getting around how there is a great difference of opinion between Republicans and Democrats.

In each of the past two legislative sessions, Senate Republicans have proposed lowering gas prices through a temporary suspension of Washington’s 49.4-cent state gas tax (Senate Bill 5897 in 2022, and this year, SB 5756, which I sponsored). Democrats have shown zero interest – meaning they would not even agree to hold a public hearing on either bill and listen to the valid concerns you and many others have.

To Michael’s point, I would definitely support having a special legislative session to address gas prices. However, I doubt our Democratic colleagues feel the same way, as they and Governor Inslee are denying the Climate Commitment Act has anything to do with Washington having the highest gas prices in the U.S. The reality is, too many of the people who control our state government don’t seem to care if you are paying more for gas, and see higher gas prices as the way to force people into public transit and electric vehicles. But I will not give up, as this is too important to the people I serve.

The state Department of Ecology is on point within the executive branch of state government for implementing the Climate Commitment Act; it’s also the agency failing to deliver on the CCA exemptions promised to the agricultural and maritime industries (and the fuel surcharge rebates now owed them due to that failure) Just this week I was among more than 40 lawmakers signing a letter to Ecology which offers a plan for bringing gas prices down. Click here to read it.

The state Department of Ecology is on point within the executive branch of state government for implementing the Climate Commitment Act; it’s also the agency failing to deliver on the CCA exemptions promised to the agricultural and maritime industries (and the fuel surcharge rebates now owed them due to that failure) Just this week I was among more than 40 lawmakers signing a letter to Ecology which offers a plan for bringing gas prices down. Click here to read it.

New payroll tax adds to affordability crisis in our state

As of this month, any paycheck cut in Washington is subject to the new long-term care tax, unless the paycheck goes to someone who has obtained an exemption from state government.

The law that is now making Washington gasoline so expensive was created in 2021; the payroll tax goes back even farther, to 2019. The Democratic majority delayed the tax collection until 2022, which kept the whole thing under the public’s radar. But as word got out about the tax and the many flaws in the so-called “WA Cares” program it support (like how people who choose to retire out of state would give up access to the long-term benefits they’d paid for), people wanted an opportunity to exempt themselves.

That opportunity came late in 2021, for a limited time, but exemptions weren’t granted unless you could show you had purchased separate long-term care coverage. The resulting controversy led Democratic legislators to delay the collection of the tax until this month and add four very narrow exemptions that are ongoing but still exclude most Washington workers.

That was last year. I had hoped the majority would make further adjustments during our 2023 regular session, but nothing happened – and with the tax now coming out of the paychecks of those who could not or have not obtained an exemption, I am hearing from people again, wondering what’s going on and what can be done about it. They don’t like giving up an average of $24 in pay each month indefinitely for a benefit that might pay for only a few months in an assisted-living facility.

An answer came from some of my Senate Republican colleagues this week. Knowing that our colleagues in the Democratic majority won’t repeal WA Cares, they’re proposing that Washington workers again be given the choice to opt out, this time with no time limit and no strings attached (meaning no need to show proof of purchasing a separate policy). You can see the latest draft of the proposal here and read the thinking behind it here.

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Please remember I am here to serve you. Although we may not always be able to meet face to face, I encourage you to reach out to my office and to share your thoughts, ideas and concerns on matters of importance to you. Please, if you don’t already, follow me on Facebook. I look forward to hearing from you.

Perry Dozier
State Senator
16th Legislative District

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E-News: 2023 session ends on schedule, but a big problem remains

No one would have seen this in 2021 and 2022, because pandemic restrictions kept the public from being heard when legislators were in session. I’m glad that’s over! The people of Washington have the right to come to their Capitol and assemble peacefully, the way we saw last week from supporters and opponents of SB 5599 — one of the session’s most divisive bills.

 

Dear Neighbor,

Greetings from…here in the 16th District! This year’s regular legislative session wrapped up on schedule this past Sunday, but unfortunately, I have to emphasize the word “regular.” There’s a chance we may be called back to the Capitol for an overtime session, to deal with a situation that was completely avoidable.

I’ll explain below and also touch on some of the other results from our 105-day session, but first, let me invite you to the town hall meetings we are holding in person next week. Both begin at 5:30 p.m., and I figure they’ll last an hour or so – or as long as people still have questions!

