Morning Fizz
A Solid Showing of Republicans
1. In our Olympia roundup
on Friday, we forgot to mention our favorite new bill of the week.
The Washington State Department of Transportation's guidelines for bike and pedestrian infrastructure have not caught up with the more bike- and ped-friendly design guidelines recommended by the American Association of State Highway & Transportation Officials.
Freshman Seattle legislator Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon (D-34, W. Seattle, Burien, Vashon), who's already off to good start on his campaign-promise to do list (sponsoring the vulnerable users bill, co-sponsoring the "limited service pregnancy center" bill), introduced a bill on Friday to let cities and counties go with the smarter AASHTO guidelines instead of the limited WSDOT guidelines if they choose to.
The bill has 13 co-sponsors, teaming up some of the most progressive members of the Democratic caucus with a solid showing of Republicans, including the GOP's ranking member of the transportation committee, Rep. Mike Armstrong ( R-12, Wenatchee).
2. Another campaign promise we heard last fall, not only from Fitzgibbon, but from Democrats across the board, was to end TransAlta's $4 million annual tax break at its Centralia coal plant. (A bill to kill the giveaway failed last year.)
Watch for green Rep. Marko Liias (D-21, Edmonds) to introduce TransAlta legislation this week.
3. Another bill being introduced this week: State Rep. Reuven Carlyle (D-36, Ballard, Queen Anne, Magnolia) will introduce a bill that temporarily grants colleges and universities tuition-setting authority . After 2014, tuition authority for in-state undergraduates would revert back to the legislature.
Carlyle explains the bill —which also mandates that 50 percent of all tuition increases over a 7 percent base go to financial aid—on his blog.
Check out a couple of competing editorials we published about higher-ed reform this month—and also last week's coverage of the student protest in Oly against tuition increases.
4. Dwight Pelz was easily re-elected chair of the Washington State Democratic Party this weekend, 145-14.
5. Don't miss PubliCola's transportation policy discussion at Liberty Bar on Capitol Hill tomorrow night at 7 pm, where we'll discuss "the War on Cars"—or as Grist's David Roberts reframed it in a PubliCola editorial on Friday, "the War on the CarLESS."
The Washington State Department of Transportation's guidelines for bike and pedestrian infrastructure have not caught up with the more bike- and ped-friendly design guidelines recommended by the American Association of State Highway & Transportation Officials.
Freshman Seattle legislator Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon (D-34, W. Seattle, Burien, Vashon), who's already off to good start on his campaign-promise to do list (sponsoring the vulnerable users bill, co-sponsoring the "limited service pregnancy center" bill), introduced a bill on Friday to let cities and counties go with the smarter AASHTO guidelines instead of the limited WSDOT guidelines if they choose to.
The bill has 13 co-sponsors, teaming up some of the most progressive members of the Democratic caucus with a solid showing of Republicans, including the GOP's ranking member of the transportation committee, Rep. Mike Armstrong ( R-12, Wenatchee).
2. Another campaign promise we heard last fall, not only from Fitzgibbon, but from Democrats across the board, was to end TransAlta's $4 million annual tax break at its Centralia coal plant. (A bill to kill the giveaway failed last year.)
Watch for green Rep. Marko Liias (D-21, Edmonds) to introduce TransAlta legislation this week.
3. Another bill being introduced this week: State Rep. Reuven Carlyle (D-36, Ballard, Queen Anne, Magnolia) will introduce a bill that temporarily grants colleges and universities tuition-setting authority . After 2014, tuition authority for in-state undergraduates would revert back to the legislature.
Carlyle explains the bill —which also mandates that 50 percent of all tuition increases over a 7 percent base go to financial aid—on his blog.
Check out a couple of competing editorials we published about higher-ed reform this month—and also last week's coverage of the student protest in Oly against tuition increases.
4. Dwight Pelz was easily re-elected chair of the Washington State Democratic Party this weekend, 145-14.
5. Don't miss PubliCola's transportation policy discussion at Liberty Bar on Capitol Hill tomorrow night at 7 pm, where we'll discuss "the War on Cars"—or as Grist's David Roberts reframed it in a PubliCola editorial on Friday, "the War on the CarLESS."
