Jolt
Afternoon Jolt: The Will of the Voters
Today's winner: City Council President Richard Conlin.
In a brilliant bit of political theater today, city council president (and tunnel supporter) Richard Conlin told the PI.com he might support putting the surface/transit option on a citywide ballot if a judge rules that a portion of legislation adopting the tunnel agreements should go on the August ballot.
"I can't say I'll support that," Conlin told Jolt this afternoon. However, he added, "If something is going on the ballot that we think is potentially not a very fair measure, we might consider putting an alternative [competing] measure on the ballot." The council can put a competing measure on the ballot, but can't take a referendum off the ballot on its own. The deadline for putting measures on the ballot is Tuesday.
(The potential anti-tunnel ballot measure would ask voters whether to repeal one section of the three technical agreements that says the city will hold a public meeting to issue a notice to proceed on the tunnel after the state releases its final environmental impact statement on the project.)
The political point here: Even if voters did overturn a portion of the tunnel agreement---a move tunnel opponents would interpret as a wholesale rejection of the tunnel itself---they're likely, if the council were to put it on the ballot, to reject the tunnel opponents' preferred option, surface/transit, which polls have shown is unpopular with voters.
We have to wonder if Mayor Mike "Let the People Decide" McGinn would support a vote on his preferred surface-transit option.
His spokesman, Aaron Pickus told us: "We haven't seen a proposal to do that." Of course, McGinn supported the idea of public vote on tunnel before there was any a specific ballot proposal.[pullquote]The bill, which lets cigar bars pay a $15,000 fee for licenses to allow cigar smoking indoors, also goes against another GOP principle: Standing by the will of the voters.[/pullquote]
Today's Second winner: Women
The state senate signed off today, 30-17, on Sen. Sen. Karen Keiser's (D-33, Kent) legislation raising the eligibility for family planning services the state provides through Medicaid from 200 to 250 percent of the federal poverty level.
Proponents of the legislation argue that by paying for contraception for poor women now, the state will save $4.5 million from not having to cover the cost of pregnancies late.
Today's Losers: Voters
The state senate, voting largely along party lines today, passed a fee bill this afternoon. But it was the Republicans—generally opposed to fees because they see them as taxes in disguise—who were in favor.
The bill, which lets cigar bars and tobacco shops pay a $15,000 fee for licenses to allow cigar smoking indoors , also goes against another GOP principle: Standing by the will of the voters. You'll remember the Republicans made a big deal last year when Democrats overturned Tim Eyman's rule requiring a two-thirds vote of the legislature to raise taxes. (The GOP then supported I-1053 to reinstate the voter-approved rule.)
The cigar bill overrides I-901, 2005′s voter-approved smoking ban, by licensing up to 600 cigar bars and tobacco shops.
In a brilliant bit of political theater today, city council president (and tunnel supporter) Richard Conlin told the PI.com he might support putting the surface/transit option on a citywide ballot if a judge rules that a portion of legislation adopting the tunnel agreements should go on the August ballot.
"I can't say I'll support that," Conlin told Jolt this afternoon. However, he added, "If something is going on the ballot that we think is potentially not a very fair measure, we might consider putting an alternative [competing] measure on the ballot." The council can put a competing measure on the ballot, but can't take a referendum off the ballot on its own. The deadline for putting measures on the ballot is Tuesday.
(The potential anti-tunnel ballot measure would ask voters whether to repeal one section of the three technical agreements that says the city will hold a public meeting to issue a notice to proceed on the tunnel after the state releases its final environmental impact statement on the project.)
The political point here: Even if voters did overturn a portion of the tunnel agreement---a move tunnel opponents would interpret as a wholesale rejection of the tunnel itself---they're likely, if the council were to put it on the ballot, to reject the tunnel opponents' preferred option, surface/transit, which polls have shown is unpopular with voters.
We have to wonder if Mayor Mike "Let the People Decide" McGinn would support a vote on his preferred surface-transit option.
His spokesman, Aaron Pickus told us: "We haven't seen a proposal to do that." Of course, McGinn supported the idea of public vote on tunnel before there was any a specific ballot proposal.[pullquote]The bill, which lets cigar bars pay a $15,000 fee for licenses to allow cigar smoking indoors, also goes against another GOP principle: Standing by the will of the voters.[/pullquote]
Today's Second winner: Women
The state senate signed off today, 30-17, on Sen. Sen. Karen Keiser's (D-33, Kent) legislation raising the eligibility for family planning services the state provides through Medicaid from 200 to 250 percent of the federal poverty level.
Proponents of the legislation argue that by paying for contraception for poor women now, the state will save $4.5 million from not having to cover the cost of pregnancies late.
Today's Losers: Voters
The state senate, voting largely along party lines today, passed a fee bill this afternoon. But it was the Republicans—generally opposed to fees because they see them as taxes in disguise—who were in favor.
The bill, which lets cigar bars and tobacco shops pay a $15,000 fee for licenses to allow cigar smoking indoors , also goes against another GOP principle: Standing by the will of the voters. You'll remember the Republicans made a big deal last year when Democrats overturned Tim Eyman's rule requiring a two-thirds vote of the legislature to raise taxes. (The GOP then supported I-1053 to reinstate the voter-approved rule.)
The cigar bill overrides I-901, 2005′s voter-approved smoking ban, by licensing up to 600 cigar bars and tobacco shops.
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