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OLYMPIA–Rep. Mary Dye, R-Pomeroy, and ranking Republican on the House Environment and Energy Committee, issued the following statement in response to a news conference held by Gov. Jay Inslee today where he blamed the oil industry for sky-high fuel prices in Washington state. “Washington state has the highest gas prices in the nation because of the governor’s cap-and-trade program that took effect in January. Governor Inslee’s new climate mandate, which is the most expensive of its kind in the...
By Eric E. McKeirnan Guest Columnist I write this on behalf of the Knights of Columbus, the 1460 here in Pomeroy, and our Round Table brothers in Dayton and around Columbia County. We had a sausage, pancake, scrambled egg, muffin, applesauce, and fresh fruit benefit breakfast to support our local swim team as we have done for many years. Reading the EW, it seems that our dear neighbors in Dayton are struggling with a community swimming pool. In Pomeroy, we are lucky. That hole in the ground is filled with the heartwarming chirps and screams and...
By Charlotte Baker As I was breezing through Facebook recently, I read a message by one of my friends (unnamed for privacy reasons) questioning the pool district. I wanted to bring this to people who do not have internet, Facebook, or do not use Facebook, because it is an important consideration. (My opinion follows). The message reads like this (unedited): So I ask for imput on the information about the pool that Columbia County will be voting on and how it differs from what a different committee had been trying to do to get a pool opened...
To the editor, Dayton Library system and Columbia County citizens, I am a native of Dayton, Wash.; the Class of 1975; Columbia County property owner since 2000; raised on the family farm in Columbia County; and a retired first grade teacher of 34 years who specialized in Language Arts and Child Development. I love Dayton, my hometown, the education I received and the farm I grew up on. You could say I am a farm girl through and through. My Sixth Grade Teacher, Mrs. Juanita Harting inspired me to...
To the editor, Shame on You. For those in our community who have spread lies and misinformation about our library director should be ashamed of themselves. If there was even a thread of evidence to your lies, you had every right to report them to law enforcement. I believe your vitriol is more of a threat to your children, grandchildren, and our beloved community. And to those who have signed the petition to close our cherished library, ask yourself how this will help the children of Columbia...
To the editor, As I have mentioned before, don't let "their" opinion be yours. Take time to visit the library, talk to Todd, the director, and see how much the library has to offer. In a recent conversation with a friend, they mentioned the library having pornography, but in the same conversation, admitted to not having been to the library or talked to Todd. In my opinion, moving a book is not about keeping our children safe, but more about control. Keeping our children safe is a whole lot more...
The Letter to the Editor space on the opinion page provides a forum for local residents to express their opinions and concerns about matters of public interest as part of the "community conversation." Letters may be mailed to Letter to the Editor, 163 E. Main Street, Dayton, WA 99328. Pomeroy and Garfield County residents may email the editor at [email protected]. Dayton and Columbia County readers may email letters to [email protected]. Please include a telephone number and...
By Sen. Mark Schoesler, R-Ritzville, Rep. Joe Schmick, R-Colfax, and Rep. Mary Dye, R-Pomeroy This session saw some bipartisan successes as lawmakers and citizens were in Olympia together for the first time in nearly three years. That in-person interaction is always key for working relationships and good workable solutions to our state's problems. The transportation budget and capital budget were both very bipartisan. Republicans were allowed to give input and Democrat budget writers worked to...
When our state's budget surplus reached approximately $15 billion last year, many of us felt it was time to give some of that back to taxpayers in the form of meaningful property tax relief. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. Instead, Democrat budget writers continued a decade-long trend of spending just about every dime given to them. They even changed some rules to take money that should have gone into the state's rainy-day fund, just so they could spend it on new programs and entitlements. Wh...
As you read this, House Bill 1498, approved unanimously by both the House and Senate, is on its way to the governor. This is the bill I authored that would ensure our local fire departments are reimbursed by the state when they deploy aircraft for an initial attack on a fire. It seems like common sense to get on top of a brush, grass, or timber fire when it's small, before it blows up into a catastrophic wildfire. Small fire departments, such as in Asotin County where Noel Hardin is the fire...
OLYMPIA–With the April 23 conclusion of this year's legislative session just days away, it sadly appears the Legislature will not pass a bill to implement the exemption for farm fuel and certain other types of fuel from the costly fee created by the state's 'cap-and-trade' program that went into effect this January. Ever since the Climate Commitment Act was passed by the Democrat-controlled Legislature two years ago, I predicted fuel prices would rise sharply in Washington once the c...
House and Senate budget writers released their 2023-25 state operating budget proposals recently. It was a reminder that taxpayers have been very kind to the state's coffers as revenue forecasts over the past few years have continued to increase. As a result of taxpayer largess and the majority party's proclivity to spend every dime available, state spending has more than doubled over the past 10 years. Has our population doubled? No. According to the Washington State Office of Financial...
The Washington State Supreme Court bucked the Constitutional standard and interpretation by ruling overwhelmingly to uphold the politically motivated Capital Gains Tax, a synonym for the new Washington State income tax, that will negatively impact businesses and working-class citizens. Interestingly, the Washington State Supreme Court has created a new precedent by changing a widely understood and accepted definition of capital gains as an income tax by the IRS and 49 other states across the nation. Isn’t it enough that Gov. Jay Inslee, by h...
