living liberty april 2008

12
NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID OLYMPIA, WA PERMIT #462 AN A+ EVENT 6 STATE FOOTPRINT EXPANDS 10 LIVING LIBERTY APRIL 2008 | WWW.EFFWA.ORG A PUBLICATION OF THE EVERGREEN FREEDOM FOUNDATION GOOD DEFENSE KILLS BAD LABOR POLICIES 8 Continued on page 12 Attacks on liberty and the initiative power Democrats deliberately crafted a challenge to Initiative 960, which requires legislative approval for all tax and fee increases and reinforces Initiative 601’s spending limit and two-thirds vote requirement to raise taxes. They tried to raise liquor taxes (SB 6931) by a majority vote but were told by Lieutenant Gov- ernor Brad Owen that I-960 requires a two-thirds vote. Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown and her liberal backers filed a law- suit (Brown v. Owen) to overturn both Initiative 960 and Initia- tive 601. The majority ignored I-960’s legislative approval requirement for fee increases and instead delegated that authority back to the affected agencies. I-960 expressly prohibits doing that. Background info: SB 3381 (omnibus fee bill); Supplemental budget Section 218 (23), 222 (1), 302 (4), 309 (1), 401 (1), 602 and 603. An attempt was made to make an end-run of the constitution by award- ing all of Washington’s electoral votes to the presidential candidate who wins the nationwide popular vote. The bill passed the Sen- ate but died in the House. Democrats tried to require paid initiative signature gatherers to register with the state, make their addresses public and have a photo ID to identify them as a signature gatherer. Fortunately, that proposal died. Private property/property taxes In November when the legislature had its special one day session to reinstate the one percent levy limit (Initiative 747), Senator Brown claimed the legislature would take further action in the 2008 session. They didn’t. Repub- lican attempts at relief were rebuffed. The Democrats ignored a University of Washington study In the 32 years I have been following or participating in the legislature, this was the ugliest session I have seen in terms of legislative arrogance, attacks on individual liberty, fiscal insanity and big government proposals. Here are some of the lowlights: Session Wrap-up 2008 that found government regulations drove up the average price of a home in Seattle by $200,000. This means the appraised value of homes are higher and results in home- owners paying higher property taxes. Think about that for a minute. Due to nothing more than government regulations a home in Seattle costs $200,000 before you even start to build it! And many more attempts were made to increase government takings. The worst example was SB 5318 which would have established a wildlife corridor from the Yukon to Yellowstone. This corridor included the entire northeast corner of Wash- ington, most of Idaho and much of Montana. Rep. Joel Kretz did an outstanding job killing this proposal. Supplemental budget When you are in a hole, stop digging. The Senate Ways and Means Committee staff is projecting a $2.4 billion deficit for the next two year budget. So what did legislators do? They gave a tax rebate to “working poor families’ amounting to $60 million/year. The administrative costs for this program are $3.5 million per year. They took $8 million from the Seattle convention cen- ter and used it for low-income housing. They passed family leave last year without a funding source. The supplemental budget authorizes $6.2 mil- lion to start the program. They raided $101 million from other accounts to make it appear that they had established a good reserve. They approved more than 260 fee increases for state agencies totaling more than $740 million over the next ten years in a fee bill and in the supplemental budget. by Bob Williams

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Attacks on liberty and the initiative power PAID proposals.Herearesomeofthelowlights: Inthe32yearsIhavebeenfollowingorparticipating individualliberty,fiscalinsanityandbiggovernment seenintermsoflegislativearrogance,attackson inthelegislature,thiswastheugliestsessionIhave GOOD DEFENSE KILLS BAD LABOR POLICIES 8 Continued on page 12 by Bob Williams A PUBLICATION OF THE EVERGREEN FREEDOM FOUNDATION 1 NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE OLYMPIA, WA PERMIT #462

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: Living Liberty April 2008

A PUBLICATION OF THE EVERGREEN FREEDOM FOUNDATION 1

NON-PROFIT ORG.U.S. POSTAGE

PAIDOLYMPIA, WAPERMIT #462

AN A+ EVENT 6 STATE FOOTPRINT EXPANDS 10

LIVING LIBERTYAPRIL 2008 | WWW.EFFWA.ORG A PUBLICATION OF THE EVERGREEN FREEDOM FOUNDATION

GOOD DEFENSE KILLS BAD LABOR POLICIES 8

Continued on page 12

Attacks on liberty and the initiative power • Democrats deliberately crafted a challenge to Initiative 960,

whichrequireslegislativeapprovalforalltaxandfeeincreasesand reinforces Initiative 601’s spending limit and two-thirdsvoterequirementtoraisetaxes.Theytriedtoraiseliquortaxes(SB6931)byamajorityvotebutweretoldbyLieutenantGov-ernorBradOwenthatI-960requiresatwo-thirdsvote.SenateMajorityLeaderLisaBrownandherliberalbackersfiledalaw-suit(Brown v. Owen)tooverturnbothInitiative960andInitia-tive601.

• Themajority ignored I-960’s legislative approval requirement for fee increasesandinsteaddelegatedthatauthoritybacktotheaffectedagencies.I-960expresslyprohibitsdoingthat.Backgroundinfo:SB3381(omnibusfeebill);SupplementalbudgetSection218(23),222(1),302(4),309(1),401(1),602and603.

• Anattemptwasmadetomakeanend-runoftheconstitutionbyaward-ingallofWashington’selectoralvotestothepresidentialcandidatewhowinsthenationwidepopularvote.ThebillpassedtheSen-atebutdiedintheHouse.

• Democratstriedtorequirepaidinitiativesignaturegatherersto registerwith the state,make their addressespublic andhave aphoto ID to identify themas a signaturegatherer.Fortunately,thatproposaldied.

Private property/property taxesInNovemberwhenthelegislaturehaditsspecialonedaysessiontoreinstatetheonepercentlevylimit(Initiative747),SenatorBrownclaimedthelegislaturewouldtakefurtheraction in the2008session.Theydidn’t.Repub-lican attempts at reliefwere rebuffed. TheDemocratsignored a University ofWashingtonstudy

Inthe32yearsIhavebeenfollowingorparticipating

inthelegislature,thiswastheugliestsessionIhave

seenintermsoflegislativearrogance,attackson

individualliberty,fiscalinsanityandbiggovernment

proposals.Herearesomeofthelowlights:

SessionWrap-up

2008thatfoundgovernmentregulationsdroveuptheaveragepriceofahomeinSeattleby$200,000.Thismeanstheappraisedvalueofhomesarehigherandresultsinhome-ownerspayinghigherpropertytaxes.Thinkaboutthatforaminute.Duetonothingmorethangovernmentregulationsa

homeinSeattlecosts$200,000beforeyouevenstarttobuildit!Andmanymoreattemptsweremadetoincreasegovernmenttakings.Theworst

examplewas SB 5318whichwould have established awildlife corridor from theYukontoYellowstone.ThiscorridorincludedtheentirenortheastcornerofWash-ington,mostofIdahoandmuchofMontana.Rep.JoelKretzdidanoutstandingjobkillingthisproposal.

Supplemental budget Whenyouareinahole,stopdigging.TheSenateWaysandMeansCommittee

staffisprojectinga$2.4billiondeficitforthenexttwoyearbudget.Sowhatdidlegislatorsdo?

• They gave a tax rebate to “working poor families’amounting to $60 million/year. The administrativecostsforthisprogramare$3.5millionperyear.

• Theytook$8millionfromtheSeattleconventioncen-teranduseditforlow-incomehousing.

• Theypassedfamilyleavelastyearwithoutafundingsource.Thesupplementalbudgetauthorizes$6.2mil-liontostarttheprogram.

• Theyraided$101millionfromotheraccountstomakeitappearthattheyhadestablishedagoodreserve.

• Theyapprovedmore than260fee increases forstateagenciestotalingmorethan$740millionoverthenexttenyearsinafeebillandinthesupplementalbudget.

by Bob Williams

Page 2: Living Liberty April 2008

2 LIVING LIBERTY

23

4

6891012

“Quote”

Evergreen Freedom Foundation PO Box 552

Olympia, WA 98507(360) 956-3482

Fax (360) 352-1874 [email protected] • www.effwa.org

VOLUME 18, Issue 4

EFF’s mission is to advance

individual liberty, free enterprise and

limited, accountable government.

This Issue2 SUPREME COURT WATCH

3 LETTER FROM LYNN OUR MODERN DAY TRENTON pOLITICIAN’SpIpEDREAMMAYBECOMEREALITY

4READING THE FEDERALIST PART III LIBERTY AND PROSPERITY IN A GROWING AMERICA 6 ANA+EVENT

8 ADDITIONAL COLLECTIVE BARGAINING RIGHTS HURT TAXPAYERS

9 AMIXEDRECORDONOpENGOVERNMENT GOODDEFENSEKILLSBADLABORpOLICIES 10STATEFOOTpRINTEXpANDS,CRUSHESGROWTHESTIMATES LEGISLATORS DISDAIN OF THE PEOPLE

12 A WORD OF COUNSEL TO THE LEGISLATURE WHENYOUAREINAHOLE,STOpDIGGING

Publisher:Tom Henry

Editor:Tom Henry

Layout:Joel Sorrell

“If we don’t change, we can’t compete! That’s the

bottom line.”

