Credit where credit is due: Saxons and Tigers rock!

I had the pleasure last week of honoring two champion teams with resolutions on the Senate floor. The Ferris Saxons boys basketball team and the Lewis and Clark Tigers girls basketball team each won state titles this month. The Saxons became only the 13th team in the state 4A tournament’s 85-year history to go undefeated throughout the competition, while the Tigers won their second consecutive 4A title, making them one of only five schools to accomplish the back-to-back feat. Neither milestone came easily. The Saxons had to overcome four teams with very different styles and strengths, playing the four games in four days with little time to prepare for the distinct styles of their opponents. The Tigers, meanwhile, had to outplay two teams with perfect records, and bounce back from a pair of defeats earlier this year to beat that same team when it counted most. Bravo to both!

You asked for this

I’m stunned by how fast the mailing list for this e-newsletter has grown in just a few short weeks, and impressed that so many want to be kept in the legislative loop. As someone who has been active in shaping public policy for a good 20 years, I know how important it is for us all to participate in government and how much better our government runs when we do. Your involvement speaks well of our district and future. I thank you for tuning in.

Great news for the North-South Freeway

The bad news came when we learned that inflation has increased the cost of the North-South Freeway to $159.7 million, or $122 million more than the $37.4 million available in Category C funds, for the 2007–09 biennium. The good news came last week when we found a way to shift $122 million from other funds to make up the difference and keep construction of our vital new corridor on schedule. The problem was that this account doesn’t generate funds fast enough to keep pace with the construction schedule. Under the budget proposed last week by the House of Representatives, money will be shifted from other accounts for projects scheduled to be built later. In return, those projects will be funded by Category C money that arrives too late for the freeway. The Senate’s proposed budget, due for release next week, is expected to use the same strategy, ensuring that the freeway is built on time and without cost overruns that would have been triggered by any delays, saving hard-earned taxpayer dollars.

Improvements are coming in local economic development

I am encouraged by the progress of Senate Bill 5092, which is being heard in the House of Representatives. Although my bill has not passed the House yet, it appears likely that either my bill or a House companion version will be approved. This important legislation supports local economic development efforts by integrating local and state efforts and using performance measures to ensure that our local economic development councils are getting results. This measure boosts the state funding to 90 cents per capita, up to $300,000, to urban counties, and to $40,000 plus 90 cents per capita to rural counties.

And in other important economic developments …

This seems like as good a time as any to tick off the steps we’re taking to make sure our state stays economically competitive. To reinvent Washington for the global future, we’re incorporating three key assumptions: 1) Economic strategy must reflect the critical role played by creative thinking and knowledge-based industries in economic growth; 2) Creative approaches are necessary in developing new products and improving the processes in existing industries; and 3) We need to develop a new means of cooperation between the public and private sectors to achieve common objectives. Here’s what all that means in plain English, in the form of bills that have passed the Senate:

• SB 5995: We’re creating an Independent Economic Development Commission to provide a uniform strategy for the state, including establishing performance measures and analyzing economic development programs for efficiency.
• SSB 5387: Like Stanford University and MIT, we will build a “go-to” database to provide information on the technologies available from the state’s research institutions. This will improve access to those technologies by businesses and entrepreneurs who can make commercial use of them.
• SB 5652: We’re creating a Microenterprise Development Program to help small start-up companies with one-to-five employees by providing them training and technical assistance.
• SB 5090: This legislation will help Washington join the select states that identify geographic areas of innovation where researchers, training facilities and companies work together to develop the products that will drive the economy of the future. We will issue grants that require local support and matching funds, and will be used to facilitate the commercialization of cutting-edge research. At the same time, in the same way that colleges recruit the best athletes, Washington will recruit the best intellects from around the world to our universities. This proven strategy, used by other innovative regions of the world, will turn our universities into economic engines.
• SB 5743: We have one of the best work-force training programs in the nation. For every $1 we put in, employers put in more than $2, and within one year employees make about 10 percent more in wages. This makes our employees better off and our companies more globally competitive. This bill ensures that 2,100 additional employees get this valuable training.
• SB 5116: This creates an industry-led tourism commission to take advantage of our geographic location and proximity to the 2010 Winter Olympics in British Columbia. It will develop a six-year investment plan and track the state’s return on investment in tourism.

Credit where credit is due: Saxons and Tigers rock!

I had the pleasure last week of honoring two champion teams with resolutions on the Senate floor. The Ferris Saxons boys basketball team and the Lewis and Clark Tigers girls basketball team each won state titles this month. The Saxons became only the 13th team in the state 4A tournament’s 85-year history to go undefeated throughout the competition, while the Tigers won their second consecutive 4A title, making them one of only five schools to accomplish the back-to-back feat. Neither milestone came easily. The Saxons had to overcome four teams with very different styles and strengths, playing the four games in four days with little time to prepare for the distinct styles of their opponents. The Tigers, meanwhile, had to outplay two teams with perfect records, and bounce back from a pair of defeats earlier this year to beat that same team when it counted most. Bravo to both!

Help me save money on legislative updates

One great aspect of electronic newsletters is they cost nothing to circulate, unlike the traditional paper newsletters mailed out each session. If you would like to receive an electronic version of my final session report, instead of a paper one, e-mail Barb Bumann, my legislative assistant, at bumann.barb@leg.wa.gov.

It might seem small, but even a little savings adds up and helps stretch our tax dollars farther.

Call or write anytime

I hope you find this update helpful. Please don’t hesitate to contact my office with questions or concerns, whether they involve bills before the Legislature or topics you feel are being overlooked. If you have a concern, I want to hear it. You can reach me by e-mail at marr.chris@leg.wa.gov or by phone at 360-786-7610.

Return to Sen. Marr's home page