Author Archives: Laudan

Return to $30 car tabs creates path forward for Fortunato transportation-funding plan

State Sen. Phil Fortunato, R-Auburn, says voter approval of Initiative 976 has cleared a path for his legislation to meet the state’s transportation-infrastructure needs without new taxes. I-976, which has so far received a 56-percent “yes” vote in the general election that concluded yesterday, will return annual licensing fees to $30 for most vehicles; it also corrects the flawed Sound Transit car evaluation schedule that has landed the regional transit authority in court.

“Since joining the Senate I have been sounding the alarm on the impending transportation funding crisis,” said Fortunato who serves on the Senate Transportation Committee. “That had nothing to do with this initiative, but was driven by an honest look at declining revenues versus the immense need for infrastructure resources. Now that voters have spoken, the state still needs these valuable projects, and my proposal will fund them and more with the money they already send to Olympia.”

Senate Bill 5743 would fundamentally change how the state pays for transportation projects by using the existing sales tax on motor vehicles. The bill received a public hearing during the 2019 legislative session and is the only no-new-tax proposal before the Legislature that can fill the funding gap created by the passage of I-976.

Presentations to the Senate Transportation Committee by state officials indicated that declining gas-tax revenues and inflationary costs already outpace the state’s resources. To date, ideas such as a mileage tax, also known as a Road Usage Charge, are being considered in the Legislature.

“The problem with transportation funding is not usage, but all the solutions are based on that premise,” said Fortunato. “The main cost driver is inflation. The existing sales tax on motor vehicles represents an inflation-linked funding source that non-partisan analysis shows will give the state more money for roads than the other schemes being discussed — and it gives taxpayers a well-deserved break.

“When my bill received a public hearing, the chair of the committee said that my approach was ‘probably right but would never make it out of the Ways and Means Committee’. I think that taxpayers have clearly sent a message that we need to get creative and find solutions that don’t require an endless list of taxes to fix the roads they already pay for. The timing is right to fully fund transportation.”

An economic analysis of Fortunato’s proposal can be found here: Transportation Funding

One Dollar or a Billion

Greetings Friends and Neighbors,

I hope that you’ve had a great summer. Things have been quiet in Olympia, but something groundbreaking just happened. Late last week, the state Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case Black v. Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority.

About a year ago, when it became apparent that the majority party wasn’t interested in providing tax relief from Sound Transit’s deceptive car-tab taxes, I knew we had to get creative. Since I’m personally outside the ST3 area, we needed someone affected by the agency’s unfair calculations to file a lawsuit, and we did just that.

The problem for Sound Transit is that the bill it gave to the Legislature in 2015, giving it the taxing authority, was written unconstitutionally. Sound Transit cited a calculation for the car-tab taxes that had been repealed and deceived taxpayers about how much they’d really have to pay. Not to mention the transit authority used public resources to support its political efforts by giving over 150,000 private email addresses to a campaign.

To date, Sound Transit advocates have successfully blocked any tax relief, arguing that it would be catastrophic because they had to, by law, use the higher car valuations. Now it turns out, they’ve been using a different calculation all along! When that fact came to light, the state attorney general, who had submitted briefs to the high court, backed out of defending Sound Transit.

So, what does all this mean? It confirms what my colleagues and I, and taxpayers, have felt for years. Sound Transit deceived voters and the Legislature to get more tax revenue. What we’ve learned is that this agency will do anything to get more of your money. It broke the law and doesn’t care. The amazing thing is that Sound Transit’s attorneys said as much during the hearing.

Sound Transit argued that if it lost, needed tax revenue for projects would be lost. So, its argument to the court is: Don’t rule in favor of the taxpayers because we will have to give them back their money we lied to them to get. The bottom line, and what Justice Gonzalez pointed out, is: ”It doesn’t matter if it is a dollar or a billion, the constitution is the constitution.” The cost to the agency doesn’t matter if the agency didn’t follow the law. Taxpayers have a right to know what the government is doing.

It is for these same reasons that I’ve been advocating for some serious reforms of this agency. Instead of appointed and unaccountable bureaucrats, Sound Transit’s board should be elected by the people.

I’ll be sure to keep you updated on further developments in the case.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or concerns about your state government. It is an honor to serve as your state Senator.

Sincerely,

Fortunato Signature

Phil Fortunato

Your 31st District State Senator

Tiny Homes

During the 2019 legislative session, addressing our state’s housing affordability crisis was paramount. Unfortunately, the only solutions that were adopted nibbled around the edges of the problem and in some cases made the problem worse with new taxes on housing. The Tacoma News Tribune lauded efforts to expand tiny homes in our region as a way to solve the crisis, but that missed the mark. See below for a letter that I sent them.

The recent editorial on tiny houses addressing affordability in our region misses the mark.

Tiny-home developments are not a small step forward but rather a sidestep; they are about warehousing people without actually addressing the affordability of single-family housing.

The much-touted Quixote Village tiny-home development in Olympia isn’t necessarily a model to replicate. Taxpayers subsidized it to the tune of $3.1 million, an exorbitant cost per person being housed. Losses compound due to administrative overhead costs and lost property tax revenue. There is a better way.

