Washington State this week

Democrats refuse to address serious budget shortfall

For months, State Republicans have called for a special legislative session to deal with a $9 billion budget shortfall. Jay Inslee and State Democrats refuse to listen.

Special sessions are called either by the governor or by a two-thirds majority vote in the state House and Senate. Republicans hoped to reconvene before the new biennial budget took effect on July 1. Sen. Judy Warnick (R-Moses Lake) told the Columbia Basin Herald, “I think we could have made some adjustments to that budget; we could have looked at the rainy day fund and taken some of the funds from that and made it not quite so painful as we go into this biennium.”

Seattle passes second job tax in five months

The Seattle City Council passed a second tax on employment in five months – this time on large and medium-sized businesses with employees compensated $150,000 or more.

Seattle’s latest plan to depress the economy and discourage job creation begins for companies with a payroll of merely $7 million. Seattle’s new tax comes amid a COVID-19 caused an unemployment rate of nearly 14%. The tax risks de-incentivizing start-ups from establishing themselves in Seattle and the loss of major business headquarters.

Dam Opponents make erronious claim on Snake River temperatures

Activists attempting to destroy the four Lower Snake River dams rely on faulty facts on river temperatures to support their position, explains the Washington Policy Center’s Todd Myers.

Specifically, activists claim that “in 2015, hot water killed 250,000 adult sockeye salmon in the Columbia and Snake rivers.” In his latest piece, Myers outlines several errors behind the claim, proving how “reckless dam opponents are with their claims.” Problems with activists’ claims include conflating a projection with reality and highly misleading numbers on death numbers (and the reasons behind the deaths).

 
Inslee orders businesses to deny service to non-masked customers

Businesses across Washington state are prohibited from serving customers not wearing masks under Jay Inslee’s latest statewide mask mandate. Businesses who do not enforce Inslee’s order face fines or a loss of business licenses.

Additional orders include employers providing employees face covering or masks and individuals wearing face masks while in indoor or public settings when unable to maintain social distancing guidelines.