Public servants must be sure they have time to serve public
That is something to consider this week as it is the filing period for a host of local offices, including several school boards and city councils.
It’s difficult to run for public office, and it’s usually tougher to serve.
Focus in Olympia must be on budget
State lawmakers were back in Olympia on Monday for a 30-day overtime session after failing to approve a state budget.
Automatic voter registration goes too far
Voting should be encouraged. Government should not create obstacles to registering to vote. In fact, government should make it a simple, easy process to cast a ballot.
Elections for local offices shape future of community
What happens in the White House or Congress or the state Legislature is important.
Rescinding Rose Street vote is will of the people
Rose Street will be repaved and remain a four-lane road. Representative democracy works.
Clouds are gone and balloons ready to soar
The past few springs, rain and wind made it feel as if winter were never going to end.
Boosting salary for county elected officials reasonable, yet also risky
Commissioners might have gone too far in granting 6 percent raises, but did so knowing the possible political peril.
In agreeing to thaw the salaries for Walla Walla County’s elected officials frozen since 2012, the three commissioners might be stepping on some thin ice — politically speaking.
Resignation of School Board member not personnel matter
The chief executive of a government entity, such as a school district’s superintendent, answers to elected directors who sit on a school board. And the school board members answer to the public — the voters.
Initiative on gun- owner checks should be vetted
Unintended consequences could have huge ramifications when dealing with buying and selling firearms.
The debate on the complicated issue of expanding background checks for gun sales in Washington state has been lively. That’s as it should be.
Earlier revenue forecast should improve state budgeting
The state Legislature is now on a short recess before senators and representatives go back to Olympia for an extra session to agree on a state budget. Sadly, this sentence could have been written just about any year since this century began (and several years earlier).
Sadly, NBA not coming back to Seattle
But the city could still get an NBA team in the near future, and do it without taking another city’s team.
The chances of the Sacramento Kings moving to Seattle are worse — much worse — than Los Angeles Laker Dwight Howard hitting a free throw. Very slim.
State has too few dollars to meet needs of US Highway 12
A four-lane highway from Walla Walla to the Tri-Cities needs to happen. That was decided long ago.
Allowing young winemakers to taste (and spit) is reasonable
Finally, reason has prevailed.
State's habitual drunken drivers must be stopped
Gov. Jay Inslee’s proposal to get habitual drunken drivers off the road is the right direction for the state.
Congress must establish fair policy on Internet taxes
Congress appears to be on its way to finally bringing sales tax equity to Main Street America.
Obama’s plan to sell federal power agency is a mistake
President Obama is pitching a plan to sell the Tennessee Valley Authority, which provides power for seven states. If TVA is sold, would BPA be next?
Republicans in Congress are railing against President Obama’s plan to consider selling the Tennessee Valley Authority, a huge federal power agency.
State should nix issuing fake ID to CIA
Washington state needs to get out of the spy business.
Lincoln's new science lab helps drive student success
Lincoln High School is a 1926 building that shows every year of its age — from its hallways to its classrooms.
Evil act of terror can't paralyze us with fear
When two bombs filled with shrapnel — from nails to small metal balls — exploded at the finish line of the Boston Marathon, the horror was felt in the Walla Walla Valley. It reverberated coast to coast.
To deliver or not to deliver mail Saturdays?
Congress has been whipsawing the USPS as lawmakers disagree on the direction of mail service. Congress need to establish a direction and make a plan.
Is state budget being cut or are words being parsed?
In Olympia, budget cuts and spending increases are defined differently than outside the capital.
As we’ve all heard from the folks in Olympia who are trying to craft a state budget, times are still lean. Revenue isn’t meeting expectations and cuts must be made.
Inslee fulfills promise to make records public
Gov. Jay Inslee, in fulfilling a campaign promise not to invoke executive privilege to block the release of public records, has taken an important stand for open government.
Restore full search access to county tax info
The decision to eliminate the search-by-name function won’t make anybody safer, but it will make access to public information more difficult.
Walla Walla County’s TaxSifter property search engine on the Internet has been an excellent service. It has allowed citizens to easily and quickly access public information regarding property taxes and ownership. But the service is no longer user friendly nor as helpful. County Treasurer Gordon Heimbigner decided this week not to allow searches by name.
Wine tasting at state’s farmers markets should be allowed
The proposal now before the Legislature is limited in scope and contains sufficient safeguards.
Farmers markets in Washington state could soon add one of the Walla Walla Valley’s best known products — wine.
Parents must set a good example — don’t text in car
Yet, nearly half of adults text while driving.
Do as I say, not as I do.
Many local school board, city council seats on fall ballot
A variety of positions in local government are on the ballot this November. Filing week is May 13 to 17. Consider running.
Walla Walla School Board member Dan Hess, who has served from 1985 to 1993 and again from 2010 until now, is not seeking a fourth term.
When is raising taxes not raising taxes?
The answer is never. Yet, Gov. Jay Inslee insists his plan to collect an additional $1 billion to fund education is not a tax. What?
Former Gov. Chris Gregoire was right. Current Gov. Jay Inslee is angling to raise taxes.
Consider all options in state greenhouse-gas study
Reducing greenhouse gas emissions is good for the Earth and the humans who live on it. Given that, it’s no surprise Gov. Jay Inslee’s proposal to study reducing greenhouse gas emissions had bipartisan (mostly Democratic) support when it won final approval of the Legislature last week.