A recent non-partisan study in the Legislature showed that non-profits are 23% more expensive than private sector builders are. We need to incentivize private enterprise to build economical housing geared toward homeownership. I offered a proposal this legislative session to spur construction of affordable starter homes by waiving fees, limiting permit costs and offering a tax credit. The bottom line is we can house families and generate property tax revenue by building affordable homes.

You can’t make housing more affordable by raising taxes on real-estate transactions and construction-related services, which the majority side did. That’s a step backwards on making housing affordable.

Tolls: Transportation’s New Opioid

Opioid addiction is a problem in our state. People are sucked in all the time, needing more and more to get their fix with disastrous outcomes.

Our state is headed down that path, and we need an intervention. After a 21-month study, we now know tolling State Route 167 will bring in more money, but it won’t necessarily relieve congestion. In fact, what those managing our state’s infrastructure are discussing reveals there is no incentive to reduce congestion at all. They’ve had a little taste of what’s possible with tolls and want more. They seem to be slipping into the addiction of easy money and disastrous outcomes for the people funding their addiction. Just look to Seattle, where local politicians want to take more of your money to enable addicts, buy them heroin and build taxpayer-funded shooting galleries.

This scenario is exactly what some want to inflict on us when we’re just trying to get to work or take our kids to school. Once they go down this path, there is no turning back – they’re hooked. The recent editorial by the Tacoma News Tribune regarding tolling State Route 167 is emblematic. To finish a much-needed project, we will tie our hands on any future congestion improvements by bonding toll revenue.

Existing tolls are already $10, but we all know that won’t be enough. Soon they’ll need a bigger fix. There are plans currently being considered that would extend toll lanes to Puyallup and raise tolls as high as $50 per trip to pay for projects further north. You’ll be taxed to drive on the road you already paid for. To make matters worse, some decision-makers want to bond against toll revenues, making sure that we’ll never escape gridlock, or the insatiable hunger for more of your money.

The goal is to use tolls to pay for congestion-relief projects, but at the same time bond that money that will be linked to declining revenue. Those managing bonds have been clear: If we bond against tolls, there is nothing we can do to reduce congestion that might affect revenue because that money is already spoken for. If the plan is successful, there is no incentive to get clean, so to speak.

I have sounded alarms since joining the state Senate that our transportation system needs help. We cannot raise taxes fast enough to keep up with increased fuel efficiency, rising construction costs, and lower gas-tax receipts. The state needs a fix and its only solution is to implement more tolls, and up the dosage.

That is why I introduced legislation that funds transportation using the money you already send to Olympia. Relying on existing sales tax on motor vehicles, it is an inflation-linked and sustainable source of revenue to meet our growing transportation demands. Using the same
methodology to sell the last gas-tax hike, my plan creates thousands of family-wage jobs, bolsters state and local coffers, and reduces our reliance on the gas tax, or new schemes to tax you off the roads.

I urge people to say enough is enough, we have to rein in spendthrift and unaccountable agencies. We need to show some tough love and make sure we break the impending cycle of addiction.

King County jail data ‘breach’ blessing in disguise, says Fortunato

Sen. Phil Fortunato is taking issue with demands from advocates of illegal immigration for a plan to ensure compliance with King County and state “sanctuary” policies that effectively shield violent offenders.

The Auburn Republican, whose district includes part of King County, said he appreciates that the county allowed federal immigration authorities to access detention records – what critics are calling a “data breach” – until a new state law meant to limit immigration enforcement took effect two months ago.

Fortunato opposed the anti-enforcement legislation pushed through by the Legislature’s Democrat majority, warning that the policy would make communities less safe. His concern was confirmed earlier this summer when an unauthorized immigrant who was accused of brutally raping a disabled woman was released by King County, only to be accused of victimizing the woman again.

“It was only a matter of time before we had such a horrendous incident occur,” said Fortunato. “What advocates fail to realize in their quest to protect the good people is that they are allowing violent criminals here illegally to operate with impunity, putting us all at risk. The right thing was done, even though it appears to be accidental. The data breach was really a blessing in disguise, especially if you consider the kinds of heinous crimes that have been committed.”

After the state’s “sanctuary” law took effect May 21, federal immigration authorities pushed back, providing a list of criminals and their offenses to explain how the new rule could hinder them. Anti-enforcement advocates ignore these cases when wrongly using the term “breach” to describe the access to detention data, Fortunato said.

“Unfortunately, King County has, in too many instances, ignored immigration-detainer requests for violent criminals,” added Fortunato. “We’re talking about child rapists, people who murder and dismember their victims, now roaming our streets. When the governor signed the anti-enforcement law, he said he ‘wouldn’t be complicit in these…depraved efforts to break up hard-working immigrant and refugee families.’ Instead, he’s just complicit in protecting violent criminals.”

Fortunato concluded by noting how anti-enforcement advocates are quick to demand accountability from King County but not their own supporters. “I have not heard one supporter of this law denounce the recent terrorist attack on the federal detention center in Tacoma. That is telling,” he said.