– Ben Chavis, Principal, American Indian Public Charter High School

in the EFF movie Flunked

“�A�fine�film.�It’s�very�informative.�Very�challenging.”–�MICHAEL�MEDVED, March 19,

2008, on his nationally-syndicated radio show (1.9 million listeners)

6. Flunked Sneak Preview

Employer “gag” lawOnMarch19,theU.S.SupremeCourtheardargumentsinacase (Chamber v. Brown) thatcould impact laborrelationsinWashingtonstate.Thequestioniswhetheraprivateemployerwhoreceivesstategrantmoneycanbeprohibitedfromusingthemoney“toassist,promote,ordeterunionorganizing.”Californiaenactedastatute thatprohibitsemployers

who receive state grants from using these fundsto influence union organizing campaigns. Similar“employergag”lawshavebeenintroducedin15otherstates and could be inWashington’s future. The ideais amajor component of theWashington State LaborCouncil’s legislative agenda, and at least one versionwasintroducedinthelegislaturethisyear.Concernedthatthelawwillcompletelybarcompanies

from taking any position on union elections, theChamber of Commerce brought a lawsuit. Congress,they argue,meant for employer speech“tobe left forthefreeplayofcontendingeconomicforces.”Currently

employers cannot retaliate againstworkersfortheirchoicetounionize,butCalifornia’s law seems to be aneffort to assist union campaigns bysilencingtheopposition.TheNinthCircuit upheld the law,

ruling that employers are merelyrestrictedfromusingtaxpayerfundsto influence union elections—andarefreetousetheirownfunds.During oral arguments, Supreme Court justices

seemed to favor theChamber’s arguments.One laborlawexpertpredicteda6-3decisionfortheChamberofCommerce.Eitherway,therulingisboundtoinfluencenextyear’spolicydiscussionshereinWashington.

–Mike Reitz

Continued on page 8

S U P R E M E C O U R T

WATCH

Page 3: Living Liberty April 2008

A PUBLICATION OF THE EVERGREEN FREEDOM FOUNDATION 3

Letter from LynnLETTER FROM LY NNby Lynn Harsh

IOur modern-day Trenton

$500checkstopeople?Dowewantthem running elections, decidingwhogetselectedordowewantthemakesureitisthecommon people.”pro-freedom lawmakers tried to

add some “common sense” amend-mentstothebill,likerequiringcam-paign literature to include“paidforattaxpayers’expense,”prohibitingtaxpayerfundingtocandidates who run unopposed, requiring embezzledpublic campaign funds to be returned and limitingfundingtocitiesandtowns(asopposedtolibraryandfiredistrictsthatutilizelevyfunds).

twasnota full-scalebattle that turned the tideoftheAmericanRevolution.OnDecember26,1776,

in the midst of a roiling snowstorm, then-CaptainGeorgeWashingtonroutedtheHessiansatTrentonina45-minute“skirmish.”ThatAmericanvictorychangedeverything.TheBritishdecidedtheAmericanswereafarmore formidable foe than they had previously be-lieved. TheAmerican soldiers decided similarly.AndCongress,newlyinspired,gotseriousaboutsupportingitsfledglingarmy.Colonel Rall, the Hessian commander who lost his

life thatdayatTrenton,wasahiredgun.Sowerehissoldiers.Theydidn’thaveadeeploveforBritishvalues;theywerepaidtosubduetheAmericanrebels.CaptainWashingtonandhissoldiers,however,fought

withfervor,despitethefactthattheywerehungry,wetandcold.TwosoldiershadfrozentodeathonthewaytoTrenton.Yetthemenweresustainedbyanintangiblepromise that promised to become tangible. It wasfreedom theywerefighting for and theopportunity itwouldaffordthemandtheirfamilies.The desire for freedom that kept nearly dead men

walkingwasspelledoutinournewConstitution.Itwasprotectedthereaswell—atleastasprotectedashumanbeingscouldmakeit.Ourconstitutionbecamethelegallybindingdocument

that served to prevent us from using government tofurtherpersonalselfishambitions.OurFoundersknewfrompainfulexperienceandcenturiesofhistorythattheabilitytomakelawsthataffectlargeorsmallnumbersofpeopleisapowerthatcannotbegrantedlightly.Toprotect freedom from government, they decided thesovereignsinAmericawouldbethecitizensthemselves;astartlingdeparturefromwhattherestoftheworldhadeverknown.ThestandardthatissupposedtobeusedinAmerica

todeterminewhetherornotgovernmentshouldinsertitselfinaparticularissueiswhetherornotitviolatestheindividual rightsprotectedunderourConstitution.Byitsnature,governmenthasnorightsofitsown.Itonlyhastherightswethepeoplegrantit.So here we are, several hundred years after the

skirmish at Trenton, once again fighting for freedom.Whathappened?Freedomonlyworkswhenwe1)understandtheorigin

of our rights, 2) choose people to represent us who

also understand the origin, and 3) are diligent aboutgoverningourselves.Few Americans today understand the origin of our

rights,so,forthemostpart,boththeelectorateandthepool of candidates from which we select our electedrepresentatives reflect the same ignorance. How arewe toholdourelected representativesaccountable foradheringtostandardswhich,far toooften,neitherwenortheyunderstand?AndhowmuchneedIsayaboutourseeminginability

togovernourselves?I’llrepeatsomethingherethatIsaidafewyearsagoor

soinanothercolumn:Weshouldneverelectindividualswholegislateasif thestateismoreimportantthanitscitizens;asifcitizensexisttoservethegovernment;asifcollectiverightsaremore important than individualrights. When elected officials believe group “rights”aremoreimportantthanindividualrights,adangeroushybridoftotalitarianismhasbegunthatwilleventuallycompromiseeverybody’sliberty.A free society has virtuesworth preserving at high

cost,but itsnaturemakes itvulnerableandsomewhatunstable. The foundation and protection freedomrequires cannot bemaintained under the guidance ofcollectivists.Weshouldneverdoubtthecounselthatthepriceoflibertyiseternalvigilance.RussellKirkwroteandspokeaboutthesetofinvisible

principlesthatshapeandcontrolanysociety.

• Theirsetofmoralconvictions,meaningtherelation-shipbetween

Godandmanviceandvirtuehonestyanddishonestyhonoranddishonor

• Their setofpoliticalconvictions,meaning the rela-tionshipbetween

justiceandinjusticefreedomandtyrannypersonalrightsandpowerand their decisions about how to live togetherpeaceably.

• Theirsetofeconomicconvictions,meaningtherela-tionshipbetween

wealthandpovertypublicandprivateresponsibilitiesregardingmak-ingalivingandhowtheywilldistributegoodsandservices

SomeviewKirk’soutlineastoosimplistic,butitseemstomehehasprettymuchnailedit.It’sarareoccurrenceto hear public debate and honest inquiry about theseprinciples. Instead we have denigrated into selfishpartisanandspecialinterestshoutingmatchesthathaveaboutasmuchintellectualdepthasamudpuddle.Wecanchangethis.Attimeswemaybetemptedto

giveup,butthisisreallyneveranoption.The“skirmish”atTrenton is agood reminderof several fundamentalprinciples.• Certain battles may seem insignificant, but in the

courseofevents,faithfulnesstowinningthesmallerbattlescanturnthetideentirely.

• Agoodleader(ortwoorthree)ishardtocomeby,butisindispensabletovictory.

• Ferventbeliefandpassioninacauseisthelifebloodofamovement.Itwillbringlifebacktobodiesfrozenbydiscouragement,affluence,greedorignorance.

• Leaders and their followers who are merely hiredgunsaredefeatable.I’llendwithaquoteDavidMcCulloughused inhis

marvelous book 1776. It’s what George Washingtonaskedofhisbone-wearytroopsonDecember30,ofthatyear.“Mybravefellows,youhavedoneallIaskedyouto

do, andmore than could be reasonably expected, butyourcountryisatstake,yourwives,yourhouses,andall that you hold dear.You haveworn yourselves outwith fatigues andhardships, butweknownothow tospareyou.Ifyouwillconsenttostayonemonthlonger,youwillrenderthatservicetothecauseofliberty,andtoyourcountry,whichyoucanprobablyneverdounderanyothercircumstance.”Thestakesarehighforus todayaswell.Butunlike

Washington and his soldiers,we are notworn out bycold, hunger and neglect. Surely we can “render thatservicetothecauseofliberty,”forinthismodernday,we“knownothowtospareyou”either.

n 1942,Cincinnati SymphonyOrchestra conductorEugeneGoossensaskedcomposerAaronCopeland

towriteafanfaretoopenoneofthesymphony’scon-certs.Goossensaskedfora“stirringandsignificantcon-tributiontothewareffort,”andsuggestedatitlesuchasFanfare for Soldiers.Tohissurprise,CopelandnamedhiscompositionFanfare for the Common Man.pleased,Goossens asked to premiere the score at income taxtime.Coplandagreed:“I[am]allforhonoringthecom-monmanatincometaxtime.”Thoughtheysayotherwise,Washingtonlegislatorsdo

notseemtosharethisrespectforthecommonmanorhistaxes.In1992,morethan60percentofvoterspassedI-134andbannedtaxpayerfundedcampaigns.Thisyear,though, the legislature passedSB5278, removing the

prohibitionsolongasprogramsaresubmittedtovotersforapproval.The debate on the House floor revealed that tax-

payer funded political campaigns are not the “Ameri-candream,”butapolitician’sdreamtopreventprivatedonors, particularly businesses, from participating indemocracy.Rep.MarkMiloscia,D-30,castigatedbusi-nesscontributionsas“checkbookdemocracy.”Standingup for the freemarketplaceof ideas,Rep-

resentativeBillHinkle,R-13,describedtheelationheexperiencedwhenabusinessgavehimhisfirstsignifi-cantcampaigndonationandurgedhimtorunforoffice.“Thatiswhatwe’retryingtopreventhere,”Rep.Milo-scia continued. “Dowewant our democracy decidedbythefewpeoplewhohavetheabilitytogiveoutthose

by Ryan BedfordPolitician’s�pipe�dream�may�become�reality

I

Continued on page 12

Page 4: Living Liberty April 2008

4 LIVING LIBERTY

heAmericanFounderswere conservative revolutionaries.Leadingup to andevenduringtheWarforIndependence,mostdesiredsimplyareturntotheear-

lierstatusquo.TheAmericansfoughtnottosetupsomegrandnewexperiment,buttoprotecttheirestablishedrights,preservetheirexistingtrade,andrestoretheirlocalgovernments.TheRevolutionaryWarwas,inasense,theleastrevolutionaryaspectofAmerica’screation.Rathermoreoriginaland,indeed,revolutionarywouldbeAmer-ica’snewConstitution.ThephilosopherJohnLockehad,nearlyacenturybefore,providedavisionofgov-

ernment foundedon reason and consent.Skeptics had respondedbypointing to apainfulfact:neverhadasignificantgovernmentactuallyrestedonsuchafoundation.In1752,ScottishhistorianandphilosopherDavidHumechallengedthatLocke’sviewwas“notjustifiedbyhistoryorexperience,inanyageorcountryoftheworld.”Humepointedoutthattosuggestthatgovernmentpowerderivedfromconsentwould,“inmostpartsoftheworld[beconsidered]seditious.”WithinaquartercenturyofHume’swriting,thatseditionwassetoutonparchment

andsignedby56menwhopledgedtosupportitwith“ourLives,ourFortunesandoursacredHonor.”TheDeclarationof Independenceestablished theprinciples forAmericangovernment,includingtheLockeanideaofrestinggovernmentonreasonand“theconsentofthegoverned.”TheArticlesofConfederation,America’sfirstconstitution,wasmoreanalliance

thanagovernment.Itrestedontheconsentofthestategovernmentsandonlyindi-rectlyderiveditsfewpowersfromthepeople.TheConstitution,draftedelevenyearsaftertheDeclaration,wouldcreateatruenationalgovernment.Itwasnotstategov-ernments,butthepeoplethemselvesinspecialstateratifyingconventions,whowouldacceptorrejectthisnewplan.Indeed,itwasthequestionofratificationwithinNewYorkState that setAlexanderHamilton, JamesMadison,andJohnJay towriting,underthenamepublius,The Federalist Papers.

Federalist No. 9 (Hamilton): Small democracies, large republicsTheConstitutionwas not only revolutionary for establishing a regime upon the

deliberateconsentofthegoverned.Supportersofthenewnationalgovernment,ledbyJamesMadison,challengedanotherlong-heldassumptionabout“populargovern-ment.”Fromancienttimes,mosttheoristshadassumedthatgovernmentsofthepeo-

Part III:

Liberty and ProsPerity in a GrowinG americaThe FederalistReading

Reading The Federalist in 2008The Federalist Papers explain both the reasons for and the workings of the Constitution of the United States. It is “the most powerful body of political thought ever produced in America,” according to historian Rober t Middlekauff. For Americans who believe in the enduring value of the Constitution, The Federalist is an essential resource and a guide.

This essay is the third in a series to help readers understand and appreciate the lasting relevance of this American classic. Living Liber ty presents these monthly essays and encourages you to read The Federalist with us.

by Trent England

T

ple—democraciesandrepublics—werebestsuitedtosmallterritoriessimilartotheGreekcity-statesortheearlyRomanRepublic.CharlesMontesquieu, a Frenchwriter whowas banned by the RomanCatholic

ChurchandreveredinBritainandAmerica,wroteThe Spirit of Lawsin1748.“Itisnatural,”writesMontesquieu,“forarepublictohaveonlyasmallterritory;otherwiseitcannotlongsubsist.”OnOctober18,1787,theanti-FederalistwriterBrutusquotedthismaximofMonsesquieu, adding that “History furnishes no example of a freerepublic,anythingliketheextentoftheUnitedStates.”Responding to these sentiments, publius challenged both the idyllic view of the

ancientcitystatesandtheanti-FederalistcitationtoMontesquieu.FederalistNo.9,firstpublishedonNovember21,1787,beginswiththe“pettyrepublicsofGreeceandItaly.”Farfrombeingparagonsofpopulargovernment,thoseancientcity-statessuf-fered“perpetualvibrationbetween theextremesof tyrannyandanarchy.”publiusoffers that ifpopulargovernmentcandonobetter,perhaps theexperiment isbestdiscarded.Herepubliuscatalogstheadvancesin“thescienceofpolitics,”sincethoseancient

times.

Theregulardistributionofpowerintodistinctdepartments;theintroduc-tionoflegislativebalancesandchecks;theinstitutionofcourtscomposedofjudgesholdingtheirofficesduringgoodbehavior;therepresentationofthepeopleinthelegislaturebydeputiesoftheirownelection:thesearewhollynewdiscoveries,orhavemadetheirprincipalprogresstowardsperfectioninmoderntimes.

Tothislist,publiusadds“theenlargementoftheorbitwithinwhichsuchsystemsaretorevolve,eitherin…asingleStateor…onegreatConfederacy.”publiusreturnstoMontesquieu’swritingonrepublicstopointoutthatthesuppos-

edlyideal,smallrepublicsofoldweresmallerthanmostoftheAmericanstates.Tofollowthereasoningoftheanti-Federalists,suggestspublius,wouldrequire“split-tingourselvesintoaninfinityoflittle,jealous,clashing,tumultuouscommonwealths,thewretchednurseriesofunceasingdiscordandthemiserableobjectsofuniversalpityorcontempt.”Thesesmallstates—with theircorresponding“multiplicationofpettyoffices”—mightsatisfytheinterestsofsmallmen,but“couldneverpromotethegreatnessorhappinessofthepeopleofAmerica.”YetpubliusdoesnotdismissMontesquieu.Ratherhesuggestsadvancingonechap-

terforwardinThe Spirit of the Laws.TheConstitution,publiuswrites,createsnotsimplyarepublic,buta“Confederate republiC.”HequotessixparagraphsofMon-tesquieu’spraiseforsuchregimes,heldbytheFrenchwritertoprovidetheinternalbenefitsofarepublicwiththeexternal,defensivebenefitsofamonarchy.

Federalist No. 10 (Madison): The large republic and “the nature of man”Themostfamousofthe85Federalistessays,No.10isabout“faction.”Theword

appears 17 times throughout the essay andmeans something almost like “specialinterestgroup.”Yetpubliusisabitmorespecific.

Byafaction,Iunderstandanumberofcitizens,whetheramountingtoamajorityoraminorityofthewhole,whoareunitedandactuatedbysomecommonimpulseofpassion,orofinterest,adversetotherightsofotherciti-zens,ortothepermanentandaggregateinterestsofthecommunity.

This,writespublius,isthemortaldiseaseofpopulargovernments.Noristhiscon-cernsimplytheoretical.publiusattributesthe“prevailingandincreasingdistrustofpublicengagements,andalarmforprivaterights,”astheresultsof“afactiousspirit[that]hastaintedourpublicadministration.”

Page 5: Living Liberty April 2008

A PUBLICATION OF THE EVERGREEN FREEDOM FOUNDATION 5

February | Federalist No. 1: Introduction

March | Federalist Nos. 2–8: Importance of a union of all the states

April | Federalist Nos. 9–14: The size of the union and its economic conditions

May | Federalist Nos. 15–22: Defects of the Articles of Confederation government

June | Federalist Nos. 23–36: Necessity of “energetic” government

July | Federalist Nos. 37–40: The Constitutional Convention and its detractors

August | Federalist Nos. 41–51: Controlling government power

September | Federalist Nos. 52–61: The House of Representatives

October | Federalist Nos. 62–66: The Senate

November | Federalist Nos. 67–77: The Executive

December | Federalist Nos. 78–83: The Judiciary

January 2009 | Federalist Nos. 84–85: The lack of a bill of rights and the conclusion

During 2008, Living Liberty will present monthly essays and encourages you to read The Federalist with us.

“ the most PowerfuL body of PoLiticaL thouGht ever Produced in america.”

– robert middLekauff

The tendency of people to work togethertoward self-serving ends is not the result of aflawed formofgovernment, according topub-lius.“The latentcausesof factionare…sowninthenatureofman.”Man’sreasonisimperfectandisinfluencedbyhisownpassionsandself-servinginstincts.publiuspointstodisputesoverreligion, government and economics as exam-plesofman’stendencyto“vexandoppresseachother,”evenconcerning“themostfrivolousandfancifuldistinctions.”To extinguish the causes of factions, writes

publius,eitherlibertymustbeabolishedorciti-zensmustbemadeallthesame.“Libertyistofactionwhatairistofire,”publiuswrites.Thatis,giveamanfreedomandhebecomesapoten-tialthreattohisfellowmen.Yetabolishinglib-ertyisacure“worsethanthedisease,”accord-ing to publius. Likewise, making all men thesameisbothimpossibleandanattempttodosowouldbecontrarytothepurposeofgovernment.publiuspointsout that these samehumandifferencesexplainwhymenpursue

andpossess“differentdegreesandkindsofproperty.”protecting“thediversityinthefacultiesofmen,”includingtheexpressionofthisdiversityintheownershipofproperty,“isthefirstobjectofgovernment.”“[T]hecausesof factioncannotberemoved,”publiusconcludes,andso“relief

isonlytobesoughtinthemeansofcontrollingitseffects.”Herehefocusesontheparticularfactionmostthreateningtopopulargovernment,afactionmadeupofamajorityofcitizens.publiusidentifiestwomeansforlimitingtheeffectsofmajorityfactions,eitherpreventthemfromcoalescingorpreventthemfromeffectiveaction.Neither of these is possible in a direct democracyor a small state, according topublius.“Henceitisthatsuchdemocracieshaveeverbeenspectaclesofturbulenceandcontention.”Theonlygovernmentabletocontroltheeffectsofmajorityfactions,writespub-

lius,isanextendedrepublic.Thesystemofrepresentationincreasesthelikelihoodofwiseandpublic-spiriteddecisionmaking.Ina largerepublic,agreaterchoiceofcandidatesandahighernumberofvoterswill,publiussuggests,providebetteroptionsandproducebetteroutcomes.A largerpopulationwill includemorefac-tions,reducingtheriskofanyoneachievingamajority.Withalargelandarea,evenamajorityfactionwouldfinditdifficulttoactwithcoordinationordispatch.publiusconcludesFederalistNo.10writingthattheConstitutioncreates“arepub-

licanremedyforthediseasesmostincidenttorepublicangovernment.Andaccord-ingtothedegreeofpleasureandpridewefeelinbeingrepublicans,oughttobeourzealincherishingthespiritandsupportingthecharacterofFederalists.”

