As I blogged about a week and a half ago, I'm moving on to a new job. (Here's my farewell column.)
I'll set up a URL redirect on www.eyeonolympia.com in the next day or so. Tempting though it is to steer you faithful readers to The Onion, I'll probably' [...]
The state's seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate is now 9.3 percent, up 2/10ths of a percent from May's revised rate of 9.1 percent.
"We are beginning to see signs that our economy may be stabilizing and recovery efforts are working, but it will take time," Gov. Chris Gregoire said.
Where are the jobs being [...]
The Faith & Freedom PAC, one of several groups trying to get a referendum on the November ballot to repeal the state's "everything but marriage" law for domestic partners, says that it has gathered more than half the signatures it needs.
"Conservatively, we have a little over 75,000 signatures to date," [...]
And this time, it's me.
After nearly 9 years covering Olympia for an Eastern Washington audience, I'm taking a public-affairs job with the state insurance commissioner's office.
I love what I do, and am deeply grateful to the Spokesman-Review and to everyone who's clicked on this blog' [...]
Much talk -- particularly from Republicans -- today about Boeing's decision to spend $580 million to buy a South Carolina plant that makes parts for the delayed new 787 aircraft.
First out of the gate, at 5:45 a.m. this morning, was the governor's office, releasing this statement by Gov. Chris Gregoire:
[...]
U.S. Sen. Patty Murray says she's included $11 million in a senate spending bill for a new "Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape" training facility at Fairchild Air Force Base.
The SERE training teachers aviators what to do to avoid capture and survive if downed behind enemy lines. The current training facility [...]
Ran across an interesting list recently while writing about budget cuts to the state Poison Center, (the logo for which probably makes the state's tourism folks squirm.)
The budget-cut changes, by the way, include forking over $30 on your credit card to get advice about a poisoned pet. The [...]
So what measures will voters see on the fall ballot?
Well, they won't see Initiative 1043, which would have required the state to verify that someone's a citizen or legal immigrant before issuing them a driver's license or most public benefits. It also would have banned nonprofit groups from offering' [...]
We've lost another good one: Olympian reporter Adam Wilson is leaving to become the speechwriter for Gov. Chris Gregoire. With a young family to support and a longtime interest in politics and policy, the job seems like a good fit for Wilson in this age of pay cuts, furloughs' [...]
The state budget picture is much, much worse. From the Financial Times:
Once the US’s richest state, California now has the dubious distinction of having the worst credit rating in the country....
California’s fiscal year ends on Wednesday but as the state’s cash reserves are empty, IOUs will be issued to a range [...]
Local farmers today filed a lawsuit against a large-scale feedlot in Franklin County, saying that the cattle operation could use hundreds of thousands of gallons of groundwater a day in one of the driest areas of the state.
The case could mushroom into more than just a Franklin County water [...]
This sounds counterintuitive, until you look at the price of a box of macaroni and cheese versus that of a handful of stir-fry vegetables:
According to the private Washington State Budget & Policy Center, shoppers in rural Washington have a harder time getting fresh fruits and vegetables on their tables. From [...]
It's summer, and my blog numbers need a boost, so here's this, from the Associated Press:
Fans of the giant Palouse earthworm are once again seeking federal protection for the rare, sweet-smelling species.
The worm has been seen only four reported times in the past 110 years, but supporters contend it is still present [...]
From the print paper:
OLYMPIA – Encouraged by the large turnout this spring at anti-tax rallies, critics of government spending are planning a new round of demonstrations July 4.
Events are planned in more than 20 Washington cities, including Spokane Valley, as well as in Sandpoint and Boise. One rally [...]
From tomorrow's paper:
OLYMPIA _ We're still growing, but it's slowing.
That was the verdict Monday from Washington's Office of Financial Management, which churns out annual population estimates for the state, cities and counties.
Washington's population as of April 1, 2009, the agency estimates, was 6,668,200. That's up about 80,600,' [...]
Here's to Two, Spokane.
The Lilac City continues to cling to it's position as the state's second-largest city, once again beating out the City of Destiny -- Tacoma, that is -- by about 2,000 people.
The state Office of Financial Management today released its annual population estimates as of April 1, [...]
State budget-cut fallout: trash in state-owned buildings only emptied twice a week, carpets cleaned once a year.
More state budget fallout: Health insurance costs likely to rise next year for state workers. On the most popular plan, the Uniform Medical Plan, would rise from $82 a month for a [...]
Retired Woodinville financial advisor Mike Dunmire's been a lifeline for initiative promoter Tim Eyman, pouring a steady cash infusion into Eyman's signature-gathering (and income-producing) funds.
So for people who watch campaign finance reports on the Public Disclosure Commisson site, it's become a bit of a parlor game to try to predict [...]
The Arizona-based Alliance Defense Fund today launched a free phone hotline and website to gather accounts of threats or other harassment of people gathering signatures for Referendum 71. The ballot measure asks voters to throw out a new law granting state-registered domestic partners, including same-sex couples, most of the [...]
Wow. This just moved on the AP wire:
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — After going AWOL for seven days, Gov. Mark Sanford admitted Wednesday that he'd secretly flown to Argentina to visit a woman with whom he'd been having an affair. He apologized to his wife and four sons and said he [...]
From the state fire marshal's office:
Projected dry conditions will lead to above normal significant fire potential in areas of Eastern Washington this summer. “Due to the heightened fire danger, it is important for homeowners to start preparing for fire season now,” says State Fire Marshal Mike Matlick. Homeowners living in [...]
The state legislative ethics board has dismissed an ethics complaint against freshman Rep. Shelly Short, saying that Short was wrong to post her legislative contact information on a campaign website, but that the matter is minor and was immediately corrected.
Short's 2008 campaign website allowed visitors to send her emails. She [...]
The state Legislative Ethics Board has dimissed a complaint by a foster mother that state Sen. Pam Roach released confidential information -- the foster mom's identity -- and abused her legislative power in a custody case.
Still, the board concluded that Roach and a legislative aide apparently hired at state expense [...]
Initiative promoter Tim Eyman said today that his property tax measure, Initiative 1033, is close to having enough signatures to ensure that it's on the November ballot.
"We've hit 270,000 signatures for I-1033," Eyman emailed to supporters this morning. I-1033 would cap the growth of state, city and county general-fund taxes, [...]
Farmers markets and the state of the state treasury have been keeping me busy lately, but here's some interesting stuff that's been piling up in the in box:
-Former Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic, who created a stir earlier this month by declaring himself a candidate for county clerk in [...]
June 18, 2009
TO: Statewide Elected Officials
Agency Directors
Presidents of Higher Education Institutions
State Boards and Commissions
FROM: Christine O. Gregoire, Governor
SUBJECT: Additional Budget Savings
On June 18th, the Washington State Economic and Revenue Forecast [...]
I had this story in the morning paper:
OLYMPIA – State tax officials recently gave several Spokane-area churches an ultimatum: Stop running farmers markets in your parking lots or start paying tax on that land.
“We have no choice here. The law is really clear,” said Mike Gowrylow, a spokesman for the state Department [...]
There was also some good news, however, in state revenue forecaster Arun Raha's predictions Thursday.
"It increasingly appears that we are finally approaching the end of this `Great Recession,'" he said. The bottom of the recession seems near, he said, and the "freefall" declines in economic indicators are easing.' [...]
Gov. Chris Gregoire is ordering state agencies to cut their payrolls by 2 percent more, after the state's revenue forecaster this morning whacked revenue projections by nearly $500 million.
"We have been aware of the likelihood of a negative forecast and are prepared to take action," Gregoire said.
The [...]
Gov. Chris Gregoire is ordering cabinet-level state agencies to cut their employee costs by 2 percent more than budgeted.
"Agencies can hire employees where needed to accomplish their core business and enact the reforms I am asking for, but they cannot exceed the cap I am instituting today," she said.
She's' [...]
"Initial claims for unemployment insurance appear to have peaked and monthly job losses are diminishing."
That's the word from economist Arun Raha, the state's revenue forecaster.
The trough of the recession, however, will be lower than he and the state's economic and revenue forecast council expected in March. And if plotted on [...]
My story in the print paper this a.m. had more details about the suspension of Spokane attorney (and former Spokane city councilman, and current candidate for same) Steve Eugster:
OLYMPIA _ After a long-running battle over his handling of an elderly widow’s case, Spokane attorney Steve Eugster has narrowly avoided disbarment.
[...]
Washington's highest court has ordered that Spokane attorney Steve Eugster be suspended from practicing law for 18 months.