The Impending Congestion Crisis

While much attention is being paid to the development of the state’s two-year operating budget, there are other troubling policies working their way through the Legislature in the final days of the 2019 legislative session. As concerning as billions more in general tax increases are, there is a looming, self-imposed crisis about to take place regarding transportation.

Since joining the Senate, I’ve been sounding the alarms on our state’s crumbling transportation infrastructure and the tax-and-spend approach to funding this immense need. Now, there is legislation that could come up that would ensure our region is stuck in traffic for decades. To complete a much-needed project along SR-167 to the Port of Tacoma, some in Olympia are considering making tolls along the corridor permanent AND bonding the toll revenue, which means we can’t do anything to relieve congestion for decades until the debt is paid off. That is a bad idea.

The proposal to bond toll revenue puts us down a path that would ensure congestion for decades because we could not do anything that would alter the funding source, i.e. tolls. In effect, you will be paying to have congestion.

I’ve made the rounds on various news outlets to let the public know about this proposal. You can listen to the segments below.

Dori Monson Show discussing tolls.

There is more than enough money coming to the state to fund my proposal that uses the existing tax on the sale of motor vehicles, providing an inflation-linked funding source for infrastructure. The problem with funding is not usage, as some would have you believe.

The state transportation secretary has said as much. The problem is inflation – the costs of construction are increasing, as well as the cost of right-of-way purchases. We currently fund our transportation needs with declining gas-tax revenues, tolls or other usage-type taxes that will never actually meet the need. We develop project lists that are great for communities around the state, but then have to raise taxes to pay for them. We have to do something different.

By using the existing sales tax, we would have more money available to pay for projects, create thousands of family-wage jobs, and unlock billions in economic development with the money you already send to Olympia.

Keeping our economy strong

It’s budget season as we enter the final weeks of the 2019 legislative session. Watch my latest video update where I discuss the dueling budget proposals and where our state is headed.

Senate Democrats take away self-defense rights from domestic violence victims

Majority Democrats in the state Senate on Thursday approved House Bill 1225, which would require law enforcement officers to remove lawfully owned firearms when responding to a domestic violence call. The proposal would prohibit return of any firearms seized in such a response for five business days.

Sen. Phil Fortunato, R-Auburn, opposed the measure because it removes officer discretion and endangers domestic violence victims.

“I agree that we need to do whatever we can to protect victims of domestic violence,” said Fortunato. “You don’t do that by taking away a victim’s right to protect themselves with a legally owned firearm. Politicians in Olympia are saying they know better than the police, they know better than a victim who is exercising their constitutional rights to protect themselves and their family. It leaves many women defenseless at a very vulnerable time.”

Fortunato offered an amendment on the Senate floor that would have empowered victims to make a decision about the removal of a firearm in a domestic violence call.

“This bill is not about protecting victims,” Fortunato said. “It is about taking away the right of self-defense from law-abiding citizens. The majority doesn’t even think victims should be able to decide for themselves if the presence of a firearm would make them safer. They know better. What I know is that women across our state should be very concerned that if they are a victim of domestic violence, they have no recourse to protect themselves other than words on paper.”

Fortunato fights for Wilkeson reimbursement

92-year old unpaid invoice unearthed for construction of Capitol

Officials from the town of Wilkeson have discovered documents possibly indicating that the state of Washington failed to pay an invoice for the construction of the Legislative Building. Originally scheduled for April 1, they came to Olympia Friday collect.

State Sen. Phil Fortunato, R-Auburn, represents the town and is fighting to help it get the now-substantial reimbursement.

“Wilkeson is a small town in my district, and I can only imagine the hardship this caused at the time,” said Fortunato. “Cities like Wilkeson are still struggling to meet the needs of their residents, and with all the extra money the state has taken in, we can afford to make good on this unpaid invoice.”

In 1927, then Wilkeson Mayor Ellis Roberts sent a letter to the state treasurer requesting immediate payment of $56,718.50. When the state failed to pay for the stone quarried by Walker Cut Stone Co., the city stepped in to cover the costs to avoid massive layoffs during Christmastime.

“I want to thank you [Mayor Ellis] for the payment of $56,718.50,” said R.G. Walker, president of the quarry, in a letter dated Dec. 21, 1927. “I was facing a difficult decision of having to lay off men before Christmas, due to the State not paying their final debts from the Stone provided at the Capitol Building. I will continue seeking repayment for these debts from the State…”

Fortunato has now taken on the 92-year endeavor of getting the state to pay the final invoice. “The contract was for $56,718.50 in the 1920s, I did some calculations and that is over $800,000 in today’s money,” said Fortunato. “You can see why the quarry owner was in a bind. The contract also stipulated a 5 percent interest clause, so I’m fighting for the town of Wilkeson to get the full amount they’re due – $5,588,932.83. That will be a huge boon to the town of 492 people.”

Town leaders and Fortunato will present the final invoice to the state treasurer Friday, April 5, at 2 p.m. They may even consider repossessing the stone, if the state continues to stonewall.

You can read the original contract here, and the letters quoted above, here.