Federalist Nos. 11–13 (Hamilton): A national economyTheFederalist,liketheConstitution,isapracticaldocument.FederalistNos.11–13

considersomeofthemostpracticaleffectsofmaintainingnationalunity.publiuswritesinNo.11thatoneoftheclearestbenefitsoftheunionisincom-

merce,bothinternalandwithforeignnations.publiuspointsoutthatthecontinuedsuccessandexpansionofAmericancommercealreadythreatensEuropeanpower.Why,heasks,wouldthoselong-establishednationsfailtointerferewithAmericancommerceifprovidedanopportunity?Dissolutionoftheunionwouldprovidejustsuchanopening.publiusalsorecognizesthepowerof“threemillionsofpeople”joinedinacom-

monmarket.Free tradeamong thestateswillbenefiteachandwill facilitate theexportofAmericangoodsintoforeignmarkets.ThenavyofonegreatAmericannationwillfarsurpasswhatthestatescouldputtoseaontheirownorinsmallerconfederacies.InFederalistNo.12,publiusturnsfromcommercetotaxation.Oneofthefailings

oftheArticlesofConfederationgovernmentwasitsinabilitytocollectrevenue.Agovernmentcannotbeeffectivewithoutresources,yettaxesareneverpopular.pub-liusbeginshisdiscussionoftaxespointingoutthattaxationismadeeasier—forthepeopleandtheirgovernment—byprosperity.Inaddition,publiusnotesthatindirecttaxesarefarmoreacceptabletootherrevenuemeasures.Indirecttaxes,particularlyimportduties,arealsoeasierforthenationalgovernmenttocollect,providedthestatesremainunited.Withouttheunion,writespublius,smugglingandotherformsoftaxevasionwould

increase,requiringacorrespondingincreaseinenforcementmeasures.Ifindirecttaxesfailed,publiusthricesuggeststhatgovernmentswouldresorttotaxingland.Suchataxwouldfallhardestinpredominantlyanti-FederalistruralNewYork.FederalistNo.13makesaconciseargumentfortheefficiencyofoneunionrather

thanseveralconfederacies. If therewere twoor threeconfederacies,eachwouldrequirenearlythesamequantityofpersonsandresourcestooperateitasinasinglenationalgovernment.publiuspointsoutthateachofthepossiblesmallerconfedera-cieswouldremainlargerthanGreatBritain.

Federalist No. 14 (Madison): Too vast a land?publiusreturnsinhis14thessaytothequestionofhowbigistoobigandtothe

differencebetweendemocraciesandrepublics.Theanti-FederalistsuggestionthattheUnitesStatesissimplytoolargetogovernis,accordingtopublius,anappealto“prevailingprejudices”and“imaginarydifficulties.”Hesuggeststhatthecomplaintconfusesademocracyandarepublic.Ademocracymustbesmallbecausethere“thepeoplemeetandexercisethegov-

ernmentinperson.”Arepublic,administeredbythepeople’s“representativesand

agents…maybeextendedoveralargeregion.”publiussuggeststhatsomeoftheconfusionbetweentheseformsarisesfromforeigntheoristsintentondefendingtheirnativemonarchies.Addedtothat,publiusacknowledges,isthetrueuniquenessoftheAmericanregime.Beforeconcludingtheessay,publiusbrieflyaddressesfourpoints.First,thenational

governmentdoesnothave“thewholepowerofmakingandadministeringthelaws.”Instead,ithasspecific,enumeratedpowersrelatedtonationalissues.Second,oncethesystemisinoperationitmaybeenlarged,butitmayalsoremainrestrictedtotheoriginal13states.Third,transportationinfrastructurewillcontinuetoimproveatarapidpace.Finally,thefrontiernatureofmostofthestatesmeansthatthesecurityoftheunionisworthwhateverothertradeoffsmaybeinvolved.publiusharkensbacktotheRevolutionashecompleteshisargumentinfavorofa

single,strongnationalunion.Americansconcernedaboutthisnewideaofanextendedrepublicshouldconsider,writespublius,thelessonsoftheleadersoftheRevolution.

Happily forAmerica, happily,we trust, for thewhole human race, theypursuedanewandmorenoblecourse.Theyaccomplishedarevolutionwhichhasnoparallel in theannalsofhumansociety.They reared the fabricsofgovernmentswhichhavenomodelonthefaceoftheglobe.TheyformedthedesignofagreatConfederacy,whichitisincumbentontheirsuccessorstoimproveandperpetuate.

LeFt tO rightCHARlES MONTESqUIEU, DAvID HUME, JOHN lOCkE

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6 LIVING LIBERTY

OutsidethedoorstotheLincolnSquareCinemainBellevuetherewasabuzzandhumofpeople—acrowd—quicklygatheringaroundtwoorthreesmalltablessetupthere.ItwasthenightofMarch18th,andEFFstaffhadsetthesetablesupasticketstationsforthefirstSneakpreviewEventforoureducationdocumentary,

by Lauren Zammit

Flunked.Bannersandpostershungaroundtheatriumheraldingthisoccasion—thefirsttimeFlunked wouldbepresentedforpublicviewing.Afterayear’sworthofworkonthefilmandmonthsofplanningforthisnight,oureffortswereabouttobeputtothetest.Inhindsight,Ithinkitwouldbesafetosay

thatwepassedwithflyingcolors.

photos by Joel Sorrell

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Page 7: Living Liberty April 2008

A PUBLICATION OF THE EVERGREEN FREEDOM FOUNDATION 7

Thefirstindicatorofoursuccesswastheturnout.BasedonthenumberofRSVpswewerereceivingupuntilthedayof the event,webooked a second auditorium forpossible overflow. This was a wise move. Althoughcriticssuggestedwemayhaveahardtimejustfillingourfirstlocation,whichheld438people, we comfortably useda majority of the seats in bothauditoriums.The evening began with a

wordofwelcomefromourhost,nationally syndicated talk radiohost and film critic MichaelMedved from 770 KTTH TheTruth—which partnered withEFFtohelppromoteandhosttheevent.Medvedwaspositiveandenthusiastic not only about thefilm,butalsoabout themissionof education. Medved cracked,“FlunkedistheonlymovieintheentireCineplexworthwatching,”andspentseveralminutesonhisnationaltalkshowthefollowingday praising the film and theworkofEFF.AfewwordswerealsospokenbyKTTHtalkradiohost

andformerEFFmanDavidBoze,ExecutiveproducerStevenMaggiandEFFCEOLynnHarshofferedtheirinsights. According to the theatre manager’s count,

“ Flunked will�be�

entered�into�a�number�

of�film�festivals�

this�summer�and�a�

distributorship�deal�is�

in�the�works�to�get�it�

on�to�television.”

“�A�fine�film.�It’s�very�informative.�Very�challenging.” –�MICHAEL�MEDVED, March 19, 2008, on his nationally-syndicated radio show (1.9 million listeners)

Flunkedwasviewedby650peopleinattendancethatnight.Manymusedaudiblyoverthethought-provokingsegmentonthehistoryofeducationreforminAmerica,while thecolorful remarksbyBenChavis—principalof theAmerican IndianpublicCharterSchool, anda

guest at the Sneak peak—abouthis use of cash and capitalisticprinciplestoinspirehisstudentstogetintheclassroomweremetwithlaughterandapplause.We were honored to have Ben

present at the Sneakpeek, aswellas some of our other “All-Stars”and experts of education: AngieDorman, a teacher from Warden,WA and winner of the 2006 “NoChild Left Behind American Starof Teaching Award” for our state;Billproser, founder and teacher atCoeurD’AleneCharterAcademyinIdaho;ThereseHolliday,founderoftheWyattHollidayFoundationandanadvocateofbettereducationforspecialneedskids;AndrewCoulson,DirectoroftheCenterforEducationFreedom at CATO Institute; and

Charlie Hoff of the Federal WaySchoolBoardofDirectorshereinWashington.Followingtheviewingandseveralenthusiasticrounds

of applause, we held a brief “Question andAnswer”

segment, inviting the audience to ask our hosts,All-Stars, experts and EFF staff questions about thecontentof thefilmandconceptsofeducation reform.Unfortunately, there were more questions than therewastimetoanswerthem,butdiscussionwascontinuedin the theater foyer,whereattendeesflocked tospeakwiththeseindividuals,andexchangeideasandopinionswitheachotherabouttheevent.All in all, the night was unified and enlivened by

a spirit of curiosity and concern for the mission ofeducation,ofprovidingthebestforthenextgeneration.ThishasbeenthemissionofFlunkedsincedayone,tobeusedasaninformativeandthought-provokingtoolpresented ina top-qualityandentertainingmanner…AndfromtheresponsesofarthattoolhasscoredanA+.Ithasbeenagreat encouragement for allofus—andanother great milestone for EFF—to see the successthis project is already producing. And the best partis,thisisstilljustthebeginningforalittlefilmcalledFlunked…EFF will be showing the documentary around the

state in the months ahead. We’ll have showings inOregonandCalifornia.Otherorganizationsacrossthecountryhaveinquiredabouthavingthefilmshownintheirstates.Flunked willbeenteredintoanumberoffilmfestivalsthissummerandadistributorshipdealisintheworkstogetitontotelevision.A great start and a bright future as we attempt to

changethelevelofdiscourseoneducationreform.

