In brief: House OKs change in estate tax law
OLYMPIA – Over objections that the Legislature was unconstitutionally reaching into the past to collect taxes, the House passed a change to the estate tax law that attempts to erase a loss in court.
House Bill 2064 passed on a 51-40 vote after Democrats described it as a technical fix to close a loophole the Supreme Court opened in tax law, and necessary to pay for schools. The estate tax is deposited in the school trust fund.
Republicans argued that rewriting the law to fix the problem the Supreme Court found, and applying it retroactively, was unconstitutional. The bill goes to the Senate, which will hold a hearing on a different bill on the same topic today.
OLYMPIA –The state Department of Transportation shouldn’t let trucks with oversized loads on routes where the bridges are too small, state Sen. Mike Baumgartner said Thursday.
The Spokane Republican introduced a bill that would require the department to better label the height of state bridges, and refuse to issue permits to truckers whose oversized loads aren’t going to fit through bridges that are too low or too narrow. It’s a response to the collapse of the Interstate 5 bridge over the Skagit River, which fell after being struck by an oversized load.
This wasn’t the first time the Skagit River Bridge was struck by an oversized load, Baumgartner said. The solution to the problem is not more gasoline taxes to fix bridges, he added, but better oversight.
Portion of Sullivan Road closed tonight
Resurfacing work is going to force nighttime closures tonight and Saturday night on Sullivan Road from Kiernan to Trent avenues.
The closures start at 9 p.m. and will continue until 6 a.m. on both nights. A detour is available on Flora Road and Euclid Avenue.
Small plane hits home; no serious injuries
EATONVILLE, Wash. – An Eatonville, Wash., fire official said a small plane flying from Oregon to Seattle crashed into a home Thursday evening, but the pilot and passenger escaped with only minor injuries.
Fire Chief Bob Hudspeth said the two men were headed to a conference when they encountered rough weather over Eatonville and the pilot decided to land at a local airport. Hudspeth said the Cessna 172 landed instead in the yard of a home, then skidded into the front of the house, which was not occupied at the time.
The chief said the house sustained minor damage.
Hudspeth said he didn’t know where in Oregon the flight originated. The men were not identified.
Eatonville police and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating.