A bunch of "formers" are pushing this year's version of the regional governance bill. Former U.S. Sen. Slade Gorton, former wireless executive John Stanton and former Washington Transportation Secretary Doug MacDonald testified in favor of the measure last week at the Senate Transportation Committee.

It's Senate Bill 6064.

Generally, Pierce County officials oppose setting up such an organization because it would be another group that is heavily weighted in favor of, and dominated by, Seattle and King County.

Can you say, Sound Transit?

Here's a 1-page summary of the bill.

Summary of
Regional Transportation Accountability Act (RTAA)
February 9, 2009 Draft

In 2006 the Legislature formed a Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) to address growing transportation needs in the Puget Sound region. As directed, the RTC developed a proposal to consolidate regional transportation planning and financing into a single directly-elected governing entity.

The Regional Transportation Accountability Act of 2009 (RTAA) is an outgrowth of recommendations contained in the RTC Report.

The bill establishes a Transportation Accountability Region, consisting of central Puget Sound counties (i.e., King, Kitsap, Pierce and Snohomish) that vote – either by county legislative action or by initiative -- to be included.

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State Sen. Fred Jarrett's e-mail to constituents says the prep work on the budget is done. Now they get down to "final choices for our three budgets, operating, capital and transportation."

Jarrett is working on the higher education budget, which means they're supposed to lay out a plan to cut about 50 to 60 percent deeper than Gov. Chris Gregoire did in her budget proposal. That means 13 percent cuts are turning into 20 percent cuts.

But once again, no specifics. But that suggests maybe 7 percent tuition hikes at the 4-year schools won't be enough.

"Like other budget work groups, we are given targets for cuts and we are working with the state's colleges and universities to understand the impacts of various options," the Mercer Island Democrat writes. "In my time in the legislature, this is the first time I've seen work groups formed from the policy committees to craft a budget or bi-partisan working groups."

Here's the rest of Jarrett's missive.

February 28th, 2009

Dear Joe,

Yesterday was the first cutoff of the 61st Legislature.

Since the Legislature began meeting on January 12th there have been 1,145 bills introduced in the Senate, as of yesterday only 376 bills are active. That means that 769 bills, two thirds, are technically "dead." "Dead" is the legislative slang for bills no longer eligible to be considered by the legislature. I add "technically" because bills have a way of resurrecting themselves in the budget or, in rare cases, be resuscitated late in session and considered again.

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Actually, one of the taxes, the extra 0.5 percent sales tax for stuff served in restaurants in King County would be allowed to expire in 2015. But the rest of those taxes -- hotel-motel, car rental -- would continue forever. And there's a lotta years between now and then for lawmakers to change their minds about that restaurant sales tax.

Those are the taxes used to pay for the Qwest and Safeco fields. And the loans will be paid off faster than originally thought.

House Bill 2252, which is up for a vote Monday in the House Finance Committee, sets up a really elaborate funding scheme for the rest of the taxes. The money goes into a fund for King County and must be spent on regional centers, art and heritage programs, low income housing, community development and human services.

I don't think Key Arena and the new home for the NBA Sonics-replacement team are considered "regional centers." I'm pretty sure there is a separate bill that may (or may not) address what Seattle wants for Key Arena.

And I think "community development" might include some money for the International District, which Rep. Sharon Tomiko Santos, D-Seattle, says has been adversely affected by the tens of thousands of people who go to baseball and football games but apparently don't spend enough money eating at the restaurants in the neighborhood.

Before the Legislature ran into an $8 billion budget shortfall, I thought the use of these taxes was going to be the overriding issue of the session.

This, by the way, is how Speaker Frank Chopp finds money for low-income housing.

Here is the bill report for HB 2252.

When you get to the part where the taxes are divvied up, know this: Rep. Ross Hunter, the Finance Committee chairman, has all of that info in his head. Scary thought, ain't it?

The Legislature has steadfastly kept control of tutition rates for undergraduate students who are Washington residents. It's $6,800 for the 2008-09 year. But for the past several years lawmakers let the University of Washington and the other Washington public colleges decide how much to charge out-of-state undergraduates and all post-graduate students -- law school, med school, dentistry, etc.

It's a lot more expensive. For instance, for undergraduates who come here from out of state, tution is $23,000 this year, more than triple what in-state students pay.

House Bill 1235 would let them keep setting tuition rates through the 2015-16 school year.

Here's a document that shows how much the UW charges now for out-of-state undergraduate and graduate school students.

The bill was passed by the House Ways and Means Committee last Friday and now awaits a vote by the full House. The Senate version is SB 5734.

House Bill 2239, which is scheduled for a vote by the House Ways and Means Committee on Monday, would take $10 million from the proceeds of lottery games and use it for student loans.

State Rep. Deb Wallace, D-Vancouver, chairwoman of the House Higher Education Committee, is the prime sponsor. The bill report says there is no state-backed student loan program for college. Her bill would set up HELP, Higher Education Loan Program. The state would subsidize the loans by accepting 2 percent lower interest than the going rate.

Here is a link to the bill report.

For years, I've been listening to governors and legislators and politicians at all levels of government talk about "family wage job." And I've never found out exactly how much those family wage jobs paid.

Thanks to state Rep. Mark Miloscia, D-Federal Way, I may have found out. Or something close to it. Miloscia has introduced House Bill 1716, which would require "living wages" be paid after Jan. 1, 2010 to anyone being paid under a contract let by the state Community, Trade and Economic Development Department. (I don't know why it is so narrowly written yet. I'll ask him Monday.)

If the employee gets health coverage, those wages would be $9.70 an hour. Without health coverage, the pay would be $11.55 an hour.

Just for the record, the minimum wage is $8.55 an hour.

Miloscia already has gotten 2 "Schrammies" this session (for his bill to tax porn and to collect DNA from felony suspects upon arrest). I don't think he'll get a 3rd one for this bill.

Here is the bill report.

UPDATE: Miloscia saw the post and e-mailed this explanation.

Joe,

Living wage is computed many ways, Diana Pierce of UW has come up a self sufficiency standard depending on family size and county. The bottom line is that is between about $12 and 21/hr depending on where you live. I could get you the data if you desire.

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I'm sharing these e-mails because they come from people who have been at the seat of government much longer than my 20 years. It is in response to my earlier "diatribe" (as one lobbyist put it) about legislative leaders not divulging what they're up to.

I'm also providing links to the blog postings of two other statehouse reporters who were way ahead of me in trying to find out what Olympia leaders are up to. Please read what Rich Roesler of The (Spokane) Spokesman Review and NPR's Austin Jenkins, who freelances for CrossCut, have to say.

I was told by a spokesman for leadership that they are just being careful about how they deal with an $8 billion deficit -- "measure twice, cut once."

To which I say, measuring and cutting can be done out in the open.

Below are observations from a couple longtime players in state government. They are not Republicans or business lobbyists, but still can't be publicly critical of the Democrats with whom they are mostly allied. Their frustration with Democratic leadership is greater than ours, it seems. And they say it more articulately than I can.

How can advocates credibly explain to the public the consequences of budget cuts when we have no specifics and can only shadow box with hidden lists of potential reductions?

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