OLYMPIA–In my 30 years as a state legislator, there have been times when I have correctly predicted that something Olympia did would turn out badly for Washingtonians. The "cap-and-tax" program recently created by the Democrat majorities in the Legislature certainly looks like it should be added to this dubious list. Earlier this month, the state Department of Ecology announced the results from the state's first carbon-allowance auction, which was created by the Climate Commitment Act passed b...
It is Sunshine Week–a national observance of transparency in government. It is fitting, then, that I got the first installment of public records requested from the Governor’s office regarding the buffer bills of the last two years late last week. In reviewing the documents sent my way–primarily calendar items and correspondence from folks interested in removal of the Lower Snake River Dams, support and opposition for HB 1838, and various other salmon-related interests–something struck a chord. In all the records, nearly 3,000 of them, what wa...
OLYMPIA–As Washington state seeks to find a financial solution to fund road construction projects, address backlogs in transportation maintenance and preservation needs, and fix crumbling infrastructure like bridges, one idea that has gained traction (pun intended) is the vehicle miles traveled (VMT) tax. The VMT is a fee charged to drivers based on the number of vehicle miles traveled, regardless of fuel efficiency. Typically, a user-based approach is a more fair and equitable way of levying f...
By Eric E. McKeirnan Guest Columnist Since this administration has yet to have one good idea, let us kick around forgiving student debt for a while, because the odds are, in this deluded person’s favor, that someday he will get something right, if only by accident. The students who are begging for forgiveness of the loan that they knowingly took out fall into two major categories: first, Doctors, lawyers and some other fields that will have an annual income potential equaling a small truckload of cash; second, the under achievers who only went...
Masking requirements for Washington’s health care, long-term care and correctional facilities will end April 3, says the Washington state Department of Health. The ability for those facilities to continue mask precautions and the ability for individuals to keep wearing masks remains, of course, as should be the case. But a state policy requiring what these facilities do about mask-wearing is ending. Meanwhile, Jaime Smith, executive director of communications for the governor, tells me, “There is no current discussion about changes to employee...
Too many Puget Sound lawmakers never look beyond their grocery stores to understand the struggle of our farmers to keep those stores supplied. It's why Sen. Mark Schoesler, Rep. Joe Schmick, and I work so hard in Olympia to advocate for our fellow farmers, educate those in power who have no clue about agriculture, and why we fight against policies potentially devastating to agriculture. We understand the importance of our state's agricultural industry, the jobs they provide in Washington, and...
By Eric E. McKeirnan Guest Columnist I like to think that at least for the time being, we have the legal right to politically satirize the things we read in the papers and see on television. Satire is a form of entertainment. If it hurts your feelings, do not read it. Call it Global Warming. Are you one of those people that likes to plan or shop ahead? You see the ideal thing months in advance of an occasion, so you buy it knowing it will be the perfect fit. November 20 is slow Joe’s birthday and preparation is 80% of the event. No, I did n...
By Congressman Dan Newhouse WASHINGTON D.C.–After the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) took major heat last month from considering a nationwide ban on gas stoves, the Biden Administration quickly reversed course, saying they would not support such a ban. However, this doesn’t mean the future of gas-powered appliances is completely safe—that the CPSC would make such a shocking push in the first place should not be taken lightly. While it’s unlikely you’ll find government agents knocking on your door asking for you to hand over...
We all have heard the phrase, "The good, the bad and the ugly." It also applies to the many bills before the Legislature each year. Nearly 1,600 bills (754 from the Senate, 843 from the House) had been introduced, as of Feb. 21, and we're not even halfway through the 105-day session yet. Many of these proposals are good, a fair number are bad and some are just plain ugly. Let me offer examples of each. A "good" measure would be Senate Bill (SB) 5034, introduced by 4th District Sen. Mike Padden...
Ever since gray wolves returned to Washington state, they have been a lightning rod for ranchers, environmentalists, and the Governor. No matter what your thoughts are on the apex predators, they are a fully entrenched species in our state now. The gray wolf population is increasing year over year. In 2021, the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife (DFW) reported more than 200 wolves in 33 packs throughout the state, with the majority of those packs located in Northeast Washington....
OLYMPIA–Growing up on the farm, I heard grandma's sage advice in just about every situation imaginable. "A trouble shared is a trouble halved." "This isn't my first rodeo." "Many hands make light work." When hearing about Kaiser Permanente's change in how its customers could get their prescriptions refilled, what came to mind was this: "It doesn't cut the mustard." Last summer, the Public Employees Benefits Board (PEBB) and the School Employees Benefits Board (SEBB) voted to allow Kaiser P...
OLYMPIA–There are some hard-core Western Washington groups that want you to believe that if we breach Snake River dams, it will boost our state's salmon population and we can save the Southern Resident Orcas from extinction. It's the old strategy of if you repeat something long enough, people will finally believe you. Even though dam removal would be devastating to our state's power grid, agriculture, and vital river navigation of wheat and other products. Here's what they won't tell you. P...