But a divided state Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that Eugster, a former city councilman who's again running for a seat, should not be disbarred.
"We conclude that Eugster's misconduct" [...]
This story, from this morning's New York Times, about the causes of the nation's fast-mushrooming deficit:
There are two basic truths about the enormous deficits that the federal government will run in the coming years. The first is that President Obama’s agenda, ambitious as it may be, is responsible for [...]
As a reporter, I get upwards of 100 emails a day. But some just jump out at you.
"More than 6,500 scientists and doctors will convene at SLEEP 2009," one recent one began.
It turns out that a group called the "Associated Professional Sleep Societies" hosts an annual scientific [...]
The trend won't be a surprise, but the numbers are pretty startling: state Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler said this week that the number of Washingtonians with no health insurance has shot up to a record 876,000.
That's 1 in 5 people between the ages of 19 and 64. And' [...]
From my weekly print column:
Getting a breather from the tax man:
Struggling to pay your property taxes? Some low- and middle-income homeowners can delay paying those taxes.
Here's who qualifies:
-You must have had a household income of $57,000 or less last year,
-You must have owned the [...]
If you're approached by a Referendum 71 signature-gatherer and want to read the petition before you sign it, you'd better bring a magnifying glass, a chair and a cool drink.
As required by law, R-71 authors managed to squeeze the entire 114-page bill onto a single sheet of paper. A [...]
One of the budget items that gave lawmakers heartburn this year was the decision to trim the state's Basic Health Plan -- state-subsidized health insurance for the working poor -- by 43 percent.
With the program covering nearly 100,000 Washingtonians, that would likely mean cutting about 43 percent off them off' [...]
Referendum 71 proponents have been saying for days that they're on the verge of printing petitions, but the process has faced repeated delays, apparently from the technical challenge of compressing a 113-page bill onto a petition form that people can actually read.
"It will go to print this afternoon," Faith and' [...]
Here's a follow-up: my story from the print paper:
OLYMPIA – Former Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic is running for clerk of tiny Wahkiakum County, one of the most sparsely populated counties in the state.
He made it clear Thursday that he doesn’t want the job. He’s voting for the [...]
Former Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic has filed election papers to run for clerk of tiny Wahkiakum County, one of the most sparsely populated counties in the state.
The county auditor's office confirmed to me this morning that Novoselic has filed not as a Democrat or Republican, but under the' [...]
I had this story in the print paper today:
OLYMPIA _ Citing a smaller population of female prisoners, state corrections officials plan to shutter one of two units at Pine Lodge Corrections Center for Women, the only women’s prison east of the Cascades.
The 359-woman prison in Medical Lake will shrink to 187 inmates. [...]
No, not for a special session. Just for "assembly days," the legislature's periodic gatherings to hold hearings and figure out what to put on the plate for the next session -- now just six months away.
This year, the meetings will be later than normal:
-Oct. 1-2 (Thursday and Friday)
-and Dec. 3-4 [...]
Petitions are being printed today for Referendum 71, which asks voters to overturn a new law granting same-sex domestic partners many of the rights of spouses. But those who sign the petitions may be in for a surprise.
Some R-71 opponents have put up a Web site – www.whosigned.org – where [...]
Mike Fagan, who for years has helped run Tim Eyman's anti-tax ballot measures, has filed for a Spokane City Council seat.
"While the city of Spokane braces itself for some lean budget years...the taxpayers of this city deserve to be protected from wanton taxation in order to maintain" [...]
A group opposing Referendum 71 says it will publicize the names of everyone who signs petitions to put Referendum 71 on the fall ballot.
The group, which has named the site whosigned.org, says that the referendum process "must meet a high standard of transparency to ensure a fair and open discussion" [...]
Washington Values Alliance President Larry Stickney has dropped his challenge to the ballot language for Stickney's Referendum 71, and organizers say that petitions could hit the streets as early as tomorrow.
The measure asks voters to veto legislation that gives domestic partners many of the same rights and responsibilities as [...]
The Thurston County Superior Court has set a time to hear Referendum 71 proponents' challenge to the proposed wording of their measure: 10 a.m. Tuesday.
Here's more on R-71 and what this challenge is all about.
' [...]People trying to overturn a new law giving expanded rights to same-sex domestic partners have filed an 11th-hour appeal of the proposed ballot language.
