Tag Archives: Olympia

Streamlining education for our kids

Another issue I’ll be focusing on this session is education reform. Our smaller school districts are often overburdened by regulations and requirements handed down from the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) in Olympia. My goal is to introduce two bills that will help streamline operations for our rural school districts to help them save much-needed revenue and free up more resources to focus on their kids.

One of my proposals would require a review of all the required reports that OSPI mandates of its school districts to see which ones are actually used. There are dozens of reports each district must complete during each school year and while larger districts like Seattle, Tacoma and Spokane may have the personnel to accomplish the task, smaller districts often have a minimal amount of staff who are already working at peak production. Continue reading →

King, Eide call first five transportation feedback forums a “great success”

After establishing the goal of listening to the public’s input on transportation issues at venues across Washington, state transportation leaders are now halfway through their ten-city tour and are calling the feedback forums a great success.

“At the forum in Pasco last week, the governor made an appearance and was impressed by the level of engagement from citizens across Washington,” said Sen. Curtis King, R-Yakima, and co-chair of the Senate Transportation Committee. “We’ve heard the calls for more revenue and we’ve heard the calls for no gas tax increases, but perhaps the clearest message we’ve heard is that the state’s transportation system needs help, and that some of our reforms would do a lot to restore the public’s confidence in that agency. Continue reading →

King adds three stops to Senate’s transportation feedback tour

More people in Washington will have a chance to be heard now that Sen. Curtis King, R-Yakima, has announced the addition of three locations to the Senate’s statewide transportation feedback tour. The additional stops in Seattle, Tri-Cities and Bellingham stem from an overwhelming public response to a series of public forums scheduled around the state to gauge public opinion on potential transportation reforms and revenue.

“So many people were interested in attending that we had to add a few more to accommodate the overflow,” King said. “It’s a good day in state government when there are so many people interested in participating that you have to increase the number of meetings.” Continue reading →

King to co-chair Senate Transportation Committee under new plan

Under a new bipartisan banner, Democrat and Republican senators in the Washington State Senate today announced the formation of a Majority Coalition Caucus to lead the Senate during the 2013 legislative session. Twenty-five state senators have committed themselves to the new majority group, including Sen. Curtis King, R-Yakima, who will also co-chair the Senate Transportation Committee.

“Transportation has always been one of the most – if not the most – bipartisan committees in the Legislature. That won’t change as we head into the 2013 session,” King said after news about the new Majority Coalition broke. “Ever since I came to the Legislature I’ve been looking for solutions that were fair and equitable for Washington citizens. It hasn’t always been easy, especially under one-party rule for so long, but this Majority Coalition Caucus gives us the chance to truly bring parity to the Senate. I hope it’s an example that others will follow as well.” Continue reading →

King votes against bill to nullify taxpayer protection law

The Washington State Senate on Tuesday passed Senate Bill 6843, which would suspend a key provision of the taxpayer protection law created by Initiative 960. SB 6843 would repeal the two-thirds legislative vote requirement for final passage of any tax increase bill until July 1, 2011, which covers the 2010 and 2011 legislative sessions.

Sen. Curtis King, R-Yakima, said the bill is a slap in the face to taxpayers. Continue reading →

King says stimulus vote keeps Valley Mall interchange on track

Sen. Curtis King says the Valley Mall Boulevard/Interstate 82 interchange project, which was at risk of being delayed to 2016, will remain on schedule now that the Legislature has passed a bill to appropriate about $340 million in federal transportation stimulus money.

“Representatives Johnson and Ross helped move the bill out of the House of Representatives, the Senate caught it at mid-afternoon and now it’s off to the governor’s desk. It’s been a joint effort that I appreciate very much,” said King, R-Yakima. “One of my three goals for this legislative session was to keep the Valley Mall interchange on track. The votes today mean the project will stay on schedule to go out for bid in October.” Continue reading →