SPRInG2008 CAn�CLASS�SCHEDuLEWASHInGTOn�STATE�unIVERSITy,�PuLLMAn—APRIL�9-10,�2008First Principles of Freedom Course from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. (dinner provided)Movie Preview & Discussion from 8:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.location: TBD

FEDERAL�WAy—APRIL�19,�2008First Principles of Freedom Course from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (lunch provided)location: Federal Way 320th library, Meeting Room 2, 848 S 320th St, Federal Way, WA

TRI-CITIES—MAy�10,�2008First Principles of Freedom Course from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. (lunch provided)Persuasive Writing Course from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. (dinner provided)location: TBD

CEnTRAL�WASHInGTOn�unIVERSITy,�ELLEnSbuRG—MAy�14-15,�2008First Principles of Freedom Course from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. (dinner provided)Movie Preview & Discussion from 8:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.location: TBD

Please contact Juliana McMahan to register for any of these classes ([email protected] or 360-956-3482).

TACOMA—JunE�7,�2008First Principles of Freedom Course from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. (lunch provided)Persuasive Writing Course from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. (dinner provided)location: TBD

SHELTOn—JunE�14,�2008First Principles of Freedom Course from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. (lunch provided)Persuasive Writing Course from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. (dinner provided)location: TBD

PuyALLuP—JunE�21,�2008First Principles of Freedom Course from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. (lunch provided)location: Puyallup Public library, South Meeting Room, 324 S Meridian, Puyallup, WA

REGISTER

Page 8: Living Liberty April 2008

8 LIVING LIBERTY

State Employee Health Benifit History

$-

$50,000,000

$100,000,000

$150,000,000

$200,000,000

$250,000,000

$300,000,000

$350,000,000

1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007

Year

Am

ount

State Employee Health Benifits

State Employee Salary History

$-

$500,000,000

$1,000,000,000

$1,500,000,000

$2,000,000,000

$2,500,000,000

1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007

Year

Am

ount

State Payroll

State General Fund

$-

$2,000,000,000

$4,000,000,000

$6,000,000,000

$8,000,000,000

$10,000,000,000

$12,000,000,000

$14,000,000,000

$16,000,000,000

1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007

Year

Am

ount

General Fund

stateemployees,whichcouldpoten-tiallycoststatesbillionsofdollars.Itishighlyunlikelyelectedofficials

willcutanypartoftheirpetprogramsor projects to cover newly incurredcosts.Whencurrentexpensescannotcoverthecostofaprogramorbene-fit,electedofficialsturntotaxpayersandforcethemtocoughupmoremoney.Believeitornot,everyworkerinAmericawantsmore

money,betterbenefitsandjobsecurity.But there isabigdifferencebetweenwhat workers want, what they needand what their employer can afford.Dollars don’t grow on trees—moneyhastocomefromsomewhere.Taxpayersneedtostartquestioning

the financial stranglehold the collec-tivebargainingprocesshasonabud-get.Asgovernmentscavetothehighdemands of big labor, there is lessmoneyavailableforstatestooperate,maintain current projects, and fix orrepairfailinginfrastructure.

Collective bargaining has affectedWashingtonState’sbudgetdrastically.According to the Washington StateOffice of FinancialManagement, thetotal general fund for 2004 was justunder $11.5 billion dollars. Of thatamount,$1.9billionwasspentonstateemployee salaries and another $230million was spent directly on stateemployeehealthbenefits.payrollexpensesimmediatelybegan

to skyrocket whenWashington Statepublic-sectorunionsweregrantedtherighttonegotiateexclusivelywiththegovernor’s office in 2004. In 2007,general fund expenditures jumped tomorethan$14.1billiondollars.Ofthatamount,$2.2billionwasspentonstateemployeesalaries,while$330millionwas spent directly on state employeehealth benefits—These figures don’tincludeK-12education.

With SEIU and other labor organizations draggingprivate-sectorindustriestothepublicbargainingtable,moretaxdollarswillbeneededtocoverincreasedcon-tractualobligations.Witha falteringU.S.currency,adrasticallyslowing

economyandaloomingrecessiononthehorizon,tax-payersneedtoholdelectedofficialsaccountablefortheirspendinghabits.Aslongasstategovernmentscontinuetohandoutpubliccollectivebargainingrightstoanyonewhoasksforthem,stateemploymentspendingfigureswillincreasedramatically.

nion membership numbers have been declin-ing formanyyears.Tocounter this loss,union

bossesarefindinginventivewaystoincreasetheirinflu-enceatthebargainingtable.Welcometothenewageofunionism.powerful labor unions like the Service Employees

International Union (SEIU) are breaking new groundby unionizing day care providers, home health careworkers,fosterparentsandothersacrosstheU.S.Theseprivatebusinessesandtheirworkersarebeingforcedto

joinaunionandpayduesfor“representation”theymaynotwantornecessarilyagreeisagoodidea.Businessesorindividualproviderswhodealwithpub-

licfundinginanycapacityarenolongersafefromthelongreachofbiglabor!Unionbossesarelikevultures,they’realwayscircling,waitingforthenextfallenpreyjust so they can get a freemeal. The real victims, orfallenpreyinthiscircumstance,aretheworkersandthetaxpayerswho have to fork outmoremoney to coverincurredcosts.Byallowingnewindustriesaccess to thebargaining

table, private-sectorworkers are turning intode facto

by Ryan HarrimanAdditional�collective�bargaining�rights�hurt�taxpayers

UIndividual rights in the Second AmendmentThe last case the U.S. SupremeCourtheardontheSecondAmend-mentwas70yearsago.OnMarch18 theCourtheardachallenge tothe District of Columbia’s totalhandgunban,placingacontrover-sial question squarely before theJustices:doestheSecondAmend-ment protect an individual righttogunownership?Gun rightsarenotwithinEFF’spolicyscope,but

wehelpedfileanamicusbriefwiththecourtopposingD.C.’s ban because this case has great potential todefine a fundamental individual liberty—a rightspecificallyprotectedbyourFoundingFathers—forgenerationstocome.Ourinterestwaswell-founded,asWalterDellinger,theattorneyforD.C.,arguedincourt thattheSecondAmendmentshouldhavezeroapplicationtoindividuals,exceptintheverynarrowcircumstanceofafederal lawthathinderedcitizensfrom joining a hypothetical state militia. In otherwords,theSecondAmendmentisarelicofthepastwithnopresentuse.With so few cases on the SecondAmendment to

draw from,much of the oral argument centered ontheinfluenceofthe1689EnglishBillofRights,oldEnglish laws preventing Scottish Highlanders fromcarryingguns, and the gun rights provisions of thestateconstitutionsineffectin1790.Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Scalia, Alito

and Kennedy indicated strongly that they believetheSecondAmendment does provide an individualright, above and beyond any connection to statemilitia service.Several timesKennedy, likely tobea swing vote, explicitly stated that he believed theAmendmentestablishesapersonalright.ButJusticesStevens and Souter asked many questions whichindicatedtheybelieveDC’sgunbanisconstitutional.JusticesGinsbergandBreyerdidnotindicateastrongposition eitherway. (As a side note,Breyer said helikedEFF’samicusbrief.Sortof.Hesaidthat“all80amicusbriefswereverygood.”)Overall, it appears likely thatadividedcourtwill

decide there is an individual right to keep andbeararms.What is lessclear ishow theCourtwillinstructgovernmentbodiesand lowercourtsacrossthenation,includingWashingtonstate,toapplythisright.–Jonathan Bechtle

Washington’s top-two primaryIna7-2decisionreleasedMarch18,theU.S.SupremeCourtruledthatWashington’stop-twoprimarysys-tem,enactedbyInitiative872,isconstitutional.TheNinthCircuithadstruckitdownasviolatingpoliticalparties’freeassociationrights,becauseitallowscan-didates to “self-designate” theirpartyon theballot,regardlessofwhether theyhadactuallybeennomi-natedbythatparty.But theSupremeCourt reversed theNinthCircuit

in an opinionwritten by Justice Clarence Thomas.HefoundthatunderI-872thepartiescouldstillhavetheirownnominatingprocessandputup theirowncandidate.Thepoliticalpartieshadarguedthatvoterswouldassumethatcandidatesontheballotwithpartydesignationswereactuallypartynominees,inessenceforcingpartiestoassociatewiththecandidateduetovoterassumptions.But Justice Thomas called this claim of voter

confusion“sheerspeculation,”sayingthestatecouldimplementI-872inavarietyofways(withgoodballotdesign,forexample)thatcouldeliminatethethreatofconfusion.JusticesScaliaandKennedydissented,arguingthe

top-twoprimary“permitsindividualstoappropriatethe parties’ trademarks, so to speak, at the mostcrucialstageofelection.”JusticeRobertsandAlito,while concurring with the majority, left open thepossibility of future challenges if voters do indeedbecomeconfusedbythepartylabels.

–Jonathan Bechtle

Supreme Court watch continued from page 3 . . .

“�Payroll�expenses�immediately�began�to�skyrocket�when�Washington�State�Public-sector�unions�were�granted�the�right�to�negotiate�exclusively�with�the�governor’s�office�in�2004.”

Page 9: Living Liberty April 2008

A PUBLICATION OF THE EVERGREEN FREEDOM FOUNDATION 9

his legislative session reminded me of what myfatherused to tellmeregardingsports:“Defense

wins ballgames.”Whether that adage is true I leavetosportsenthusiastsandhistorianstodebate.Iknow,though,thatagooddefensethissessionhelpedstopnu-merousproblematiclaborpolicies.Whileweknewdefensewouldbekeythisyear,EFF

prepared six pieces of model labor legislation priorto thebeginningof session.Ourgoalwas to providelegislators with information they could use to makeimportant, relevant changes in labor policy. Four ofthosesuggestionswereincorporatedintoactualbills.

