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Condotta calls 2005 session
'an expensive disappointment'
Rep. Cary Condotta,
R-Wenatchee, said today that the 2005 legislative session was
disappointing and cost taxpayers a bundle. The 105-day session ended
today.
“This session was a disappointment in just about every way possible,”
Condotta said. “Today – as a parting shot on the way out of town – the
House voted to raise taxes by eleven and a half billion dollars. The
families in our state just can’t take any more. Yet now we’re asking
them to shoulder the burden of a state budget that jacks up state
spending by 12 percent. This was unnecessary, and it’s wrong.”
The legislative session ended today with a 54-43 vote in the House to
raise the gas tax by 9.5 cents per gallon over 4 years – money that will
go in large measure to Seattle-area projects. Following that vote, the
House passed a budget that increases spending by 12 percent and
increases taxes by $500 million.
“Just two years ago we
were headed in the right direction,” Condotta said. “We improved our
business climate by reforming the unemployment insurance program, we
balanced a two-year operating budget with no new taxes, and we were
making other strides for citizens and employers. But this year the
Legislature completely turned that around. We are going in exactly the
opposite direction. We had it right, and now it’s wrong. The
repercussions of this session will be with us for a long, long time.”
Among the disappointments
this year, Condotta noted:
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Passage of a bill that
guts Initiative 601 and repeals the two-thirds vote majority to
raise taxes;
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Repeal of the 2003
landmark unemployment insurance reforms that made Washington more
attractive to businesses and retained jobs;
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An attempt to turn
House Bill 1383, Condotta’s bill that would have given state
employees the option of using Health Savings Account, into a study.
Rather than spend state money on an unnecessary study and delay
getting this program up and running, Condotta elected to let the
bill die and will introduce it again next year.
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Multiple bills that
would have done serious harm to small businesses, including an
attempt to eliminate a successful workers’ compensation program, one
that would have required employers to provide employees with five
weeks of paid leave, and another that would have forced businesses
to provide health insurance for their employees or be taxed a fee.
Condotta noted thankfully that many of these bills did not make it
into law.
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Failure to act on
bills that would help employers, including one that would keep the
minimum wage in line with inflation and another that would have
added certainty to the calculation of workers’ compensation
benefits. The Legislature also completely failed to address the
skyrocketing cost of health care.
Still, Condotta said he is
looking forward to coming back in January to reintroduce some of his
bills, including the state employee health savings account bill and
another requiring the state to promote local tourism sites. He is also
hopeful that the Legislature can repair some of the damage done this
year.
“Even after what happened
this session, I still have hope that next year we will be able to get
Washington’s business climate back on track and control any future
growth in state spending,” Condotta said. “It’s been a rough year on
taxpayers and the economy. But we will come back and continue to fight
for the future of Washington and the 12th District. That’s why people
elected me, and I’m looking forward to doing just that.”
Condotta’s Wenatchee
district office will re-open on Tuesday. Citizens can reach him at:
3012 G.S. Center Rd.,
Suite D
Wenatchee, WA 98801
(509) 664-1274
Condotta.Cary@leg.wa.gov
# # #
For more information, contact:
Bobbi Cussins, Public Information Officer: (360) 786-7252
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