Alternative To I-200 Introduced In House Moderates’ Plan Resembles Current Affirmative Action Laws

Amid signs that voters will get the final say on an anti-affirmative action initiative, House foes on Tuesday introduced an ballot-box alternative.

The bipartisan plan, a mirror of a proposal floated by Republican moderate Eugene Prince in the Senate, quickly picked up the support of Democratic Gov. Gary Locke. But even some of the backers conceded it’s highly unlikely to even get a hearing.

Initiative 200, currently before lawmakers, would ban preferences for women and minorities in government hiring, contracting and college admissions.

The alternative would permit affirmative action to continue but would rule out quotas and make it illegal for unqualified people to be hired, given contracts or admitted to college. That’s essentially a restatement of existing practice but explicitly addresses the public’s two biggest concerns about affirmative action, said Rep. Kip Tokuda, D-Seattle.

House Minority Leader Marlin Appelwick, D-Seattle, conceded the measure isn’t likely to go anywhere.

“Gee, whiz,” he told reporters, knowing that the Republican majority will resist any alternative bills. “Even if it doesn’t get the time of day, and joins 2,000 other (dead) bills, it will be in good company. It will help shape the debate. Affirmative action has not outlived its usefulness.”

By law, legislators may approve the initiative, ignore it and let it go to the ballot or send it and a legislative alternative to the voters.

Rep. Scott Smith, R-Graham, sponsor of the initiative, said the alternative is a “do-nothing bill. The purpose is to confuse the voters. It does nothing to change current practices.

“It states that only qualified people will get the jobs. We have never argued with that. We say, ‘Yes, they are qualified, but maybe less qualified than some others.’ And the courts have ruled out quotas, but instead we have goals and timetables that are about the same thing.”

House Speaker Clyde Ballard, R-East Wenatchee, and Senate Majority Leader Dan McDonald, R-Bellevue, haven’t announced a decision on whether to schedule a vote on I-200, but some GOP insiders say it’s all but certain to go to the ballot.

“I think a decision was made a long time ago not to have a vote,” said Senate Floor Leader Steve Johnson, R-Kent. “I don’t think it will come up.”

Smith said in an interview that he is close to accepting that strategy. He said he’s certain there are enough votes in both houses to approve the measure, but adds, “the best thing for this issue might be to send it to the voters. It probably won’t be voted on (in the Legislature).”

Echoing comments made several weeks ago by McDonald, he said if lawmakers were to pass it, foes would quickly place it on the ballot anyway, as a referendum, in hopes of killing it.

Smith said I-200 has an appealing ballot description: “Shall government be prohibited from discriminating or granting preferential treatment based on race, sex, color, ethnicity or national origin in public employment, education and contracting?”

If a referendum is mounted, affirmative action backers could try to get a ballot title that would describe it as an assault on affirmative action, he said.