HB 2911,byRep.BruceChandler,R-Granger,wouldhaveclarifiedthatdocumentsfromcollectivebargainingsessions are available to thepublic after the state andunionagreetoterms.AnothermeasurebyChandler,HB 2912,wouldhaveincreasedpublic-sectorunionfinancialtransparency and accountability to their members. AthirdbillbyChandler,HB 2975,wouldhavereformedagency shop fees by limiting those fees just to theamountaunionspentoncollectivebargaining.Finally,HB 3369 byRep. JimDunn, R-Brush prairie,wouldhave clarified and protected the rights of unionizedworkers with religious objections to the union. Eventhoughthesebillsdiedincommitteeduetothepoliticalmakeupofthelegislature,theirintroductionhelpedusachieveourgoalofperfectingthelegislativelanguageandstartingadiscourseontheissues.Therestofthesessioninvolvedquestioningthevision

ofpublic-sector laborunions anddefending taxpayersfrom diversions of state money to the unions. Sincelabor unions now encompass only around 13 percentofworkersinWashington’sprivatesector,unionshavebolsteredtheirnumbersbyconvincingpoliticianstoallowgovernmentworkerstounionize.Thistrend,however,hasnotstoppedwith traditionalstateemployees.Thissession,unionstriedtoexpandpublic-sectorcollectivebargainingrightsintotheprivatesector.

HB 2449, by Rep. Eric pettigrew, D-Seattle, was ahigh-profile bill allowing the directors andworkers ofsmall child-care centers to bargain together for higher

by Trent EnglandA�mixed�record�on�open�government

by Scott DilleyGood�defense�kills�bad�labor�policies

T subsidiesfromthestate.Thesubsidies,whichhelppayforlow-incomeparentstosendtheirchildrentodaycare,would have been redirected away from children andtoward theunionasdues.Thebill, championedby theServiceEmployeesInternationalUnion,passedtheHousebutdiedintheSenatejustbeforetheendofsession.

HB 3145 by Rep. Ruth Kagi, D-Lake Forest park,beganastieredlicensingprogramforfosterparentsofcertain disabled children. TheWashington Federationof State Employees lobbied for the bill, as passed bythe House, to include collective bargaining rights forthesespecializedfosterparentssothattheycouldbeginbargaining with the state for increased stipend andreimbursement rates. The unionization proposal metresistance in the Senate,which amended themeasureintoastudybillthatdidnotincludecollectivebargaining.AftertheHouserefusedtoconcur,theSenateamendedthebilltobeapilotprogramthatincluded,amongotherthings, tiered reimbursement. There is nomention ofcollectivebargaininginthefinalversion,whichpassedandawaitsthegovernor’ssignature.In 2007 the legislature allowed adult family home

providers—individualswho run small homes for careoftheaged—tobargainforhigherreimbursementrates.Thisyear,HB 2672byRep.SteveConway,D-Tacoma,and companion measure SB 6350 by Sen. Margaritaprentice,D-Renton,wouldhaveextendedsimilarrightsfor workers to bargain for higher wages. SEIU andWFSEdisagreedonprovisionsofthebill,whichdidnotadvanceoutofcommittee.EFF,child-carecenterdirectors,fosterparents,adult

home providers and other interested parties criticizedthese proposals because they create complicatedsolutionstoproblemswitheasieranswers.Forinstance,lawmakers already have the power to adjust thesepayments and can do sowithout pressure from laborunion officials. Redirecting money to a middlemanso that person can ask you to sendmoney elsewhereisawasteofpublicfunds.Expandingbargainingalsoperpetuates thecycleof increasingunionmembershipfundswhichcanthenbeusedforpoliticalpurposes.

Wealsoanticipatedunionactiononissuessuchasneutralityagreements,card check and prevailing wage.HB 2383, a neutrality agreementbill sponsored by Rep. Mike Sells,D-Everett,andcarriedoverfromlastyear, would have imposed speechrestrictionsonemployerswhoreceivecontracts,subsidiesortaxexemptionsfromthestate.Thebill,fraughtwithlegalquestions,metwithearly,strongresistance from the business community and did notmoveanyfarther thissession.Therewerenoattemptstoeliminatethesecretballotand/orlowerthethresholdamountof interest to formapublic-sectorunion (cardcheck).Finally,expandinghigher,union-rateprevailingwages to non-capital government projects—such aspublic/private partnerships—did not happen.EFF andotherscriticizedtheseproposalsearlyinthelegislativeprocess,keepingthemfromgainingtraction.The biggest shortcoming in the session was the

granting of collective bargaining rights to studentemployeesatWSU.SimilarrightsweregrantedtoUWstudentemployeesin2002.Finally,thelegislaturefundedthestart-upcostsforthe

paidfamilyleaveprogramwithoutaddressingastrategyforlong-termfunding.BenefitsarescheduledtobegininOctober2009,butthefundingissuesaretoocontentioustodecidebeforethisfall’selections.EFFcriticizedtheprogramandthelegislature’sirresponsiblebehaviorofestablishinganewbenefitprogramwithoutdecidingonanadequatefundingsource.In summary, a good defense blocked almost all of

the bills to expand the grip of labor unions on stateworkers, government and taxpayers. EFF met itsprioritiesinofferingoffensivestrategiesandeducatingthe legislature and the public about the ill effects ofincreased unionization. Most importantly, the unionsandtheiralliestippedtheirhandstorevealtheirstrategyto make certain private-sector workers into de factogovernment employees.Nowwe know betterwhat toexpectfromtheseorganizationsinthefuture.

rustme.”ThatisperhapstheleastlikelyphraseintheEnglishlanguagetoinspiretrust.When

government says, “Trust me,” citizens are reasonablywary.Afreesocietyrequiresagovernmentthatisasopen

aspossible.Governmentispower,theorganizeduseofforce.Excessive secrecy is ahallmarkof tyranny.Ontheotherhand,governmentopenness—lettingthe‘sun-shine’in—empowerscitizens.ThelegislativesessionjustendedinOlympiabrought

afewnewraysofsunshinetostategovernment.Severalopengovernmentproposalsthatfailedthisyearhaveagoodchanceofsuccessin2009.Yetotherproposedlawscontinuetosay,“Trustme.”WithWashingtonStategovernmentspendingup34%

infouryears,manycitizensareinterestedinwhereallthose tax dollars are going.One bright spot this yearwaslegislationtocreateasearchablewebsitewithcom-prehensiveinformationonstatespending,revenuesandperformancemeasurements.Thenewwebsitepromisescitizens greater oversight of how government uses its“powerofthepurse.”Several unsuccessful proposals aimed to increase

otherkindsofgovernmentinformationavailableontheinternet, including notices about special governmentmeetings,informationfrompastmeetingsandanynewordinances or regulations approved by a governmentagencyorboard.Thepublichasarighttoknowaboutandattendoffi-

cialgovernmentmeetingsaccordingtotheOpenpub-lic Meetings Act. Unfortunately, sometimes parts ofthis lawareignored.Today,themaximumpenaltyfor

StateAuditor’sOffice,buttooneoftheir own supervisors or the StateAttorneyGeneral.Onesuccessfulpieceoflegislation

increasesthepublic’saccesstogov-ernmentreportsaboutseriousmedi-cal errors. Many other healthcarebills would have prevented publicdisclosureofbroadareasofpublicrecords.perhapsonereasonthesemeasuresfailedisthegrowingawarenessamong legislators that citizens take open governmentseriously.Vagueoroverbroadexemptionstoopenpublicmeet-

ingsortheavailabilityofpublicrecordshaverealcosts.Notonlydotheychipawayatthepowerofthepeople,buttheyoftenleadtogovernmentabusesandprolongedcourt battles. A vague exemption is a grant of broadpowerstogovernmentofficialsandjudges.Whileopengovernmentisnotautomaticallygoodgov-

ernment,secretpowercorrupts.H.G.Wells’visionofTheInvisibleManbirthedagenreofimaginativestoriesabouttheultimateformofsecrecy.Onethemeofthesetales is that powerwithout responsibility—with com-pletesecrecy—istoodangerousathingformostmen.The success and near-success of open government

legislationthisyearisimportanttoallWashingtonians.Yet the best way to increase citizens’ control overgovernmentistomakethatgovernmentsmaller,tolimitits reach to only those areaswhere collective force isnecessary.Onlywhengovernment isboth limitedandswathedinsunshinecancitizensremainconfidentthatweareincontrol.

aviolationis$100.Legislationnearlypassedthisyeartoraisethatto$1000.OneexceptiontotheOpenpublicMeetingsActper-

mitsgovernmentofficialstoholdclosed“executiveses-sions”totalkaboutpersonnelissues,lawsuitsandrealestatenegotiations.Thesethreeexceptionsmakesense,but theStateAuditor’sOfficehas identifiednumerousexecutivesessionsthateitherstrayedbeyondthesetop-ics or failed to properly document their reasons. Yetwhatcancitizensdooncetheyhavebeenshutoutofameeting?AbillsponsoredbyDemocraticandRepublicanlead-

ersintheStateHouseofRepresentativestriedtoanswerthatquestion.Ifpassed,itwouldhaverequiredtheaudiorecordingofexecutivesessions.Thatway,ifchallengedlater, a judge could listen to the recording and deter-mineiftheclosedmeetingwaslegalornot.Aslongastheexecutivesessionwasproper, therecordingwouldremainrestricted.IftheOpenpublicMeetingsActwasviolated, the recording could be released and the citi-zensvindicated.Both the move to record executive sessions and to

increase penalties forOpenpublicMeetingsAct vio-lationswere opposed—with local tax dollars—by theAssociationofWashingtonCitiesand theWashingtonStateAssociationofCounties.Anotherbillthatmadeprogressthisyear,butstillfailed

topass,aimedtoincreasetheprotectionofwhistleblow-ers.Governmentworkerswouldhavenewprotectionstoexpose“grossmismanagement,abuseofauthority,”ormanipulationof scientificor technical information.Theycouldmakeawhistleblowerreportnotonlytothe

“T

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10 LIVING LIBERTY

by Brian ZapotockyState�footprint�expands,�crushes�growth�estimates

I fthestatebureaucracyhadafoot,itwouldbecompa-rableinsizetothatofprofessionalbasketballplayer

