Author Archives: Laudan

Strong Republican support for Fortunato special session resolution

A historic legislative special session could be one step closer to becoming reality. State Sen. Phil Fortunato, R-Auburn has been leading efforts to have the Legislature call itself into session in an unprecedented move. The resolutions would allow lawmakers to address the seemingly endless state of emergency, unilateral COVID responses, and the public safety fiasco created by legislative Democrats.

Twelve Republican senators signed Fortunato’s letter to the Senate majority leader urging a procedural vote in the Senate’s Rules Committee.

“The governor is, of course, content in his undemocratic power grab, but the people we represent are not,” said Fortunato. “We have a process by which the Legislature can get into a special session along very specific parameters, and I want my Senate Democrat colleagues to be on the record supporting this autocratic takeover of our democracy. We left important work undone in the regular legislative session and the majority passed some bad policies that we are seeing the effects of. We need to reconvene and fix this mess.”

Fortunato is alluding to major spikes in crime and calls from law enforcement to fix “public safety” legislation that is seen to tie the hands of police around the state. While attempting to dismiss criticism, proponents of the reforms initially said the laws were being misinterpreted, but they now have indicated the new laws need a legislative fix.

“It’s OK to admit you’re wrong, and so far, I’ve been right about how wrong the majority’s policies would be,” Fortunato said. “We cannot wait any longer and most of my Republican colleagues agree. The Legislature should act now, and we need our Democratic colleagues to do the right thing and let the Senate Rules Committee meet and start this process.”

Under the state constitution, the Legislature has the power to call itself into session. In joint rules adopted this year by the House and Senate, the process begins with a resolution submitted to the Rules Committee.

“We hear all the time how we are living in unprecedented times. Well, now is the time to do something actually unprecedented and speak up for the citizens of this state. This nearly two-year experiment of one-man rule needs to end,” added Fortunato.

Fortunato submitted two versions of the special session resolution for consideration.

Version 1 – Covers public safety, reforming emergency powers, vaccine discrimination, and mask mandates in schools.

Version 2 – Covers public safety and reforming emergency powers.

Schools must stand against unconstitutional funding cuts says Fortunato

As Washington schools prepare for the return of nearly 1 million children this fall, new mandates from Olympia are presenting challenges for local districts. The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction indicated that districts would face funding cuts if they don’t comply with state public health orders.

State Sen. Phil Fortunato is urging the state’s 295 independent school boards to stand up against the threat and do what’s best for their communities, arguing that the state’s constitution is clear about school funding.

“We just spent nearly a decade in court over school funding. The state has a clear constitutional obligation to fund our schools and educate our children,” Fortunato said. “That doesn’t stop because a politician throws a tantrum and tries to override local control. The state superintendent may think it’s appropriate to punish students by cutting funding, but I don’t, and the courts likely won’t either.”

In a letter to districts, Superintendent Reykdal wrote, “Boards or districts that intentionally disobey, dismiss, or shun an explicit law, including a Governor’s executive order, which has the power of law, will see an immediate halt to their basic education apportionment, and their federal funds that come through OSPI.”

Some districts are pushing back. The Okanogan School District sent a detailed letter to the governor asking him to reverse course, wanting instead to implement optional mask wearing in schools.

“These decisions should be at the discretion of locally elected school boards,” said Fortunato, R-Auburn. “I believe that our schools should stand up to bullying and do what they think is best. Threatening to withhold funding from students who’ve already lost so much learning due to the pandemic is appalling.”

The U.S. Department of Education said Monday it would continue financial support for school districts that defy state-level orders where bans on mask mandates are in effect.

Legislature must convene itself to protect public employee privacy, rein in Governor’s powers

As Washington faces a looming public safety crisis, Governor Inslee’s latest pronouncement mandating vaccinations as a condition of public employment is a step too far for state Sen. Phil Fortunato. The Auburn Republican representing the 31st District is calling for an historic legislative session to address these issues, as well prevent further unilateral actions by the governor.

“A resolution is being introduced for the Legislature to convene itself and stand up for the rights Washingtonians,” Fortunato said. “I’m not content allowing one person to continue to rule by fiat. It’s antithetical to our Republic and our state. In this current economic climate with worker shortages and businesses shuttering, we should not be forcing more people out of work for the sake an experimental vaccine. The governor wants to talk about a rational conversation on this issue, what he is doing is the opposite.”

In accordance with the state constitution and rules adopted by the Legislature, the special session resolution must first be taken up by the Senate Rules Committee. Fortunato is pushing for a formal vote immediately.

