Olympia Business Watch

The Electoral Map (Funny Bone Edition)

The humoristas at the New York Times took a shot at coloring the electoral map. Say what you will about the NYT, it's worth a chuckle - and who doesn't need a little humor these days?

Canada, here we come!

Editorials: No on I-1029

At its September board meeting, the Association of Washington Business voted to oppose Initiative 1029, requiring additional training for home care workers. You can read more about AWB's endorsements in the 2008 election here.

The Community Care Coalition, a collection of non-profit operators of assisted living facilities, elder care facilities adult family home operators and other groups that deliver care to the elderly and disabled, have formed opposition to the measure facing voters this fall. The initiative has received "vote no" editorials from 13 daily newspapers in Washington. The Coalition has captured them on their Web site, and you can check out the collection here.

Undercard #1: Goldmark versus Sutherland

To paraphrase Marv Albert, "We are LIIIVVVEEE from Semi-Ah-Moo Resort for today's match up between Sutherland and Goldmark." Actually, to start with it is just Goldmark as Doug is late for the debate. Anyhow, here we go.

11:15: Goldmark starts off discussing his background as a farmer and rancher. Also he goes into how Sutherland's tenure at DNR has been a lawsuit ridden and the current harvest is not sustainable.

11:20: Responding to a question regarding his campaign contributions Goldmark responded: "I do have many contributors, many from environmental community. However, I think it is inappropriate for me to take contributions from an industry that I would have to regulate, unlike my opponent."

11:30: In regards to the December storm, Goldmark said, "I think the criticism, not of the storm, but of the lack of oversight from Department of Natural Resources hydrologist and other scientist caused some of chaos we saw in Lewis County.”

11:45: In regards to mineral exploration on state land. "Some agregate people I have talked to have taken more than 8 years to make a decision. I think is unnaceptible for buisiness have to wait that long for decision." Also, in response to question about wildfires; "I think there is an economy opportunity to protect homes from wildfires by thinning."

We'll be back after lunch with the AG's debate.

The Columbian on EFCA

The Columbian runs a notable editorial in today's pages denouncing the "Employee Free Choice Act," the federal "card check" legislation that would abolish the employee's free choice to vote by private ballot on whether to join a union.

Politics and Business

The Seattle PI's Bill Virgin waxes philosophical in his column today, exploring why he believes the business community "can't capitalize on its inherent advantages" in the political realm.  Virgin's point of departure is local Seattle politics, but his observations, valid or not, should apply statewide as well. 

What do you think?

AWB Files Legal Brief in Brown v. Owen Lawsuit

This afternoon, AWB filed an amicus curiae ("friend of the court") brief in Brown v. Owen, the lawsuit by Senator Majority Leader Lisa Brown challenging the constitutionality of the provision of Initiative 601 that requires a supermajority vote of both houses of the Legislature to raise taxes.  From the brief's intro:

AWB makes this short amicus submission to add an additional dimension to respondent’s separation of powers argument, contending that the petition raises essentially a political question that the court, as a matter of prudence and restraint, should decline to reach. Should the court reach the merits and grant the writ, it would in essence absolve a coordinate and co-equal branch of government from the difficult political and policy choices it must confront under RCW 43.135.035(1) by invalidating the statute under the same constitutional principle – majority rule – that the Legislature may itself use at any time (and has used in the past) to avoid the statute’s procedural requirements. The court should refrain from granting a single member of a single political caucus of a single chamber of the Legislature the extraordinary relief of striking down an enhanced procedural requirement the full Legislature has chosen for itself when the full Legislature could, by its own authority and through its own processes, loose the binds of that requirement at any time. 

The rest can be read here.  The Supreme Court takes up the case on September 9th.

(Cross-posted at WashACE.com)

               

Gregoire, Rossi to Debate at AWB Policy Summit

What do the gubernatorial candidates have to say about business and the economy in Washington state?

We'll find out on Thursday, Sept. 25 when Gov. Chris Gregoire and former Sen. Dino Rossi come face-to-face for a debate at the 19th Annual AWB Policy Summit at Semiahmoo. Both Gregoire and Rossi have confirmed their appearance at the event for a one-hour exchange of ideas before AWB members, the press and TVW. Seattle Times' Chief Political Reporter David Postman has agreed to moderate the exchange. Candidates will respond to questions collected from AWB members at the event and from AWB's regional meetings scheduled to take place around the state next month. (You can read more about those member-only events here.)

In addition to the governor's race, AWB will also feature debates earlier that same day between Doug Sutherland and Peter Goldmark (Lands Commissioner); Rob McKenna and John Ladenburg (Attorney General); and Terry Bergeson and Randy Dorn (OSPI).

AWB members are encouraged to make reservations now for what should be an excellent primer on the 2008 statewide election races. You can also check out more information on the statewide and legislative races (including a list of AWB-endorsed legislative candidates) on AWB's new elections Web site.

Good Reads on "Card Check"

A couple notable items are up today on the national labor unions' top legislative priority, congressional approval of the wildly misnamed "Employee Free Choice Act" (EFCA), the proposal that would eliminate the decades-long democratic principle of secret ballots in union elections.

First, the Wall Street Journal describes the Wal-Mart company's aggressive and proactive mix of business and politics in meetings with management employees on the issue as well as efforts by the US Chamber and other groups to win hearts and minds on the issue this fall.

Second, in a different vein, Portland attorney Stacey Mark, who chairs Ater Wynne's labor & employment group, posts a discussion of the issue on the firm's Northwest Business Litigation blog.  Mark's piece is interesting for its thoughts on how card check plays out in practice, noting Oregon has had some experience with the system in public employment for about a year:

In some organizing efforts under the Oregon law, it was reported that employees who did not want to be represented by the union felt coerced into signing cards. Employees described verbal confrontations with the union during visits to employees’ homes and workplaces. Employees who petitioned for an election have also reported hostile and retaliatory treatment from union representatives and pro-union co-workers, who were aware of the petitioners’ identities because the process was not secret.

Mark's blog post concludes with a section headed "the EFCA is Likely to Become Law."  Of course for this prediction to come true, the unions need certain political outcomes this fall, and not just in the presidential race but in the US Senate as well.   And that gets back very nicely to the central themes of the WSJ article. 

Seattle PI Announces Supreme Court Endorsements

As one would expect, the Seattle PI today endorses the three incumbents (Charles Johnson, Mary Fairhurst, Debra Stephens) up for re-election (or in Stephens' case, election) to the Washington Supreme Court this fall.  As a point of personal privilege (and as an alumnus of his chambers), I would note the editorial's vastly more interesting comments thread which starts off with a reader's suggestion that "[w]e are in bad need of Richard Sanders clones" on the high court.

AWB has previously announced its endorsement of Justice Charles Johnson for re-election, but did not take a position in either of the other races, partly for reasons that will become apparent when the next edition of our Judicial Scorecard comes out in the next Washington Business magazine.

I-1029 Goes to Court

As anticipated, the legal dispute over I-1029 is now in the hands of the Supreme Court, if it agrees to hear the matter.  The News Tribune's Joe Turner and the Spokesman's Rich Roessler blog it, and Jonathan Bechtle at the Evergreen Freedom Foundation has a copy of the Community Care Coalition's petition and accompanying motion for discretionary review as well as a short summary of the argument.