16th District Town Halls

Tuesday, May 2 – Walla Walla

Walla Walla Community College – Performing Arts Center

Wednesday, May 3 – West Richland

Libby Middle School, 3259 Belmont Blvd.

Even though the turnout was great for our “virtual” town hall on March 28, there is nothing like being able to visit face-to-face.

In fact, the ability to work with one another in person was one of the best takeaways from the 2023 legislative session. The COVID restrictions that had kept the public out of the Capitol – the “people’s house” – during the 2021 and 2022 sessions were gone. It was great to see and hear people testify in our committees on legislation (although the remote option was still available).

Also, sorting through policy issues with other legislators is much easier when you can simply step off to the side of the Senate chamber or out into the hallway and talk. It sure beats having to schedule a virtual meeting.

Many years ago one group of legislators committed to funding a project to widen U.S. Highway 12 into Walla Walla — but a few years later, another group went a different direction with the money. I made sure Sen. Curtis King of Yakima, Republican leader on the Senate Transportation Committee, knew our district needed the state to deliver on what had been committed… and the new state transportation budget does!

Lawmakers pass new budgets in closing days

Votes by the Senate on Saturday afternoon completed the Legislature’s work on the capital and transportation budgets for 2023-25. On Sunday afternoon it was the new operating budget’s turn.

Earlier in the session I had put in funding requests for 16th District needs, and many of those were met in the compromise budgets that were negotiated by the Senate and House these past few weeks, prior to the weekend votes.

Capital budget: The final version of Senate Bill 5200 includes $42.2 million worth of investments for the 16th District. A lot of projects to repair or remodel public buildings are on the list – this is the construction budget, after all. The appropriations also include money to expand the Three Rivers Behavioral Health Center; funding related to the Walla Walla Water 2050 water management plan; and support for community assets like parks and playgrounds, and greenhouse improvements at the WSU ag research station in Prosser. The Benton County seat will even get a new city entrance sign thanks to this budget. The capital budget was passed unanimously in the House and Senate.

Transportation budget: The “Connecting Washington” transportation package passed in 2015, back when I was a county commissioner, included money to complete the widening of U.S. Highway 12 between Wallula and Walla Walla. That money got diverted. I made a case to the Senate transportation leaders (the Democratic chair and his Republican counterpart) about the need to get those dollars back ($21 million), so we could leverage them to get around $200 million in federal dollars.

I’m proud to say the $21 million is in the final transportation budget approved by the Senate and House, as is an additional $13.4 million for improvements for the State Route 224 (Red Mountain, near West Richland) corridor project. I was a “yes” on the budget (House Bill 1125) because of these local investments.

I wish the same transportation budget did not include money for a study related to the effort to breach the four federal Snake River dams – but then again, I like to think such an analysis will end up demonstrating how very important the dams are to the movement of freight and goods. That’s among the many reasons to not breach them.

Operating budget: I did not support this biggest of the three budgets when it came through the Senate in March. It wasn’t an easy call, because that version of Senate Bill 5187 plan reflected a lot of Republican input. In the end, though, I couldn’t get past things like another appropriation related to the effort to breach the Snake River dams.

The final version of the operating budget that came before us Sunday, after it was passed by majority Democrats in the House, still checked boxes that are important to fiscal conservatives like me. Also, the threat of property-tax or real-estate excise tax increases did not materialize, which was positive. However, this compromise budget retains the Snake River dam appropriation, and went in the wrong direction on K-12, by failing to go far enough to help students recover from the “learning loss” they suffered because of pandemic classroom closures.

Also, it retains a long-overdue boost in funding for special-education services but dropped the money for dedicated special-education advocates that was in the Senate version. That was the last straw for me, as a member of the Senate education committee, and made my “no” vote an easier decision.

Republicans put priority on public safety; majority Democrats falter, especially on drug-possession issue

I hoped this session would undo the mistakes made in 2021 that essentially decriminalized hard drugs and weakened the ability of law enforcement to pursue suspected criminals.

In March, seeing how our state’s current misdemeanor drug-possession law has been a disaster, I supported legislation to make possession of fentanyl and similar drugs a gross misdemeanor. This would give more leverage when trying to get people with substance-use issues into and through treatment programs.

The majority Democrats in the House said no, they wanted to stay with a misdemeanor. Negotiations between the House and Senate produced a new proposal that tried to bridge the different positions held by the two chambers, but at 9 p.m. on Sunday – the final day of the regular session – that proposal failed to win enough House votes.

Here’s what this means: The current drug-possession law expires July 1, so if the Legislature does not replace it before then, it basically falls to local governments (counties and cities) to put their own drug-possession statutes in place. That means West Richland might have a different law than Walla Walla, but that’s the situation the Democratic majority in the Legislature has caused.

It is incredibly frustrating that the Senate Democrats and Republicans worked together across party lines to put a good solution on the table (SB 5536, which I supported) yet the House Democrats would not.

A change to the criminal-friendly pursuit restrictions was adopted but is really no more than a half-step forward. I had opposed Senate Bill 5232 the first go-round and because the House did not make it appreciably better, I was a “no” the second time as well. Officers still are prohibited from pursuing car thieves, for instance, unless they literally witness the theft of the vehicle – and we know how unlikely that is to happen.

There is one bright spot on the public-safety front: While my bill to replace the state’s Offender Management Network Information (OMNI) system stalled in the House budget committee, the policy from Senate Bill 5025 is supported in the new state operating budget. This includes a project to digitize the health records of state-prison inmates – formally creating what’s being called an EHR (Electronic Health Records) system at the Department of Corrections.

I’m not counting the three anti-firearm bills passed this year (and signed by the governor yesterday) in the public-safety category, in part because I expect legal challenges may invalidate each. However, I view the dismissal of sensible bills like SB 5049 and SB 5745 as adding to our state’s public-safety concerns friendly to criminals. These measures would have increased the penalty for firearm theft and committing a crime with a stolen firearm, and I co-sponsored both. While the governor’s own Office of Firearm Safety acknowledges many of the guns tied to “gun violence” aren’t obtained legally, the majority did not give either of the bills serious consideration.

I’ll look next time at what the 2023 session meant for making life in Washington more affordable, and for K-12 education. Those, along with public safety, are the priorities Republicans brought to Olympia this year.

 

Participating in
YOUR state government

Now that legislators are back to meeting in person, there are many events, hearings and activities happening on the Capitol Campus. Additionally, we will continue to offer virtual options which may be more convenient. To help you navigate the legislative website and external resources, I have provided the following frequently used links to make your participation in the legislative process a little easier:

Watch legislative hearings, floor sessions and press conferences – https://www.tvw.org/

Testify in a committee – https://leg.wa.gov/legislature/Pages/Testify.aspx

Provide remote testimony – https://leg.wa.gov/House/Committees/Pages/RemoteTestimony-RegisterToTestify.aspx

Comment on a bill – https://app.leg.wa.gov/pbc/

Visit my website – https://perrydozier.src.wastateleg.org/

Senate Page Program. If you know a teen (between the ages of 14-16) interested in spending a week in Olympia learning about our state government, have them apply here – https://leg.wa.gov/Senate/Administration/PageProgram/Pages/default.aspx 

Please remember I am here to serve you. Although we may not always be able to meet face to face, I encourage you to reach out to my office and to share your thoughts, ideas and concerns on matters of importance to you. Please, if you don’t already, follow me on Facebook. I look forward to hearing from you.

Also, I hope you’ll be able to join us next week at a town hall meeting!

Perry Dozier
State Senator
16th Legislative District

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Legislative town halls coming next week in Walla Walla, West Richland

OLYMPIA… The three lawmakers serving Washington’s 16th Legislative District have scheduled town hall meetings May 2 and 3 to discuss the outcome of the Legislature’s just-concluded annual session.

Both of the meetings hosted by Sen. Perry Dozier, R-Waitsburg, and Reps. Skyler Rude and Mark Klicker, both R-Walla Walla, will begin at 5:30 p.m.

Tuesday’s town hall will be in the performing arts center at Walla Walla Community College’s campus in Walla Walla, at 500 Tausick Way. The Wednesday town hall is at Libby Middle School, 3259 Belmont Blvd. in West Richland.

The 2023 legislative session ended April 23, as scheduled. In addition to reviewing some of the bills that have passed in the Senate and House of Representatives, and providing an update on their own legislation, the three lawmakers also plan to answer attendees’ questions and address their concerns.