“Senate leadership must be on record on this issue whether we will stand up for our constituents or ceded the peoples’ authority to the governor,” said Fortunato. “Making people choose between feeding their families or being a lab rat for pharmaceutical companies is a false choice. I want to be clear. I’m not saying don’t get vaccinated. I’m not downplaying the impacts that COVID has had. But I am not going to threaten people with the force of government to comply.”

In addition to protecting workers’ rights, Fortunato wants the Legislature to act urgently in the special session to address vaccine and mask mandates in schools and fix problematic public safety legislation from the regular session.

“As the year has gone on, we are seeing significant problems that the Democratic majority and governor have created,” added Fortunato. “We have to address these now.”

My letter to the Attorney General on Critical Race Theory

The majority party pushed through several bills focusing on race this past legislative session. Some of the worst are attempts by the state to mandate Critical Race Theory to local districts. I believe firmly that CRT, as it’s known, sows discord and undermines the fabric of our society, especially if it’s being forced on unsuspecting children. I asked our Attorney General to weigh in on the constitutionality of these curricula after other state’s found they were in violation.

You can read that letter here.

City adopts resolution mirroring Fortunato vaccine discrimination bill

As the governor and the Department of Labor and Industries unveiled new plans for Washington’s reopening, the guidance on vaccinations and masks for businesses and employees was met with consternation. One city in the 31st Legislative District, represented by Sen. Phil Fortunato, went so far as to pass a resolution effectively making it a sanctuary against the new rules, taking a stance similar to legislation that Fortunato co-sponsored during the 2021 legislative session to prevent vaccine discrimination.

“I’m pleased that people are waking up to what exactly the government is doing with these rules,” said Fortunato, R-Auburn. “Since the majority was unwilling to protect the rights of workers and small business, local jurisdictions should step up to ensure their communities are inclusive and stop all forms of discrimination.”

Resolution No. 2937 was approved unanimously at a Tuesday Bonney Lake city council meeting. While acknowledging the municipality has no legal ability to waive rules or protect businesses from penalties, the city has drawn a line in the sand, calling for an end to all restrictions by June 30. The city also stated that it “opposes any government mandated requirements or restrictions on citizens to show proof of vaccination status in order to access local businesses, houses of worship, or cultural events…”

“It is important that we as citizens of Washington stop seeing each other as a danger. It is time to reclaim our personal responsibility, restore individual liberties, and empower our citizens,” said Bonney Lake Councilwoman Angela Ishmael. “We must reject the idea of vaccination segregation, and I’m thankful for the leadership and support from Senator Fortunato on these efforts. It is time to rebuild community again.”

Fortunato is calling for a possible special legislative session to address the onslaught of new rules that will drive a wedge in communities based on vaccination status.

“The rules put forward by Inslee and L&I are unworkable,” said Fortunato. “They are driving our state into a paranoid surveillance operation, pitting people against each other, and it must stop. What is being asked is a clear violation of people’s privacy and property rights. We can’t put people in a position of either losing their ability to conduct business or violate someone’s medical privacy.”

Under threat of fines and penalties, L&I’s new rules require employers to act as vaccine police, keeping written records of employee vaccination. During a webinar this past Tuesday, even L&I admitted the practices could put employers in “dangerous waters.”

Start the 90-day countdown to cleaner highways, says Fortunato

Encourages cities to start submitting estimates for reimbursement

Legislation sponsored by state Sen. Phil Fortunato to clean up Washington’s littered highways was signed into law today. Senate Bill 5040, known as the “Welcome to Washington Act,” goes into effect in 90 days. The bipartisan measure seeks to improve litter control on state highways.

“As an environmental compliance guy, the litter on state roadways is infuriating and so was the bureaucracy preventing government from doing anything about it,” Fortunato exclaimed. “I’m glad this small but meaningful policy is going to make a visible difference for our residents and visitors to our beautiful state.”

The cleanup utilizes the little-known litter tax that exists on products considered proximate to the litter problem, such a beer cans, household paper products and glass containers. Fortunato thought of the proposal while traveling for work, noting that when entering Washington from Oregon, travelers see a big “Welcome to Washington” sign and are greeted with trash on the side of the highway.

Jokingly, Fortunato has said, “You can furnish a house with what you find.”

The increased coordination under the proposal means the agencies will step up anti-litter public-awareness campaigns and emphasize enforcement against litterbugs by the State Patrol. In addition, the measure will permit interagency work during road work or maintenance to conduct debris pickups. The law also allows local jurisdictions to apply for reimbursement related to litter control activities on state highway ramps.