The move sets their own signature-gathering effort back at least a week, but seems aimed at boosting their odds by trying to make voters see domestic partnerships [...]
In a study of more than 360 metropolitan areas by Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine, Olympia was rated 6th-highest in the nation for salary growth.
Pay there rose an average of 22 percent from 2004-2008, according to the magazine. Median household income in Olympia is now more than $55,000 a [...]
California's supreme court has upheld Proposition 8, the state's voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage. The ruling, however, allows thousands of same-sex marriages performed prior to the ban.
California's experience has been closely watched in Washington, where gay marriage opponents have filed a referendum to undo a state law granting domestic [...]
A 66-year-old Sequim woman reportedly became the first person to use Washington's new assisted-suicide law, approved by voters in November. The group Compassion & Choices says that Linda Fleming, diagnosed a month ago with late-stage pancreatic cancer, took lethal medication Thursday night with her family, dog and doctor at her [...]
Gov. Chris Gregoire, who testified at a federal EPA hearing in Seattle this morning, is ordering state agencies to move ahead with changes aimed at reducing greenhouse gases. Here's the press release:
OLYMPIA – Gov. Chris Gregoire today issued an executive order, directing state actions to reduce climate-changing greenhouse gas emissions, [...]
-Speaking in Spokane, the state's revenue forecaster, Arun Raha, says he expects the recession to end in August or September.
-The Seattle Times' Joni Balter is skeptical that the solution to Washington state's revenue woes is an income tax. Look at Oregon, she writes.
-The Washington Policy Center's Jason' [...]
I'll be amazed if someone doesn't file a court challenge to the proposed ballot language for Referendum 71, which asks voters to veto a new law giving same-sex domestic partners the same state rights and responsibilities as spouses.
Not that the language is that murky. But this is a battle in [...]
Gov. Chris Gregoire, who will be in Seattle tomorrow to testify at what promises to be a packed and lively EPA hearing on global warming, says that she will afterwards "announce a landmark initiative to reduce greenhouse gases in Washington."
The hearing is one of only two nationwide on the federal [...]
Not surprisingly, the citizen's panel that sets salaries for lawmakers, the governor, many judges and other state-paid officials has voted not to give any of them raises for the next two years.
"The Commission regrets the need to take this action," said a statement put out this morning by the [...]
As the Washington Policy Center's Jason Mercier points out, Gov. Gregoire's list of line-item vetoes in the state budget yesterday did not save the Department of Natural Resources' plane.
That was despite an 11th-hour appeal from new Lands Commissioner Peter Goldmark, an experienced pilot who used to use his own' [...]
The governor's office has posted the listed of items she vetoed in the budget. Some, like vetoing lawmakers' plan to take $29 million from the state auditor's office, are substantial. But in dozens of cases, the vetoes were simply technical adjustments, such as taking out money set aside for other' [...]
Calling it a "necessary evil," Gov. Chris Gregoire on Tuesday signed a
nearly three-inch-thick state budget bill, cutting billions of dollars
in planned state spending over the next two years.
The $35 billion spending plan, hashed out by state lawmakers over several months, makes it official:
-40,000 low-income people will lose [...]
Hundreds of people crammed into Seattle Montlake Community Center yesterday to watch the governor sign legislation granting same-sex domestic partners many of the rights of spouses.
The place was crammed with kids. There were strollers, scampering toddlers and a class of fidgeting preschoolers in matching red shirts. Their parents, by [...]
The next time you're buying apples, potatoes or cherries, the state wants you to buy locally.
"Next time you shop, look for Washington products, or ask your grocer for them," Gov. Chris Gregoire says in a commercial on the state-backed Heart of Washington website. "It's a delicious way to'" [...]
The Secretary of State's office today released the summary and ballot language for Referendum 71, which seeks to overturn a just-signed law granting domestic partners most of the rights of spouses.
Anyone can appeal the wording. Last year saw a heated challenge by opponents of the state's Oregon-style assisted-suicide law. They [...]
SEATTLE _ In a victory for same-sex partners _ and a starting gun for social conservatives intent on a repeal _ Gov. Chris Gregoire on Monday signed into law a bill granting domestic partners most of the rights of spouses.
"They will make for stronger families, and when we" [...]
At least 2,300 school teachers have gotten notices saying they might be laid off, and the number is expected to rise, according to the Washington Education Association.