ShaquilleO’Neal and require a size21, triple-E shoe.That’sabouttwofeetlong!UnlikeShaq,thestate’sfoot-printisexpandingrapidlyandrequirestaxpayerfundstocoverthecosts.Statespending,employmentandtaxeshaveincreased

steadily over the past decade. We examined anotherconcretemeasure thatexemplifies the insatiableappe-titeofbureaucracy:thegrowthrateofactual,physicalspacerequiredtooperatethestateovertime.BycomparingtwostategovernmentreportsforThur-

ston County—the home for all state executive andagencyofficeheadquarters—citizensgaina rareviewintothefantasticexpansionofstatebureaucracysince2000. The Department of General Administration (GA),

a central support service agency engaged in facilitiesplanningandmanagementforthestate,releasedastudyinJune2006whichfoundThurstonCountyishometoapproximately 8.3 million square feet of governmentownedandleasedfacilities.Asimilarstudyreleasedbythesameagencysixyears

earlier, in October 2000, identified only 5.3 millionsquarefeetofgovernmentownedandleasedspace.Thetwostudiessignalanastoundinggrowthof56percentduring this six year period, not counting educational,technical, operational and field facilities and certainstateparkfacilities.Evenmoredisturbingistheinaccuracyofthegovern-

ment’s own tenyear growth estimates outlined in thesameOctober2000report.Thereportsuggestedacquir-ingbetween550,000and1.2millionadditionalsquarefeetoveratenyearperiodtoprovideforagrowingnum-berofstateemployees.Despiteanupdatedreportthefollowingyear,theGA

significantly underestimated state government expan-sionover thenext tenyears.Even themostambitiousestimatefellshortofthe8.3millioninactualsquarefeetalreadyidentifiedintheGA’sJune2006report.Withalittlemorethanfouryearsremainingintheten

yeartimeframe,statefacilitygrowththreatenstoqua-drupletheoriginalgrowthrateprojection.

Tough times aheadWith a national recession looming and an estimatedstate budget deficit of $2.4 billion for the upcomingbiennium,nowistheidealtimetoconsiderthefutureroleofthestategovernment.State government is the largest landowner and

employer inThurstonCounty.Thestate’scomprehen-sivefacilitiesinventorysystemidentifiedmorethan700leasedandownedfacilitiestotalingmorethan12mil-lionsquarefeet(includingschools).TheGA’sJune2006reportidentifiedabout23,000employees.Hundredsoffacilities,millionsofsquarefeetandtens

ofthousandsofstateemployeesrepresentasignificantexpenditureonthepartofWashingtontaxpayers.Thestateshouldbeheldaccountableforthisandbeabletodemonstrate a reasonable, efficient use of the public’sresources.Basiccomparisonstoprivateenterprisesandrecentperformanceauditfindingsseemtocastdoubtonthestate’sabilitytomanageresourceseffectively.The state enjoys enough space and employees to

house and operate sixty-seven storefronts the size ofoutdoorretailergiantCabela’s.(Note:Cabela’sonlyhas

24storesnationwide).That is sixty-seven,185,000squarefootbuildings“featuringadécorofmuseum-quality animaldisplays,hugeaquariumsand trophyanimals inter-actinginrealisticre-creationsoftheirnatu-ralhabitats.”Thestate’sbiennial$29.6billiongeneral

fund budget makes it comparable to suc-cessful corporations such as Yahoo ($13billion,2006-07revenue),Google($27bil-lion,2006-07revenue)andStarbucks($17billion,2006-07revenue).Yetstategovern-mentisnotnearlyasefficientasthesepri-vatecorporations.Consider that nine performance audits

ofstateoperationscommissionedafterthepassage of Initiative 900 have cataloguedtheopportunityformorethan$3billionincostsavings.Most private corporations could not

remain competitive with such wastefulspending, and would lose customers and investors torivals. State government does not have this problem,sinceitisapublicmonopolywherecustomersare“cap-tivecitizens”whofacehighcostsmovingtorivalstatesalthough,whenthestakesarehighenough,peoplewillmigrate.Soitisnotsurprisingthatthestatehas,by-and-large,

chosen to ignore theresultsof theperformanceauditsduringthe2007-2008legislativesession.Each dollar lost to the inefficiency of the state gov-

ernment bureaucracy is a dollar that could have beeninvestedlocallybyWashington’sprivatecompaniesandcitizens topromotewealthcreationandahigherstan-dardofliving.Likewise,everyfacilityandpieceofrealestate occupied by state government employees couldhouse a wealth-creating and job-generating privatebusiness.Citizensmustbecontinuouslyawareofthecostsasso-

ciatedwithaneverexpandingstategovernment.Intheupcomingtightbudgetyears,wecanill-affordtosup-port and encourage a wasteful and extravagant statebureaucracy.

nitiative 960 came under full assault by certainmembersofthemajoritythissession.

Legislators have proven themselves to be entirelyscornful of I-960’s two-thirds requirement for taxincreases, legislative approval requirement for all feeincreases, and reporting requirementsforproposedtaxorfeeincreases.They are alternately suing, ignoring

and actively complaining about thepurposefulconstraintsI-960isputtingontheirabilitytospendtaxpayerdollars.

Senate majority lawsuit to overturn I-960Senator Lisa Brown filed a writ of

mandamus (Brown v. Owen) againstLieutenant Governor Brad Owen aftera showdown on February 29 over thelegislature’s inability to raise liquortaxeswithasimplemajorityvote. Thewrit asked the State Supreme Court tooverturn fifteen years of law byMarch 13when thelegislaturewasscheduledtoadjourn.Fortunately, the Supreme Court denied Senator

Brown’s request forexpedited reviewand toldher, inlayman’sterms,thatshewouldhavetogotothebackofthelinelikeeveryoneelse.Inthemeantime,shehasbeenhardatworksubmitting

editorialsjustifyingherlawsuittopapersallacrossthestate—whatIliketocallher“Tour de CYA.”

Washington voters twice approved a two-thirdssupermajorityvoterequirementfortaxincreasespassedbythelegislature.WhywouldSenatorBrown and her special interest

backerswant todismantle thewillof thepeople?Anincoming $2.4 billion budget deficitmayhavesomethingtodowithit.Legislators are in a morass of

their ownmaking. They have spent,promisedandcommittedtoaslewofnewprogramsandpoliciesforwhichthey cannot pay. The tab is comingdueandsome legislatorswant todigdeep into the wallets of taxpayersrather than properly prioritize themoneytheyhave.Senator Brown’s grandstanding

is curious given that the two-thirdsrequirement has been in place since1993,whenInitiative601waspassed

by voters. The Legislature could have removed thethresholdatanytime,butinsteadonlysuspendeditin2002andagainin2005.WhenpassedinNovember,Initiative960reaffirmed

thetwo-thirdsrequirementestablishedbyI-601.Ratherthanfacingthepoliticalconsequencesofrepealingit,Sen.Brownisaskingthecourttodecide.Herpositiononsupermajorityvotes isastoundingly

hypocritical.TheSenateimposesvariousrulesonitself

State Owned & Leased Facilities in Thurston CountyEstimated Growth

Year 2000 2006 2010

Square Feet 5,300,000* 5,980,000** 6,500,000

Growth Rate - 12.83%** 22.64%

Actual Growth

Year 2000 2006 2010

Square Feet 5,300,000* 8,300,000 10,594,118***

Growth Rate - 56.60% 99.89%*** *Based on October 2000 report, not revised GA data from March 2008.**2006 estimate based on GA 2010 estimated growth statistics.***2010 projection based on 2006 actual growth statistics.

thatrequiresupermajorityapproval,includingRule53,whichrequiresa60percentvotetoadoptamendmentstothebudget.If the legislature can adopt

restrictions not in the Constitution,socanthevoters.NotonlyisSenatorBrown’sposition

hypocritical,butitalsodisplayslittleknowledgeoftheState Constitution. I-601 does not improperly amendourConstitution,asSenatorBrownclaims.Article II, Section 22 establishes the majority

requirement for passing abill.Thekeyphrase in thesectionis,“Nobillshallbecomealawunless…”Thepassage does not read, “A bill shall become a lawwhen…”Thesectionlaysouttheminimalconstitutionalthresholds thatmust be reached in order for a bill tobecomelaw.Contrary to Senator Brown’s assertion, this phrase

wasputinasafloornotaceiling.Theconstitutionaldrafterswere concernedwith preventing bill passagewithlessthanamajority,astheirrejectionofaproposaltoallowpassagebyamerequorumvotedemonstrates.TheCaliforniaConstitutionhasacounterpartthatis

nearlyidenticaltoourConstitution’s“simplemajority”requirement.InPeople v. Cortez,aCaliforniaappealscourt held that proposition 8, which required a two-

by Amber GunnLegislators�disdain�will�of�the�people

I

Continued on next page

“Legislators are in a morass of their own making. They have

spent, promised and committed to a slew

of new programs and policies for which they

cannot pay.”

Page 11: Living Liberty April 2008

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thirdsvoteoftheLegislaturetosupportanamendment,wasnotinconflictwiththesimplemajorityprovision. “Clearlyabillwhichobtainstheapprovaloftwo-thirdsofthemembershipofeachhousehasalsoobtainedtheapprovalofamajorityofthelegislatorsineachhouse.”

Legislators ignore I-960’s fee approval requirementsToward the end of session, legislators hurriedly rail-

roadednewfeeincreasesintoonegiantomnibusbill,HB3381.Theoriginalbillwouldhavecostaffectedfeepay-ersanestimated$763millionoverthenexttenyears.Oncethepress(andEFF)gotwindofit,legislatorsre-

movedabout$700millionworthoffeesandtuckedthemlovinglyandsafelyintothesupplementalbudgetbill.But here’s the kicker: certain remaining sections in

theomnibusbillandthosethatestablishnewfeesrath-er than just fee increases—delegateauthorityback toagenciestodeterminetheirownfees,ratherthanlistingtheactualfeeincreaseamount,asrequiredbyInitiative960.

