Letters for Dec 1, 2023

They give more than they get

I’m writing in response to a letter published Tuesday (“Americans growing weary of war”), which I think is well-intentioned but comes to an interesting conclusion about the economics of resettling refugees. Citing data from the Center for Immigration Studies, the writer conflates refugees with other forms of immigration and suggests that American taxpayers are not repaid for the initial outlays to support these newcomers.

Let’s set the record straight on the economics of resettling refugees. A 2017 report from the Department of Health and Human Services found that resettled refugees collectively contributed $63 billion more in tax revenue than they used in public services from 2005-2014. The bipartisan New American Economy Research Fund found refugees start new businesses at a 50% higher rate than native-born citizens.

The economic advantages of resettling refugees will heighten as the native-born population ages; in 2015, less than half of the U.S.-born population was working age (24-65) and the number of Americans older than 65 is expected to double by 2050. By contrast, 75% of refugees are working age; many work in service jobs that are hard to fill, particularly in a post-COVID world. An authoritative 2017 study published by the Department of State found “robust causal evidence” that refugees have no long-term deleterious effects on the U.S. labor market.

My belief is that America is at its best when we welcome strangers into our communities. If you’re concerned about refugees sucking up public resources, don’t be, they give more than they get.

Kevin Glover

Spokane

Poverty in the richest country in the world

Stephanie Land’s books on poverty illuminate the difficult situation millions of Americans face, especially mothers and children. This poverty in our country (world’s wealthiest) is a policy choice. Really? Yes, just look at the outcome from passing the expanded Child Tax Credit: child poverty cut in half. Why wasn’t it renewed? Good question to ask Rep. McMorris Rodgers. What is more important than protecting America’s mothers and children from poverty? Congress can make the choice to turn this unconscionable situation around and is more likely to do so if our representatives hear from us, (202) 224-3121. It is time to end stories like Ms. Land’s, let’s use our voices to remind Congress what really matters.

Willie Dickerson

Snohomish

Big wires

The Building Integrated Grids with Inter-Regional Energy Supply, Big Wires Act is a promising bipartisan bill in Congress that offers a wide range of benefits: reducing the risk of electrical power outages, lowering carbon emissions and energy costs, and increasing national security.

Extreme weather events damaging power stations and overloading the grid are on the rise. The bill will require each U.S. transmission planning region to be able to transfer at least 15% more of its current peak load capacity – its highest hourly electricity demand each year – to other regions in the event of an outage. Because building new transmission lines is a major option for increasing load capacity, the bill will also help address the critical shortage of lines for transmitting renewable energy, thus bringing down CO2 emissions. Wind and solar farms now account for more than 92% of proposed new energy projects in the U.S. In addition, households’ energy costs will go down as regions transfer inexpensive solar and wind power and those with cheaper energy sell to those with more expensive. Finally, a more stable and efficient electrical grid system will foster national security, an important feature during this time of increasing international conflict.

A bipartisan bill capable of all these benefits ought to become law. Ask your Members of Congress to cosponsor the “Big Wires” Act (HR5551, SB2827).

William Engles

Pullman

Ban the use of studded tires

Editor’s note: This letter has been updated to include missing content.

Winter is coming, bringing with it that soothing sound of metal against asphalt as studded tires scrape their way across city streets and state highways, causing millions of dollars worth of damage.

Of course some people didn’t bother to take them off so that magical hum was available all summer if you had your window partially open, which I notice our Spokane Police Department patrol cars seldom do. And why are the front windows on police cruisers now heavily tinted? Questions for another time.

Minnesota, which is known to have hard winters with heavy snow, bans studded tires, and if you think Minnesota is flat, then you haven’t been there. Michigan also bans the use of studded tires, as does Texas. Overall, there are six states that ban studded tires and seven that allow conditional use, but my point is that other states have much tighter controls on this matter than Washington.

With all of the available alternative options in winter tires, studded tired just aren’t necessary. In fact they are dangerous on dry pavement, which is what we have most of the winter. It is past time for the legislature to act and ban the use of studded tires on Washington roads. We have the fifth highest gas tax in the nation, so maybe if we quit chewing up the roads they could stop raising our tax on fuel.

Larry Reisnouer

Spokane

Wildland urban interface disasters

Comparing the Gray and Oregon Road fires to the Mount St. Helens eruption and Osso landslide is a disservice to those who lost everything this past summer. A better comparison is the Great Spokane Fire. In terms of loss, this summer exceeded that benchmark, but more importantly their causes and solutions are surprisingly similar.

Wildland urban interface disasters are like the plague of great urban fires over a century ago; Chicago 1871, Boston 1872, Seattle and Spokane 1889. However, leaders then didn’t throw up their hands and declare them “natural disasters.” Instead, prodded by insurance companies, they identified and fixed root causes like, inadequate fire departments, poor public sanitation, fire-prone building standards and materials, etc. And urban fires were banished to history books.

The outsized damage from WUI fires is caused by massing concentrations of manmade fuel (houses, out buildings, vehicles, etc.) inside areas that for thousands of years have been high fire risk, and then not providing the infrastructure for effective fire response and emergency evacuation. If your home is located inside or adjacent to the WUI, these fires can’t be ignored.

We must end catastrophic WUI fires. The process is simple but not painless. We must halt future large-scale development in the WUI until all the factors that create these disasters have been identified and mitigated.

The short-term profits of a minority of outsider landlords and developers should not be privileged over the safety and protection of existing property owners.

Michael Moore

Spokane