Senator Ranker Reports at Half-Way Mark

Week Five

We’re nearing the half-way point of the 2010 session, and already we’ve faced some difficult decisions and I know there are many more to come. We’re looking at how to balance the needs of our children, our elderly, our law enforcement officers, and the realities of our state’s budget revenues. I have said it in messages to you before but I will say it here again: we cannot be afraid to discuss pursuing revenue options.

This isn’t to bloat the bureaucracy; it is to keep the safety net of social services and low income health care from falling through the cracks. An all cuts budget will decimate families and devastate lives all across Washington state. I’m working with our budget leaders to find a balance between cuts and revenue options that will protect our most vulnerable while not adversely impacting small businesses.

I’ll keep you up to date as we move forward in the budget process. Our revenue forecast comes out at the end of the week, and our budget along with the plans to raise revenue to protect critical services and programs are expected late next week.

Progress is Made at the Completion of Week Four

Friday was “cut-off” day. This marked the last day during the Legislative session when bills can be read into committee reports in their chamber of origin. Bills that made this deadline are one step closer to passage, and those that didn’t will be forgone with certain exceptions, such as bills in fiscal committees. I am happy to report that nearly all my proposed bills have advanced out of committee.

This is only the first of several steps, but it is a solid step in the right direction. These bills are important to our communities and I will continue to work tirelessly to get them to final passage.   Some of my bills still moving forward:  

6346 Expanding the use of certain electric vehiclesThis bill expands the use of Neighborhood Electric Vehicles to roads with speed limits of 45 mph from 35 mps on none state roads.  This will allow individuals to commute from home to town via county or city roads that have speed limits that increase to 45 mph for short distances. This bill was amended to be implemented in limited areas only and not statewide.

6347 – Studying seawater desalination. We are one of several coastal states that have few or no regulations with regard to desalination. Several projects have been discussed in recent years. It is important for us to know the potential positive or negative impacts associated with desalination, before large projects are proposed. It is a good idea to have a better understanding of desalination and how it works. It is important to understand all aspects of desalination plants, including energy requirements and environmental impacts. We want to be informed to make better decisions.

This bill creates a workgroup to study the  issues including environmental impacts; nearshore impacts; waste disposal; energy use and efficiencies at desalination plants; management and fiscal requirements to operate a desalination facility; public health and safety requirements; and impacts of limiting or enhancing potable water availability for established communities and for new subdivisions.

6348 – Prohibiting certain communications of collection agencies and their employees
Currently, collection agencies are regulated by the federal Fair Debt Collections Practices Act and agency law.  With the economic challenges people are faced with during these tough times, we need to ensure we treat people with both compassion and respect.  This bill prohibits collection agencies from communicating in a manner that actively creates a false impression.  It further considers communication harassment by a collection agency if it occurs more than three times in a single week and between the hours of 9 p.m. and 7:30 am.

6349 (sub) – Establishing a farm internship program The art of farming cannot be learned in the classroom; first-hand experience is necessary in order to promote agriculture for future generations.  Current laws make it difficult and costly for small farmers to have interns.  This bill allows small farms to establish an internship programs for future farmers to pass on crucial vocation knowledge of farming practices and enterprises.  This education program supports the continued growth of the agricultural industry. 

6350 – Concerning marine waters management that includes marine spatial planning. This is a precedent setting bill, offering a first step to bring local communities, the state, and the federal government together on marine planning. The bill’s flexible approach to planning by region will allow different areas to adopt different solutions based on local needs. Washington is already undertaking many marine planning efforts, and this program will coordinate those efforts while allowing the state to take advantage of millions in federal resources.

The federal government is moving on marine planning, so being proactive will allow the state to decide its own fate. An important component of marine planning will be the public involvement specified in the bill. The specific language protecting existing uses is also a vital component of the bill for marine related industries.
6373 – Reporting the emissions of greenhouse gases. This legislation seeks to better align Washington State’s greenhouse gas reporting requirements with the Environmental Protection Agency’s reporting rule adopted last year. This bill directs the Department of Ecology to adopt rules requiring persons to report emissions of greenhouse gases where those emissions from a single facility, source, or site, or from fossil fuels sold in Washington by single supplier meet or exceed ten thousand metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent annually.

6557(sub) – Limiting the use of copper and other substances in vehicle brake pads. Dissolved copper from brake pads is a major contaminant, posing significant environmental risks. A proactive approach is necessary to limit the amount of dissolved copper entering Puget Sound. Longstanding research confirms the negative effect of dissolved copper from brake pads on salmon. Close to seven metric tons of dissolved copper enters Puget Sound every year, half from brake pads. This bill requires that brake pads be made of substances that are not so detrimental to the environment.