Forexample,oneoftheviolatingsectionsreads,“The[DepartmentofHealth]mayestablishfeesasnecessarytorecoverthecostof[HB1103]asnecessary.”Thisisanewsection,referringtoanewbill,which

creates a new fee. That fee has not been determinedyet and the legislaturewas not inclined to specify it.ThisamountstoablankcheckallowingDOHtochargewhateveritwants.ThisisexactlywhatI-960expresslyprohibits.Sec. 14, (1) reads, “No fee may be imposed or in-

creasedinanyfiscalyearwithoutpriorlegislativeap-provalandmustbesubjecttotheaccountabilityproce-duresrequiredbysection2ofthisact.”Further,theintentofSection14states,“Thepeoplewant

toreturntheauthoritytoimposeorincreasefeesfromunelectedofficialsatstateagenciestothedulyelectedrepresentativesofthelegislatureortothepeople.Thepeoplefindthatfeeincreasesshouldbedebatedopenlyand transparentlyandup-or-downvotes takenbyourelectedrepresentativessothepeoplearegiventheoppor-tunity tohold themaccountableat thenextelection.”

Clearly,thecommitteemembersdisregardedthispartofI-960whentheyallowedtheomnibusbilltopasswiththeaffectedsections.Delegatingauthoritytoagenciestoraisefeesisaviolationofthelaw,butthatdidn’tstopthem. Why is this happening? Are legislators purposefullyviolatingthelaworaretheyjustoverlookingit?Eitheroptionisnotagoodone.“Shall legislators…betheservantsor themastersof

thepublic?”This was the question presented to the people of

Washingtonnearly100yearsagowhentheywereaskedtoapprovetherightofinitiativeintheformoftheSev-enthAmendment.Today,wehaveanewpowerstruggletranspiring,but

thequestionisthesame.Whoshouldprevail?TheStateConstitutionisclear.

“Allpoliticalpowerisinherentinthepeople,andgov-ernmentsderivetheirjustpowersfromtheconsentofthegoverned,andareestablishedtoprotectandmain-tainindividualrights.”

Legislators continued from page 10 . . .

Page 12: Living Liberty April 2008

12 LIVING LIBERTY

TransportationTheTransportationCommitteesintheHouseandSen-aterefusedtoholdpublichearingsonthefourtranspor-tationperformanceauditswhichidentified$3.1billionin potential savings. The legislature simply does notwant toexercise itsoversight responsibilities,andyougettopayfortheirlaxness.Thecongestionauditpointedoutthatcongestionrelief

is stillnotapriorityof the legislaturedespite the factthat congestion could be reduced by 15 to 20 percentwithintheexistingDOTbudgetifspendingwaspriori-tizedbasedonsafetyandcongestionrelief.Theauditsalsofoundatleast40percentofallDOT

employees are administrative!AsoneDOTemployeesaid,“that’sprobablybecausewehavetomeetalloftheDepartmentofEcology’srulesandregulations!”Muchoftheferryboondogglecanbelaidsquarelyon

theshouldersofthelegislature.Theferryauditpointedoutthatthetransportationcommitteesfailedtoprovideproperoversightoftheferrysystem.Meanwhile, the governor and legislature want

us to reduce our driving by 50 percent by 2050.(E2SHB2815)

Climate change E2SHB2815will, ineffect,allowthestatetotellyouwhereyouwork,whereyoulive,whatsizecaryouwilldriveandhowmuchelectricityyouwilluse.Itrequiresemissionstobereducedto1990levelsby

2020,to25percentbelow1990levelsby2035,andto50percentbelow1990levelsby2050.Thenewlawalsorequirespercapitamilestraveledto

bereducedby50percentby2050anddirectsthestatetoadd25,000“greencollar”jobsby2020.Ofcourse,

heSenateWaysandMeansCommittee is fore-casting a $2.4 billion deficit for the next two

yearbudgetperiod(09-11)anda$5.1billiondeficitinthefollowingbiennium.Otherstatesarereducingspending,butourlegislators

arespendingwithout regardas tohowmuch incomethestateisreceiving.Rarely,ifever,dolegislatorsseeasimplechartshowingtheestimatedrevenueforecastforthetwoyearbudgetperiodcomparedtotheamounttheyarespending.Rather,legislatorsarepresentedwitha“total

resources” estimate for the biennium,which includes one-time begin-ning balance funds and trans-fers between state accounts.By focusing on resourcesrather than revenue, leg-islators and the publicdonotgetanaccuratepicture of howmuchthey are actuallyspending comparedto the state’s rev-enue.This would be

equivalent to a fam-ilyincludingone-timeavailable emergencyfundsandretirementor

nomechanismisinplacetomakesuchthingshappen,but you can seewhere this ‘nanny state’ is trying totakeus.

Performance auditsThenineperformanceauditsreleasedsofarhaveidenti-fied$3.3billioninpotentialsavingsatacostoflessthan$8million.TheGovernorandSecretaryofHealthMarySelecky

havedoneanexcellentjobimplementingtheauditrec-ommendationsoftheDepartmentofHealthaudit.However,otherthantheportofSeattleaudit,thelegis-

laturehasdoneapoorjobinconsideringtheotherauditsandimplementingtheirrecommendations.Thelegisla-turedidpassaportcontractingbillthataddstranspar-ency, tightens contracting rules and encouragesmorecompetition.Unsuccessfulattemptsweremadetotakemoneyfrom

thededicatedperformanceauditaccountanduse it toreimburseschooldistrictsandEducationalServiceDis-trictsforcostsofperformanceaudits.

Budget transparencyGood news! An EFF proposal to create a searchableonline database for state government budgets wasadoptedbythelegislature(ESSB6818).ThebillrequirestheLegislativeEvaluationandAccountabilityprogramtosetupasearchabledatabasebyJan.1,2009whichwillbelinkedtoperformancedata.Thebadnewsisthatthelegislaturecontinuedtohold

lastminutehearingson fee increases and supplemen-talbudgetswheretheactualproposedlegislationwasn’tavailable until the hearing started. EFF continues tourgea72hourtimeoutperiodbeforecommitteeorflooractiontakesplace.Inotherwords,thelegislationmustbeonthewebsite72hoursbeforeavotecanbetaken.

Senate house governor Adopted Budget

Rev. forecast (Feb. 2008):

$31,984,000,000 $31,984,000,000 $31,984,000,000 $31,984,000,000

Proposed supplemental:

$326,755,000 $304,850,000 $235,527,000 $306,163,000

Adjusted NGFS budget:

$33,692,337,000 $33,670,432,000 $33,601,109,000 $33,671,745,000

Deficit: -$1.708 billion -$1.686 Billion -$1.617 Billion -$1.688 Billion

savingsaccounttransfersinordertobal-ancetheirmonthlybudget.Itisdanger-oustobudgetone-timeonlyfundstopayforongoingexpenses,butthatisexactlywhatthelegislatureisdoing.

If we compare projected revenue(Near General Fund) with theadoptedbudgetforthisbiennium,weseeanastyredpenshortfall.What thatmeans is thatGov-ernorGregoireandlegislatorsare spending far more thanthey are taking in. This istrueforanyoftheproposedsupplementalbudgetsbytheHouse,SenateorGovernor.This deficit plus the carry

forward costs (bow wave)which includes inflation andcaseloadswillresultinthe$2.4

billiondeficitforthenexttwoyearbud-get.Thegovernor andcertain legislators

would rather not focus on the conse-quencesoftheiroverspending.“Thisisnotimetotalkabouttaxes,”GovernorGregoire told the Spokesman-Reviewon March 4th. “Why are we talkingabouttaxes?I’mnotgoingtoscarethepeopleof thestateofWashington.Nogoodcomesofthat.WearesittingonasurplusandI’mproudofthat.”Unfortunately this “surplus” is a

superficialestimatebasedonone-timeonlycarryoverfundsandtransfers.Legislators have increased spending

by34percentoverthepastfouryears.It is time tostepoff the rollercoasterandbudgetresponsibly.

A Word of Counsel to the Legislature: When You are in a Hole,

DiggingBy Amber GunnStop

T

When Rep. Bruce Chandler, R-15, introduced anamendmenttorequireapublicmeetingongovernmentfunded political campaigns, Rep. Marko Liias, D-21,argued“Ithinkfundamentally,weshouldn’tbemicro-managingthedecisionsthatourlocaljurisdictionsmakeandhowtheytakepublicinputonthesethings….”Thelegislature’s refusal tomicromanage local government“isgoingtocomeasashocktohundredsifnotthousandsoflocalofficialsacrossthisstate,”repliedRep.Chandler.“Itisinterestingthatinthiscase,andthiscasealone,wechoosetoletanythinggowhenitcomestothejurisdic-tionsoflocalgovernments.”HouseDemocrats ledbyRep.SamHunt,D-20, also

argued that his support for the measure was “aboutlocalgovernment, localcontrol.”Yetearlierintheses-sion,Rep.HunthadprimesponsoredabilltoeliminateprecinctpollingplacesinpierceCounty,overridingthedecisionofthecounty’sownelectedofficials.Hunt’sbillevenincludedanEmergencyClauseinordertoforceanimmediateandunchallengeablechange.ThepassageofSB5278 is only thebeginning.Rep.

Christopher Hurst, D-13, noted, “I realize this bill isaboutlocalelections.However,Iamcompelledtobelieveaswellthatthisisthebeginningofaprocessofpubliclyfinancingallcampaigns.”TherecouldbenogreatercontrastbetweenCopeland’s

masterpieceandthemesstheDemocraticmajorityhascreated.TheFanfare for the Common ManhasbecomealandmarkamongAmericanclassicalmusictraditions.Mandatory taxpayer-financed campaigns, however, donotbenefitthe“commonman.”Theyareincumbentpro-tectionschemes—oftencalledwelfareforpoliticians—todefeatthedemocraticprocessbyensuringthatchal-lengersneveroutspendandunseatincumbents.Govern-ment-fundedpoliticalcampaignsarenotthe“AmericanDream.”Theyareapolitician’sdream.

Pipe dream continued from page 3 . . .Wrap-up continued from page 1 . . .