Time to move on from the Octopus flap
The slate is clean — literally — in the brouhaha over the giant octopus mural above the Inland Octopus toy store.
GOP’s push for higher education funding has merit
Senate Republicans want to boost higher education by 10 percent and cut tuition by 3 percent.
Over the past few years higher education in Washington state has seen its public funding slashed. This has forced the various universities and colleges to boost tuition dramatically.
Congress puts Postal Service in tough spot
It’s ridiculous and wrong for Congress to impose mandates on the Postal Service, as it funds less than 1 percent of operations.
Is the U.S. Postal Service a private corporation or a government agency?
Closely monitor spending of county Human Services Dept.
Walla Walla County commissioners made a reasonable financial move last week when they stopped the flow of red ink by diverting funds collected from a new tax.
Deals between banks, government should be announced
The FDIC will agree not to announce some deals, which has the effect of concealing them.
Government exists to serve the needs of the people, including protecting the public from unscrupulous behavior. And what the government does with taxpayer money — our money — is a public concern.
Cost of war lingers long after last shots fired
The US now spends $140 billion a year compensating war veterans, a figure that is expected to rise dramatically.
The human cost of war — any war — is enormous. People are killed and wounded. Lives are forever changed.
No.1! WWCC honored as top 2-year school in nation
The local community college shares first prize with Santa Barbara City College.
Walla Walla Community College was honored Tuesday for its excellence. WWCC and Santa Barbara City College were judged to be the top two-year schools in the country.
Zag fever spreads across the region
Basketball fans from the Cascades to the Palouse are pumped Gonzaga University is a No, 1 seed heading into the NCAA tournament.
Eastern Washington is buzzing over the prospect of Gonzaga University of Spokane being crowned the king of all of college basketball.
Booth Gardner emerged as strong leader
When former Gov. Booth Gardner first came on the state political scene in the early 1980s, he seemed out of place.
Local girl-fight video an outrage
It’s difficult to watch the video posted on Facebook of two local teenage girls fighting as other teens encourage the violence. It’s disgusting and outrageous — and it happened in Walla Walla.
Getting out of Afghanistan ASAP will save billions
And those billions would ease the effect of the $85 billion in cuts as a result of the sequester.
State doesn't have cash to fund college grants for illegal immigrants
It would be great if the state had enough money to grant aid to every student in the state, legal or not. That's far from the case. Lawmakers must now make cuts.
A college education has never been more expensive than it is now.
Proposal to expand background checks is wisely rejected
House Bill 1588 would have created unnecessary hassles for those trying to buy and sell guns without making anybody safer.
Gun-control advocates who were pushing for mandatory background checks for all gun sales in Washington state — whether at gun shows or in homes — conceded defeat Tuesday as it became clear there wasn’t enough support to get the proposal approved in the House.
Politicians (acting like nannies) shouldn’t try to control what we eat
Some elected officials, such as New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, try but ultimately it’s not the role of government to control our eating habits.
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, like many politicians across America, went into public service because of a desire to help people.
TSA infuses reason into security rules
In the dozen years since the United States was attacked by terrorists using commercial airliners as weapons, many prudent and effective steps to ensure such attacks would not happen again were put into place.
Plan to undercut parental rights is misguided
Lawmakers are making progress to approved a measure to allow grandparents and others to gain visitation rights with children even though parents object.
An effort to usurp parental rights is gaining traction in Olympia.
More choice for cellphone users no guarantee consumers save
If Congress acts to make it legal to unlock cellphones for use on any network, it's likely the cost of cellphone service plans will be restructured.
An online petition with 114,000 signatures calling for making it legal to unlock cellphones for use on any network grabbed the attention of Congress last week. These 114,000 people — likely cellphone users — want to be able to unlock the codes in cellphones and tablets so they can switch the device to another company’s network.
More choice for cellphone users no guarantee consumers save
If Congress acts to make it legal to unlock cellphones for use on any network, it’s likely the cost of cellphone service plans will be restructured — perhaps upward.
Effort to shrink state's Supreme Court misguided
Sen. Michael Baumgartner's effort to reduce the court from nine to five justices seems to be a slap at the court for recent rulings.
Sen. Michael Baumgartner’s petulant attempt to gut the state Supreme Court to punish the justices in the wake of a few recent unfavorable rulings is misguided and wrong.
Reason needed in wake of tragic, preventable death
When a nurse refused to do CPR on a woman it spurred support for laws mandating emergency care. That’s not something that can, or should, be mandated.
Public outrage over a preventable death often leads to loud calls for change in the laws. But sometimes new legislation — particularly when driven by emotion — often causes far more problems than it addresses.
Paid family leave is too expensive and ill timed
The state government is again facing a $1 billion budget gap. Now is not the time for taxpayers to subsidize family leave.
Timing is everything. Yet, the Democrats who control the state House can’t — or won’t — grasp that seeking a tax increase to fund any new program is horrible timing.
Collecting DNA samples just like fingerprints
The collection of DNA samples at the time of arrest has been challenged. The US Supreme Court is expeced to rule on the case.
When people suspected of crimes are arrested they are usually fingerprinted. Is that a violation of their constitutional rights?
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