“I’m encouraging local jurisdictions to submit estimates to the state Department of Ecology for the cost of cleaning up off-ramps to their cities,” added Fortunato. “I think there is still a couch on the way to Auburn that I might have to put on offer-up while waiting for this law to take effect.”

The end of the 2021 Legislative Session

Greetings Friends,

The Legislature adjourned Sunday evening on time. It was a 105-day whirlwind of bad bills and misplaced spending priorities for working families in Washington. Leading up the start of 2021 there was expected to be a $6 billion shortfall because of the economic effects of COVID. Not only did the shortfall never materialize, there was a surplus, in addition to federal stimulus relief funds. Did we reduce taxes to give working families a break? No.

The final budget that was adopted increases state spending by over 12% from the previous budget. I encouraged my Republican colleagues to develop our own budget to show we can fund mental health and other valuable safety-net services for vulnerable families. That budget funded the same critical investments without the billions in new taxes. In addition, it fundamentally changed how the state invests in transportation by using the existing sales tax on motor vehicles, resulting in $24 billion for infrastructure needs over the next 16 years. The opposition to the high tax and spend budget was bipartisan. The bill passed by one vote with no Republican support.

I voted against this budget which relies on another attempt to implement an unconstitutional income tax, higher fuel taxes and a convoluted cap and tax carbon pricing scheme. The people have continually voted against an income tax and a carbon tax, yet the majority party relies on those taxes to increase spending in a year when we were unexpectedly flush with tax dollars. All these policies in effect are taking food off your family’s table for special interests in Olympia.

The Lieutenant Governor sent out an adjournment press release Sunday night. In it he made the statement, “The past 105 days will shape Washington for years to come…” Boy, is he right. Washingtonians can look forward to rising costs of fuel and everything else they purchase. Increased taxes for their cell phones, new home purchases and a new income tax “on the rich.”

It started out as a billionaire tax, then multimillionaires, then millionaires. It will soon be a tax on thousandaires, aka working families.

Here is a comparison to the budget that the Senate Republican Caucus proposed and the final budget. It is a clear and stark contrast in priorities.

Throughout the session, I made principled stands and did everything I could to slow down the process and speak up for your rights. Whether it was religious freedom, your Second Amendment rights or reining in the governor’s emergency powers. I’m proud to have help found the Senate Freedom Caucus, which put an even stronger emphasis on policies eroding your personal liberties.

I will be holding a virtual town hall on May 12 from 7 to 8:30 p.m. to discuss the 2021 legislative session and answer any questions. Please register in advance for this event by clicking here.

Cap and Tax

I believe we can and should do all we can do be good stewards of our environment. For my day job, I’m a leading water quality compliance expert in our state. I know firsthand the effects humans have on our environment and the unreasonable regulations imposed on regular people that government can’t even achieve and do little for the environment while driving up costs.

The latest policy is a proposal, Senate Bill 5126, to cap carbon, price it, and sell it. When this bill first came to the Senate floor, I called it a crony capitalism shell game. You’ll be paying more for fuel and consumer goods while businesses will have to pay millions to “buy” credits, adding those costs to you, the consumer, without improving the environment. That’s not a genuine approach to protecting our environment. It’s really a way to take more money from “Main Street” and give it to Olympia special interests that stand to make millions by taking from your paychecks.

As your state Senator, I’m fighting for accountability for programs like this. If we are going to take hundreds of dollars out of your household budget to “protect the environment,” I have to be sure those goals will be achieved. Coming out of a pandemic and the related economic harm, now is not the time to be implementing costly and regressive taxes on the people of Washington.

You can watch my floor speech on it here.

The ‘Galloping Gerties’

Awards ceremony honors ‘epic fails’ of 2021 legislative session

The new income tax passed by majority Democrats in the Washington Legislature earned top honors in the first annual Galloping Gertie Awards, presented by the Senate Freedom Caucus to honor the biggest fails of the 2021 legislative session.

The awards are named for “Galloping Gertie,” the famed state-highway bridge that briefly crossed the Tacoma Narrows before it collapsed in a 1940 windstorm. A recording of the Wednesday awards ceremony can be seen on TVW, by clicking here.

Great bill titles, bad policy

Overall, there were so many bills that just ate away at your individual freedom by growing government and taking your tax dollars to pay for it. One big example is the recently passed childcare legislation, the Fair Start for Kids Act. While well intended to give parents some needed support, the fact is that it grows a bloated bureaucracy to subsidize childcare paid for with a new income tax. Why not just allow you to keep more of your money to pay for these necessities the way you want to? Instead, we have a one-size-fits-all approach that requires taxes and regulations that only make the end product more expensive and inefficient. To pay for all these supposedly great things, state government has increased the individual tax burden by 67 percent over the past four budget cycles to $7,732. That is not sustainable.