6634 – Dairy nutrient management recordkeeping civil penalties. It was the intent of a bill last year to not only make it a violation for failure to keep records, but to provide a civil penalty if records of nutrient applications were insufficient.  This bill establishes the criteria and process for which a fine can be levied.

6331 – Aluminum smelters/tax relief In this recession, it is important that we protect our local jobs. In 2004 the Legislature adopted several tax preferences for the aluminum industry citing the need to maintain family wage jobs amid high electricity costs that effect the aluminum industry. This bill extends the expiration date of tax preferences for the aluminum industry to 2017, protecting 528 local jobs in Bellingham.

The next key date is Tuesday, Feb. 16 — the last day to take action on a bill in its chamber of origin. Some bills will move forward, and others will stay behind.  Legislation that has passed both the House and Senate will have gained the necessary support to progress to the next stage of the Governor’s approval.   I am also co-sponsoring key legislation proposed by fellow Democrats that help our communities as well. I was encouraged to see the progression of many bills that are important to me.
Senate Bill 6248 – No BPA in baby bottles and sippy cups As a parent, my child’s health and safety is paramount.  As a senator, protecting all children is a top priority.  It is why I have worked tirelessly to pass a bill to ban the use of the chemical BPA in plastic bottles intended for children such as sippy cups and baby bottles. As a cosponsor of this bill, I gave testimony illustrating the dangers of plastic containers made with BPA (bisphenol A). This bill bans the distribution, sale, or manufacture of plastic containing BPA in Washington for children under the age of three.

There is growing concern among scientists and medical experts that the chemical – which has been widely used in the U.S. since the 1960s and is found in a host of consumer products – could be harmful to humans. The Food and Drug Administration has cautioned Americans to take reasonable steps to avoid BPA and is concerned about the potential effects BPA could have on the brain, behavior and prostate gland of fetuses, infants and children. It’s estimated that more than 90 percent of Americans have detectable BPA levels in their bodies.

Similar legislation, HB 1180, passed the House with a 95-1 vote on Tuesday. The Senate bill, which passed with a 36-9 vote, now moves to the House for consideration and the House bill comes to the Senate.

Protecting those who protect us
This week, we paused on the Senate floor to pay our respects to the law enforcement officers who were killed in the line of duty in recent months. We also honored the many fine men and women who continue to protect the public, often at great risk to their own safety with Senate Resolution 8687.   We are also working on legislation to better protect our police from this escalating wave of violence. Among other things, these bills would:

• Give counties across Washington increased flexibility in generating public safety funds with a 0.3 percent sales tax boost dedicated to law enforcement.
• Toughen sentences on those that offend law enforcement officers while serving in community custody programs, similar to the additional charges an inmate in prison may receive for assaulting a prison guard.

Senate Bill 6604 – Doing away with unfunded mandates on public schools For years school districts have asked us to reduce the number of unfunded mandates on public schools, and we are listening. This bill lists 22 laws that should be repealed, five that should be suspended and four that should be amended.   This new legislation builds on a measure I supported that passed last session, Senate Bill 5889, that repealed nine mandates, suspended three until July 2011, and amended 13. This year’s legislation eliminates more unfunded mandates and will make it easier for our schools to focus on student achievement.

Senate Bill 6668 – Early intervention for kids with disabilities We are also working on legislation to make sure children with disabilities receive early intervention. Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program to expanded to include children with disabilities. I believe all children should be given the chance to realize their full potential, and this legislation will give them a good head start.

Other Important Information At a time when many people need all the help they can get, the state is making it easy for low-income wage earners to claim the Earned-Income Tax Credit when they file online. WorkSource provides a link to the free I-CAN e-file site at www.go2worksource.com, available in English and Spanish. The service is certified by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as an online tax provider and makes it easy to claim the Earned-Income Tax Credit by anyone whose income and adjusted gross income is less than:

• $43,279 ($48,279 married and filing jointly) with three or more qualifying children.
• $40,295 ($45,295 married and filing jointly) with two qualifying children.
• $35,463 ($40,463 married and filing jointly) with one qualifying child.
• $13,440 ($18,440 married and filing jointly) with no qualifying children.

WorkSource is a statewide partnership of organizations, including the Employment Security Department that offers a variety of free employment-related services to job seekers and employers.

Track ‘hot topics’ with a click of your mouse With everything that goes on during a legislative session, it can be difficult to keep track of what’s happening. This “Hot Topics” link will make it easier. Just click on https://senatedemocrats.wa.gov/news/ for a quick list of the biggest things going on each week. You’ll find one-sentence descriptions of the major bills in play in each Senate committee along with links for more information on each bill.