State Gop ‘Contract’ Likely To Die In Senate After Easy Ride In House, Legislation To Fulfill Republican Pledge Faces Democrats’ One-Vote Majority

State GOP leaders celebrating House passage of bills implementing their “Contract With Washington State” likely won’t see many of them actually become law.

Proposals intended to cut taxes and red tape, repeal the health care reform act, fight crime and strengthen property rights are foundering in the Senate.

Democrats, who hold a one-vote majority in the Senate, see the “contract” as a legislative sideshow. Many of the House bills are stalled in Senate committees, dead on arrival there or face a near-certain veto by the governor if they get that far.

But the fight is far from over: There are many weeks of negotiations ahead with the Senate. The battle over the state budget, where Republicans can achieve some of their goals, including tax cuts, also has yet to begin.

State GOP leaders acknowledged they face an uphill battle during a rally Wednesday to celebrate House passage of the “contract” bills.

State party chairman Ken Eikenberry awarded GOP lawmakers an oversized report card giving the Senate an “F” and the House an “A+” for their work so far.

“When we first stood on these steps last September and signed this contract, people sort of snickered,” said House Speaker Clyde Ballard, R-East Wenatchee.

“Well, we’ve fulfilled every single one of our promises, and when was the last time you saw politicians do that?”

Nearly every Republican member of the House joined Ballard, Eikenberry and Senate GOP leaders on the Capitol steps for the celebration.

But even party faithful admitted the “contract” could sink in the Democratic Senate.

“There isn’t even any room to negotiate. They are just ignoring it,” Todd Myers, spokesman for the state GOP, said. “My guess is, they will just let it die.”

Senate Majority Leader Marcus Gaspard, D-Puyallup, called the contract “a campaign gimmick.” The Senate feels no commitment to enacting any part of it. “We’ll take a look at these bills, and if they make sense, we’ll pass them. Otherwise we won’t.

“They haven’t realized there is a difference between campaign rhetoric and legislation,” Gaspard said of House Republicans.

GOP leaders accused Democrats of spending the session filing their legislative nails and whining, instead of advancing alternatives of their own. That, and killing the contract, will just convince even more people to vote Republican in 1996, the leaders say.

“If they simply kill it all, God help them,” Sen. Minority Leader Dan McDonald, R-Bellevue, said of his Democratic colleagues.

The only contract bill passed by the House that doesn’t face Senate opposition is Initiative 159, the ‘Hard Time for Armed Crime’ initiative to the Legislature. It enacts stiffer penalties for criminals who commit crimes with guns.

“They don’t want to do anything. Their agenda is to sit on their hands,” Sen. James West, R-Spokane, said of Democrats. “They are still trying to get over the last election.”

Democratic Gov. Mike Lowry, who has born the brunt of much GOP criticism, said Republicans misread the voters.

The 1994 elections weren’t about dismantling government, but improving it, Lowry said.

He warned bills passed to implement the contract would despoil the environment, hurt children and the poor, raid the treasury and ruin voters’ quality of life.

Republicans argue it’s the Democrats who are out of touch.

“It’s not the just a contract they’re ignoring,” Myers said, “it’s the people of the state of Washington.”