Gop Nearly Has Votes To Pass Highway Plan Democrats, Led By Locke, Say Bill Is ‘Credit Card Spending’

Republicans took their “tax-free” $2.4 billion highway plan for a test drive on Monday.

There were plenty of potholes.

Openly hostile Democrats followed the lead of Gov. Gary Locke in branding the proposal “credit-card spending at its worst.” Like the governor, they said the GOP measure would doom education to fight with highways for future tax dollars.

The Republican plan includes a car-tab tax cut of $40 a year and greater transportation use of cartab money that currently is being used for local criminal justice needs, schools and other general government programs.

Republicans have the votes to pass the measure out of committee on Tuesday and through the full House on Wednesday. Senate Republican leaders say they are close to having enough votes, too.

The entire GOP package - Initiative 601 changes, the car-tab tax reduction and the multibilliondollar highway program - will go on the November ballot if the Republicans succeed.

Locke, backed by minority Democrats, continues to press for his alternative, which includes a 5-cent increase in the 23-cent-a-gallon gas tax. He also would allow the tax to rise with inflation and population growth, boosting the total increase to about 11 cents within five years.

Fertilizer bill too weak, some say

A bill to regulate agricultural fertilizers was called weak by environmentalists on Monday, while agribusiness leaders said it was an important first step.

Under legislation proposed by Gov. Gary Locke, Washington would be among the first states to adopt standards for fertilizers.

The legislation would boost the state’s authority to review the content of all fertilizers and require fertilizer makers to disclose the heavy metal content in their products, among other things.

Under the governor’s proposal, the state would increase fertilizer testing and set aside $400,000 to study the effects of heavy metals in fertilizer on soil, plants and people.

Environmentalists called the bill practically meaningless, particularly since it doesn’t address results of recent state tests that found dioxin, a probable carcinogen, in some fertilizers.

Contractor regulation considered

Ten people appeared Monday before legislative committees to paint the contractors hired to build their dream homes as liars, frauds, thieves and cheaters.

The citizens who described their shattered dreams for the members of the House and Senate Commerce and Labor committees represent many others. The attorney general’s office said it has recorded 9,000 complaints about builders since 1990, including 1,361 last year.

Some lawmakers believe there is enough evidence to justify legislation that would give consumers more rights in the largely unregulated construction industry.

Under Senate Bill 6638, sponsored by Republican Sen. Jim Horn of Mercer Island, contractors would have to file larger surety bonds to cover their work, trust funds would be created to ensure homeowners’ money is used for the right purposes and liens against properties would be restricted.

Rep. Val Ogden, D-Vancouver, would get even tougher. Her bill, HB2599, would require residential contractors to become licensed by the state.

Builders, led by the Olympiabased Building Industry Association of Washington, said the proposed regulations would provide a false sense of security to homeowners and would simply hurt legitimate contractors. Instead, they said consumers would be better served if the state would crack down on lawbreaking builders.