Thumbs up, Thumbs down
Amazon grows, supports school
Amazon, the world’s largest on-line retailer often makes headlines globally for its entrepreneurial and innovative approach to digital commerce. The company made headlines again this week and although it’s unlikely the move that sparked the headline in the Tri-City Herald, Wednesday, will make the global scene it made a world of difference for youngsters at Vista Elementary School in Kennewick.
Tuesday the company marked the 10-year anniversary of the opening of its Kennewick support center by hosting a community event and donating $5,000 in supplies to Vista Elementary. The generosity is appreciated, especially at a time when schools are struggling to meet the financial demands of educating our children.
Amazon also plays an important role in our community’s efforts to diversify our economy. In 10 years local Amazon jobs have grown from 50 to more than 500. Equally important as the job growth is the credibility this high-profile company lends to effort to recruit new industry.
Abuse of the initiative process
Either Tim Eyman is really concerned the Washington State Supreme Court is going to rule I-1366 unconstitutional or he’s running out of ideas for new voter initiatives. We tend to think it’s the former as we’ve seen no evidence there’s a limit to Eyman’s entrepreneurial utilization of the initiative process.
Washington voters, and this newspaper, have been pretty consistent in their support of a two-thirds majority vote requirement for raising taxes. The legislature has been equally consistent in ignoring those wishes. So it’s no surprise voters approved I-1366 which instructs voters to put a constitutional amendment requiring the super-majority vote for tax increases on the ballot. Unfortunately the initiative essentially attempts to use extortion to force that legislative move, by April 15, or the sales tax would be reduced by one percent.
Opponents are challenging the initiative in court. We believe they will be successful. Apparently so does Eyman, who this week announced he would be filing a new anti-tax initiative with the secretary of state’s office. He’s named the measure “Tougher to Raise Taxes.” It would put a one-year limit on tax increases unless tax increases are approved by a two-thirds vote of the legislature or a majority vote of the people. The legislature appears unable to complete its work in the prescribed time as things stand now. “Tougher to Raise Taxes” could put us on a path to where some day the extra sessions would conclude just in time for the new session to begin.
The Public Disclosure Commission recently asked Attorney General Bob Ferguson to investigate allegations that Eyman has been secretly receiving payments from a firm that he has repeatedly hired to gather signatures to put his initiatives on the sate ballot. A visit to the secretary of state’s website reveals that between March 11 and Nov. 9 of this year 75 proposed initiatives to the legislature were filed. More than half of those by one man, Tim Eyman. That’s a lot of signatures that would need to be gathered. Few initiatives qualify for the ballot and that’s why voters didn’t get a chance to pass I-746, “Let The Voters Decide on Red-Light Ticketing Cameras” or I-747, “Protect Us From Tolls” or I-753, “Don’t Tax Our Checkout Bags”.
This story was originally published November 19, 2015 at 6:56 AM with the headline "Thumbs up, Thumbs down."