Report #5 4/30/97

The 1997 legislative session ended on time Sunday, April 27th when a budget deal was reached between the Republican controlled legislature and Democratic Governor Gary Locke. Expectations for working families going into this session were low and not surprisingly our gains were few. More importantly perhaps is the flood of bad legislation that was either defeated or improved.

Big business didn’t hesitate to take advantage of the Republican majority and many lawmakers were tripping over themselves trying to please the fat cats with tax breaks and government bashing legislation. Governor Locke leveled the playing field right from the beginning when he didn’t hesitate to veto any bill which went too far. It is interesting to note that a schism developed within the caucus when some legislators bucked leadership and voted with the other party. More often than not it was Republican legislators who were at odds with each other. Several pieces of legislation fell victim to the infighting.

On Thursday evening, April 17th Governor Locke signed a historic piece of legislation that ended the welfare system as we know it. As reported earlier, this was our Union’s primary issue this session and your lobbyist is pleased to report that the anti-displacement and worker protections we sought are included in the new law.

A quick recap and a long thank-you

Last year congress passed the Welfare Reform Act. Among several sweeping changes was the requirement that recipients must now work for their benefits. The new Federal law stripped away all protections for current employees and welfare recipients. Several states saw public employees thrown out of work and non-paid welfare workers put in their place. The threat here in Washington was real and coming quickly.

Thanks to our International Union, we were prepared. AFSCME brought us up to speed on the problem and by the time the session started we were way out in front. AFSCME was the only Union that understood the importance of the issue and we were the only Union able to fix it.

It is important to note that it took bi-partisan support to get our language into the bill. Among the key legislators who helped are:

• Governor Gary Locke
• Representative Suzette Cooke (R) Kent
• Representative Jeff Gombosky (D) Spokane
• Representative Dave Mastin (R) Walla Walla
• Senator Alex Deccio (R) Yakima
• Senator Lorraine Wojahn (D) Tacoma

If your legislator is on the above list please call the Hotline at 1-800-562-6000 and tell them you’re from their district and a member of our Union and that you appreciate their help in protecting workers in the Welfare Reform bill.

The 1997-98 budget provides for the following increases for classified school employees:

Salary Effective 9/1/97 - 3% increase across the board

Health Insurance Benefits
Effective 9/1/97 - $2.83 per month increase for a total of $317.34
Effective 9/1/98 - $18.41 per month increase for a total of $335.75

HB 1721 This radical contracting out bill put every single local government job at risk. It was first gutted of its worst provisions and then died in the Senate.

HB 1505 Provided extra protections for personnel records of law enforcement and court employees. Unfortunately, a large fiscal note was unexpectedly attached to it at a critical juncture and the bill died.

SB 5499 This bill simply clarified that someone who assaults a bus driver is guilty of a felony. The bill died due to political infighting among leadership.

We may be battling tax cut initiatives that would cripple local governments this fall. With the healthy economy creating reserves at the state level, big business interests are out to grab more than their fair share. More later.

A special thanks to those who have taken the time to participate in the Council’s legislative efforts. Making the phone calls, writing the letters and meeting with your Representatives and Senators makes a world of difference. If you have any suggestions, comments or questions please don’t hesitate to contact Pat Thompson, Director of Legislation/Political action at 1-800-775-6418. Again, thank you!

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