Religious Freedom

It is my honor to sponsor local religious leaders in my district to provide the opening prayer during the legislative session at the start of our day’s proceedings. We hit a roadblock when the Lieutenant Governor’s Office rejected prayers because they mentioned Jesus’ name. As it turned out, the Lt. Gov himself was unaware of this practice. I am pleased that a local pastor in our district pushed back and brought this to my attention. You can see his letter and the various opening prayers from those in our district by clicking here.

End of Session Town Hall

Please join me and our 31st District neighbors on Wednesday, May 12 for my end of session virtual town hall. I’ll go over what happened and answer any questions you have about your state government.

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

Income tax sweeps Senate Freedom Caucus ‘Galloping Gertie’ Awards

Awards ceremony honors ‘epic fails’ of 2021 legislative session

OLYMPIA – The new income tax passed by majority Democrats in the Washington Legislature earned top honors in the first annual Galloping Gertie Awards, presented by the Senate Freedom Caucus to honor the biggest fails of the 2021 legislative session.

The income tax earned the Gertie for Worst New Tax in a Leading Role to Promote Big Government, and picked up two special awards for its sponsors, legislative Democrats and Gov. Jay Inslee, who advanced the new tax during the just-finished legislative session.

Lawmakers concluded their 105-day regular session Sunday evening after passing an unconstitutional income tax, measures that impose state government control on local law enforcement agencies, and precursor bills for steep new taxes on gasoline and diesel fuel. Lawmakers are expected to be called back for a special legislative session on transportation later this year, for final passage of those fuel taxes and others.

“It was the most radical agenda Washington has ever seen, and this was a dizzying session,” said Sen. Doug Ericksen, R-Ferndale, who hosted the Wednesday awards ceremony. “It was just as dizzying as Galloping Gertie, the state’s biggest-ever engineering blunder. Those of us in the Senate Freedom Caucus realized we really should do something to recognize everyone who made this nightmare possible.”

Sen. Phil Fortunato, R-Auburn, said, “We’re calling this the ‘first annual’ Galloping Gertie Awards. But honestly, we would be very happy if we never have to hold an awards ceremony like this one again.”

Other presenters were Sens. Jim McCune, R-Graham, Mike Padden, R-Spokane Valley, and Jeff Wilson, R-Longview.

Wilson said, “It was as if the Seattle City Council got itself elected to the Legislature and decided the rest of the state should share in the benefits of chaos and dysfunction.”

Padden said, “Taking all these bills together, this was a great session for economic development in Idaho and Montana.”

McCune said, “We’re trying to see the humor in this year’s session. But when the people understand what happened this year, I don’t think anyone is going to be laughing.”

The new income tax on capital gains, likely to be expanded to the middle class if it survives court challenges, earned the special False Narrative Award for legislative Democrats. For his work in promoting the new tax, after an election promise to oppose all new taxes, Gov. Jay Inslee was awarded the Suzi Levine Award for Executive Branch Excellence.

A tie was awarded for the Green Delusions Award for Worst Legislation in the Name of the Environment. Honors went to this year’s legislation creating cap and trade and low-carbon fuel standards programs, which could increase the cost of a gallon of gas by $2 or more.

The Worst Legislation on Public Safety award went to the majority’s “Blake Fix” bill, which addresses the state Supreme Court’s decision overturning drug laws, by turning former felony charges into simple misdemeanors. The special Handcuffs for Law Enforcement Award went to this year’s legislation imposing restrictions on police tactics, which could force escalation.

Majority Democrats also were honored with the Silence of the Mask Award, for running their sweeping agenda through the statehouse at a time when the public was excluded from the Capitol due to COVID restrictions, and for their disinterest in the top issue for the people of the state, bringing balance and reason to lockdown restrictions and getting the state back to work.

Nominees for the Missed Opportunities Award included multiple failures to pass property tax relief, tough DUI legislation, sensible approaches to transportation funding and tax incentives for manufacturers. All were declared winners.

Session Opening Prayers

It is my honor to sponsor local religious leaders in my district to provide the opening prayer for during the legislative session at the start of our day’s proceedings. We hit a roadblock when the Lieutenant Governor’s Office rejected prayers because they mentioned Jesus’ name. As it was turned out the Lt. Gov himself was unaware of this practice. I am pleased that a local pastor in our district pushed back and brought this to my attention.

You can watch the various opening ceremony invocations at the links below.

Father Otto Kultenberg