Former teacher seeks House seat

Retired teacher Tim Hattenburg, 55, has filed to run for the 4th District state House seat being vacated by Republican Lynn Schindler.

Hattenburg so far is the only Democrat to seek the position, which already has three Republican candidates.

He grew up in Spokane Valley and graduated from Central Valley High School in 1971. After earning a bachelor’s degree in education from Washington State University in 1975, he returned to the Central Valley district and taught for 20 years at Pines Middle School.

Since his retirement from teaching, Hattenburg has been employed by Tornado Creek Publications. He also has been a Spokane County Library District trustee for the past two years.

Hattenburg said he has been active in the local Democratic Party for more than 20 years and worked against incorporation of Spokane Valley five years ago. He ran against longtime Republican state Sen. Bob McCaslin in 2004 and lost with 41 percent of the vote.

Describing himself as “very fiscally conservative,” Hattenburg said the economy and education are his priorities. He wants an economic growth plan for the district, and he said he’d fight for school funding with the caveat that it requires careful monitoring because “that’s half of the state budget.”

The Republicans who have filed for Schindler’s position are Spokane Valley City Councilwoman Diana Wilhite and attorneys Matthew Shea and Ray Deonier.