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The week of Feb. 19-23 could have been called "budget week," as the Senate held public hearings or approved its version of the three state supplemental budgets (operating, capital, and transportation) that adjust the two-year spending plans passed by the Legislature last spring. The first to emerge was the capital budget, which was passed by the Senate 49-0 on Feb. 22. The Senate's capital budget is about priorities over pork. It addresses important needs, including helping communities in...
By Sen. Mark Schoesler Eastern Washington has several beautiful and popular state parks, including Steptoe Butte and Steptoe Battlefield in Whitman County, plus Lyons Ferry and Palouse Falls south of Washtucna. Unfortunately, Washington State Parks oversees these parks. It's unfortunate because the agency has a history of bumbling in our part of the state. The latest example is the news that WSP will close the restrooms at the top of the Steptoe Butte State Park Heritage Site. While I'm happy...
OLYMPIA–With the April 23 conclusion of this year's legislative session just days away, it sadly appears the Legislature will not pass a bill to implement the exemption for farm fuel and certain other types of fuel from the costly fee created by the state's 'cap-and-trade' program that went into effect this January. Ever since the Climate Commitment Act was passed by the Democrat-controlled Legislature two years ago, I predicted fuel prices would rise sharply in Washington once the c...
OLYMPIA–In my 30 years as a state legislator, there have been times when I have correctly predicted that something Olympia did would turn out badly for Washingtonians. The "cap-and-tax" program recently created by the Democrat majorities in the Legislature certainly looks like it should be added to this dubious list. Earlier this month, the state Department of Ecology announced the results from the state's first carbon-allowance auction, which was created by the Climate Commitment Act passed b...
We all have heard the phrase, "The good, the bad and the ugly." It also applies to the many bills before the Legislature each year. Nearly 1,600 bills (754 from the Senate, 843 from the House) had been introduced, as of Feb. 21, and we're not even halfway through the 105-day session yet. Many of these proposals are good, a fair number are bad and some are just plain ugly. Let me offer examples of each. A "good" measure would be Senate Bill (SB) 5034, introduced by 4th District Sen. Mike Padden...
After Washington drivers endured record-high gas and diesel prices for much of last year, fuel prices dropped substantially across the state during the final months of 2022. But you may have noticed they have risen sharply again in recent weeks. The reason for this latest spike is one of Governor Jay Inslee's environmental laws, approved by legislative Democrats two years ago. In early January, I was informed by a friend who works in the fuel distribution industry that wholesale gasoline and...