From a statement put out by the 82,000-member union:
The 2,300 figure does not include jobs eliminated through attrition, such as retirements. The final [...]
From the governor's office:
Gov. Chris Gregoire on Monday will take action on three bills which expand rights to domestic partners:
Engrossed Substitute House Bill No. 1445, relating to domestic partners under the Washington State Patrol retirement system.
Engrossed House Bill No. 1616, relating to the state pension [...]
The Department of Social and Health Services is phasing out all its regional offices for the Division of Alcohol and Substance Abuse, the agency confirmed Friday. The offices manage state contracts with local providers for drug- and alcohol treatment.
"Our regional offices don't provide any direct services to clients," said Doug' [...]
President Barack Obama has nominated Jenny Durkan, a close associate of Gov. Chris Gregoire and a friend who helped defeat the 2004 gubernatorial election court challenge, to be the top federal prosecutor in Western Washington.
Durkan, 51, is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame and the University of Washington [...]
With a stroke of the pen, Gov. Chris Gregoire today created "the Washington Council on Aerospace," intended to remind Boeing and related industries that Washington loves them.
"The council will oversee state efforts to ensure that Washington remains the leading location in the world in which to design and build airplanes," [...]
From my weekly print column...
The state budget, slated to be signed into law early next week, includes no new state tax increases. Lawmakers were unable to get a two-thirds vote, even a for a 25-cent increase on your phone bill to pay for better emergency-call-handling.
Fees, however, are a different thing. State law doesn’t [...]
State Rep. Don Cox is retiring from the statehouse for a second time.
Cox, 69, says he won't run for re-election this fall. He was appointed Jan. 19 to the seat left vacant by then-Rep. Steve Hailey, R-Mesa, who died abruptly of cancer just after Christmas.
Cox, R-Colfax, said he'll serve as [...]
Opponents of the state's new "everything but marriage" law for same-sex domestic partners rushed to Olympia last week to file Referendum 71. The clock is ticking, and they only have until July 25th to gather 120,577 valid voter signatures. Assuming a cushion of about 25 percent for duplicate signatures, Mickey [...]
Very few legislative seats are up for election in this off-year, but there's tremendous interest in two Eastern Washington spots in the House of Representatives.
Four people have so far filed documents with the state's Public Disclosure Commission to run for 9th District Rep. Steve Hailey's old seat representing the Palouse' [...]
No, not Lisa Brown yet for governor.
Locally, however, there's already some interest in city council seats. A quick run through Public Disclosure Commission files shows that:
Tom Towey is running for a Spokane Valley city council seat. Towey's a Spokane Valley planning commission member, longtime Rosauer's manager and former' [...]
And Forbes magazine, apparently unimpressed with the official "Near nature, near perfect" city slogan in Spokane, today pronounced the Lilac City the "Scam Capital of America."
From writer William Barrett's story:
Welcome to Spokane, Wash., a metropolitan object lesson in what can befall the unwary when rugged individualism is [...]
In the print paper:
A 10-month investigation by the Office of the Family and Children’s Ombudsman has found “a widespread crisis of confidence by the community in the child welfare system … that puts children and families at risk of harm.”
(Note: here's a link to one of the [...]
The conservative Evergreen Freedom Foundation, with research from Canadian foundation, has compiled a "report card" on academics at more than a thousand schools across the state.
And here's a story by our Jody Lawrence Turner, with reaction from the state teacher's union, which was [...]
May 7, 2009
Statement from House Speaker Frank Chopp and Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown regarding special session:
“After a conversation today between Gov. Gregoire, Speaker Chopp and Majority Leader Brown, the three leaders decided against a special session.”
“The few issues left on the table in [...]
The Franklin County Republican central committee has "overwhelmingly voted to censure" state Rep. Maureen Walsh "for her sponsorship of the recently passed HB 1727."
(It probably should be noted here that the prime sponsor of the bill was Rep. Jamie Pedersen. Walsh was a co-sponsor -- along with 55 other lawmakers.) [...]
Yet more, um, aggregation this morning:
Senate Democrats' senior staff director Rich Nafziger, writing on his personal blog, offers a session overview:
The real shock was the extent to which the session hit the friends and allies of the legislative democrats...The Governor and the legislature abandoned organized labor on their' [...]
