A LOOK AT RECENT RIGHT WING INITIATIVES ON THE BALLOT
Initiative 900
2005
2005Performance Audit Overload
Ballot Summary: Initiative Measure No. 900 concerns performance audits of governmental entities. This measure would direct the State Auditor to conduct performance audits of state and local governments, and dedicate 0.16% of the state’s portion of sales and use tax collections to fund these audits. Should this measure be enacted into law?
Perspective:
At the Ballot Box: Succeeded
YES: 994,757 56.43%
NO:767,844 43.56%
767,844 43.56%Court & Legislative Action: No legal challenges have been filed to invalidate I-900 yet.
Effects of I-900
Though I-900 did not cut taxes, it did give the state auditor (as of 2007, Brian Sonntag) greatly expanded powers and directed 0.16 of sales and use tax revenues to be deposited in an account to be used by the auditor's office for funding performance audits.
The Department of Revenue has estimated the state fiscal impacts to be $5.5 milliion in fiscal year 2006 (partial collections due to the initiative taking effect in December of 2005), $11.5 million in FY 2007, $12.1 million in 2008 and $12.8 million in 2009. The Association of Washington Cities reports that "direct costs to local governments have not been estimated and would include staff time to comply with audits (pulling documents, discussions relating to internal processes, correcting reported findings, etc)."
The state auditor's office originally estimated to Permanent Defense in November of 2004 that it would need to grow "at least four times its current size over the course of the next 10 to 12 years" to comply with the requirements of what would become Initiative 900. After closer review, the office determined I-900 did not require the auditor to audit every state and local government and agency every year.
Auditor Brian Sonntag's office is instead relying on its traditional risk based approach, choosing to audit agencies or public entities where performance audits can produce the greatest benefit for the government and its constituents. The auditor is currently focusing on auditing on the performance of state agencies and has advised municipal governments that they will be not be subject to performance audits in the near future.
I-900 may need to be curtailed by a future Legislature if the powers it granted to the state auditor are abused (for example, if political mischief becomes a problem under an unscrupulous elected official).
Links: Learn more about I-900 by visiting the following links.
Initiative 9122005
2005Ballot Summary: This measure would repeal motor vehicle fuel tax increases of 3 cents in 2005 and 2006, 2 cents in 2007, and 1.5 cents per gallon in 2008, enacted in 2005 for transportation purposes. Should this measure be enacted into law?
Perspective: Had I-912 passed, it would have gut funding for 274 public safety and congestion relief projects, crippling DOT from effectively serving the taxpayers of Washington State. Permanent Defense, through its Washington Defense PAC subsidiary, successfully argued that we need to invest in a solid transportation infrastructure because our future, health, and safety depend on it.
At the Ballot Box: Failed
YES:823,36645.37%
823,36645.37%NO: 991,19654.62%
991,19654.62%Court & Legislative Action: No court action was required because the initiative failed.
Effects: There were no effects because the initiative didn't pass.
Initiative 9202006
2006Ballot Summary: Initiative Measure No. 920 concerns [the] estate tax. This measure would repeal Washington’s state laws imposing tax, currently dedicated for the education legacy trust fund, on transfers of estates of persons dying on or after the effective date of this measure. Should this measure be enacted into law?
Perspective: I-920, if it had passed, would have repealed the state's estate tax, giving an exclusive tax break to a small club of Washington's wealthiest 250 multimillionaires, hurting students and families across our state. Permanent Defense successfully fought I-920 through its Washington Defense subsidiary.
At the Ballot Box: Failed
YES:778,04738.21%
778,04738.21%NO: 1,258,110 61.78%
1,258,110 61.78%Court & Legislative Action: No court action was required because the initiative failed.
Effects: There were no effects because the initiative didn't pass.
© 2007 Permanent Defense
Paid for by Permanent Defense PAC
A Northwest Progressive Institute organization
Post Office Box 264, Redmond, WA 98073-0264
A HISTORY OF DECEPTION AND ITS CONSEQUENCES
Years ago, Tim Eyman seized on a feeling of apathy towards taxation in the state and convinced a majority of Washingtonians to vote for I-695. Tim turned his success into a highly profitable business and has continued to file initiatives every year. This section illustrates how the results of right-wing tax cutting initiatives deeply affect every level of government and harm communities across Washington State.
Initiative 9332006
2006Ballot Summary: Initiative Measure No. 933 concerns government regulation of private property. This measure would require compensation when government regulation damages the use or value of private property, would forbid regulations that prohibit existing legal uses of private property, and would provide exceptions or payments. Should this measure be enacted into law?
Perspective: I-933, the Washington version of Howie Rich's "pay or waive" scheme and a clone of Oregon's Measure 37, would have been a disaster had it passed - the end of growth management and careful urban or rural land use planning. Fortunately, it failed and was not able to cripple laws that protect critical ares such as lakes, wetlands, and streams. Permanent Defense was part of the coalition that defeated Initiative 933.
At the Ballot Box: Failed
YES:839,99241.18%
839,99241.18%NO: 1,199,679 58.81%
1,199,679 58.81%Court & Legislative Action: No court action was required because the initiative failed.
Effects: There were no effects because the initiative didn't pass.
