Rep. Warnick’s April 9 e-mail update

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Dear Friends and Neighbors,

There were a number of successes coming out of the 2014 legislative session. However, while he governor has finished signing legislation, including a number of bills that will benefit the 13th District, he has vetoed House Bill 1260. This is the legislation relating to the Community Economic Revitalization Board (CERB) I have been keeping you updated on as the session has progressed.

A reminder, CERB administers public facilities’ grants and loans and they are utilized by local communities for infrastructure projects. The bill would have restructured and modernized CERB by improving the board’s flexibility in providing loans, ensuring representation from both eastern and western Washington, and helping the board prioritize funding according to the greatest needs and largest benefit.

This was a bipartisan vote and a well-worked bill. Even though the bill wasn’t everything either side wanted, there was strong enough agreement to pass the bill. It would have increased economic development and job creation opportunities for local governments, particularly in rural areas. Unfortunately, the governor vetoed the legislation under pressure from labor interests because they did not like the median wage provision. This is frustrating because there was compromise on this portion of the bill, by allowing up to fifty percent of CERB loans and grants to go towards projects that create jobs less than the county-wide median wage. Median wages in many counties are very high, and it is a big disadvantage for rural areas who currently cannot even apply for help through CERB. Obviously legislators agreed and passed the bill.

Another interesting piece of this story is that the bill was agency request legislation by the Department of Commerce and the Community Economic Revitalization Board. I do not recall a governor vetoing agency-request legislation. Finally, no one testified against the bill in the public hearing process. The governor’s action makes me very concerned as we continue to look for tools and innovative ways to provide job creation and infrastructure to all of Washington.

Governor vetoes drone legislation

Last week, Gov. Inslee vetoed the drone bill, House Bill 2789. I feel this was another short-sighted move by the governor. The bill passed with overwhelming support, 77-21 in the House of Representatives and 46-1 in the Senate. The bill was well-negotiated and had many stakeholders and members from both sides of the aisle involved, yet the governor was not at the table.

Initially I thought we were still moving in a positive direction on this issue as the governor indicated he was placing a 15-month moratorium with regard to state agencies buying or using drones. However, it is being reported the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) and Western Washington University are possibly involved in an elk study with the federal government and tribes, and the plan is to use unmanned surveillance aircraft, or drones. The governor also indicated he is ordering a task force, which the bill included, and with what I believe to have had better parameters.

With the huge advancements in technology every year this issue is not going away. For once we seemed to be ahead of technology and being proactive with legislation instead of reactive. House Bill 2789 was a good first step to putting some guidelines in place.

Election-year restrictions

Due to state election-year restrictions, this will be the last e-mail update I am sending out until after the general election in November. I appreciate you taking the time to read my updates.

While the legislative session is over, please remember I’m your state representative year-round. I’m here to answer your questions, listen to your ideas and help you navigate problems with state government on any issue. Feel free to contact my district office at 509-766-6505 to schedule a time to meet with me or if you would like me to attend a meeting or speak at an event.

Sincerely,