More catching up (and thank God for tabbed browsing):
-Lt. Gov. Brad Owen, after a drubbing during election season from The Stranger, continues to get no love from Seattle. Writes Horsesass.org founder David Goldstein:
To those fondly speculating about Gov. Chris Gregoire being on the list of potential nominees to replace [...]
Lots -- LOTS -- to catch up on:
-The Everett Herald's Jerry Cornfield says that two-time GOP gubernatorial candidate Dino Rossi's got a new job that's a return to his commercial real estate roots. He won't rule out running for office again ("Never say never") but offers these words of' [...]
As expected, Washington Values Alliance president Larry Stickney this afternoon filed a ballot measure to overturn Senate Bill 5688, which grants state-registered domestic partners most of the rights of married spouses.
More than 5,000 couples have registered in the past two years, including many same-sex couples.
"We disagree with" [...]
(Photo: people waiting to testify at a House hearing re: domestic partnerships in February.)
Foes of the state's new "everything but marriage" law plan to file a referendum at noon today at the Secretary of State's elections office in Olympia, according to Dave Ammons, a spokesman for Secretary of State [...]
From my weekly print column:
It always astounds me how quickly the state capital becomes a ghost town when a legislative session ends.
On Sunday, lobbyists were still swarming the Senate and House doors. Lawmakers rushed toward midnight in a mad scramble of last-minute deals, deadlocks and dead bills.
[...]
There are no known cases of swine flu in Washington, Gov. Chris Gregoire said Wednesday, as health officials elsewhere confirmed dozens of cases -- including one toddler death -- in 10 states.
"Right now, we have no confirmed cases in Washington state, and we are doing our best to" [...]
OLYMPIA – All eyes were on state spending in Olympia this year, as lawmakers wrestled with their greatest budget problem in decades.
But it’s not all that Washington lawmakers did. By the time they ended the session early Monday morning, they had approved hundreds of changes to state law.
They extended most spouse-type [...]
-Andrew Villeneuve at the Northwest Progressive Institute blog has the much-predicted news that Rep. Ross Hunter, D-Medina, is in fact going to run for King County executive. Also running: fellow lawmaker Sen. Fred Jarrett, D-Mercer Island.
-Spokesman-Review editorialist Gary Crooks weighs in on the state's tax structure, saying that' [...]
From this morning's paper:
OLYMPIA – Gov. Chris Gregoire said Monday she intends to call Washington lawmakers back into a special session to finish budget-related bills left undone when midnight struck Sunday night, ending the 105-day legislative session.
But the governor said she first wants wrung-out lawmakers to get a [...]
Gov. Chris Gregoire said she intends to call a special session, but wants to talk to lawmakers first.
She said she hopes the session is soon -- not waiting for the June revenue forecast, for example -- short, and limited in scope. She wants to hash out an agreement with lawmakers [...]
Lawmakers wrapped up around 1 a.m., adjourning even though several bills necessary to implement the budgets never made it to a vote. Among them: bills affecting school levy rates and another to require the deportation of non-violent foreign criminals.
Gov. Chris Gregoire sent out a statement saying that she [...]
Gov. Gregoire’s statement on legislative session
OLYMPIA – Gov. Chris Gregoire released the following statement tonight on calling a special session of the 2009 Washington Legislature:
“The 2009 legislative session completed the most difficult regular session in a generation with a balanced budget, very significant transportation improvements, and [...]
Special session for the few remaining bills?
Looks that way. Top lawmakers and the governor are trying to figure out what to do.
Developing...
[...]Lawmakers are on track tonight to end a grueling legislative session that saw two lawmakers hospitalized and left the state facing $4 billion in cuts to schools, adult day care centers, colleges, hospitals, and health coverage for the working poor.
"It has been a brutal year, frankly," said Rep. [...]
Tensions have been brewing for days over an already-very-controversial bill: Sen. Chris Marr's SB 5840, which would retool parts of Initiative 937.
Environmental groups have been unhappy with the changes, which they see as a wrongheaded softening of the goal of I-937: to spur investments in alternative power.
Marr insists that [...]
It's clear from reviewing the proposed budget documents that in addition to major changes for schools, colleges, social services and health care, budget writers also did some work with the fiscal equivalent of a scalpel, trimming spending on things like the governor's bodyguards, classes on robots, and the flower plantings [...]
