Rep. Drew MacEwen, R-Union, discusses Republican opposition to a bill allowing surrogate mothers to charge commercial fees for carrying babies and weighs in on the uproar over legislative public records after the Legislature passed Senate Bill 6617 on “Daybreak with Jeff Slakey” on iFiberone Newsradio KMAS.
Author Archives: Erik Smith
Weeks ago, when I originally scheduled my telephone town hall for this evening, there were no plans for us to be on the House floor voting on bills. However, that changed on Friday when the supplemental operating budget was brought to the floor. After considering and voting on nearly 40 amendments, consideration of the final budget was delayed until later tonight.
Unfortunately, that means I will have to postpone tonight’s telephone town hall. However, hearing from you is important to me, so I will be re-scheduling it for a later date. An email on that will be forthcoming.
I truly apologize for the inconvenience. It is an honor to serve you.
Oakland Bay Junior High School student Tanner Sims, 14, traveled to Olympia Feb. 12 and spent the week serving as a page in the state House of Representatives. He was sponsored by 35th District Rep. Drew MacEwen, R-Union.
Tanner loves to swim, and also has a passion for serving others. As part of his page duties for the week, he learned to navigate the many buildings on the Capitol campus, delivered messages and documents to legislators and staff, and also attended page school every day to understand the inner workings of the Legislature.
“I always enjoy having the opportunity to sponsor students from the 35th as House pages,” said MacEwen. “Tanner did a fantastic job all week fulfilling a number of tasks critical to the efficient operation of the Legislature. I’m grateful for his service, and wish him the best going forward.”
Each year, students from around the state apply to participate in the House Page Program. To become a page, applicants must have a legislative sponsor, be between the ages of 14 and 16, and obtain written permission from their parents and school. Pages earn $35 per day while serving in the program. For more information about the House Page Program, click here.
On Monday, Feb. 26, I’ll be hosting a live telephone town hall from 6-7 p.m. During the call, I’ll provide a very brief update on the session and then spend the rest of the hour answering your questions. To participate, please call (360) 623-7335 and press the STAR (*) key on your telephone.
We’ll be covering a wide range of topics, including the two tax increase proposals the governor and the majority party are pushing this session. One of them is an energy tax, which would initially impose a tax in 2019 of $12 per metric ton of carbon emissions. The tax would increase each year after that.
The other is a capital gains income tax the majority party says would only ever hit the rich. It’s the same argument that was made in 2010 when the I-1098 income tax was on the ballot. Voters didn’t buy it, and the reason they didn’t buy it is because they know once a tax is on the books, it doesn’t come off. And once lawmakers decide a tax isn’t adding enough money to state coffers, there’s nothing stopping them from passing another bill to expand its parameters to more people. That’s why I-1098 went down in flames by 28 points, losing in all but one county.
Proponents of the capital gains income tax say revenue is needed to address this year’s property tax spike as a result of the McCleary bill we passed last year. The fact is we could provide property tax relief with the excess revenue we already have. The last thing we need is a new tax that will make our state less competitive and pave the way for a state income tax.
The push for new taxes by the governor and the majority party is almost comical. Every year, they claim we need billions more in revenue, but seemingly no amount of revenue is ever enough to satisfy their desire to increase spending — even at a time when the latest revenue forecast from state economists revealed the state will likely bring in $1.3 billion more in additional tax revenue over the next four years than previously expected.
In the 2011-13 biennium, we passed a $30.9 billion budget. The budget we pass for the 2019-21 biennium will be close to $50 billion. We don’t have a revenue problem. We’re simply addicted to spending more and more of your hard-earned money every year.
Cutoff calendar and our work in the Appropriations committee
Last Wednesday, the Legislature passed its first major deadline of this 60-day session — House of Origin cutoff. All House bills that did not pass off the House floor are now considered “dead” for the year, unless deemed necessary to implement the budget. The same applies for Senate bills.
We will be hearing dozens of Senate bills in the House Appropriations Committee before fiscal cutoff on the 26th, but our first order of business this week was holding an executive session on the majority party’s supplemental operating budget proposal. We debated the particulars of the budget long into the night before it was ultimately voted out of committee in a party-line vote, mostly because of the capital gains income tax proposal.
I have several other issues with the budget, most of which relate to what we’re not focusing on. I’m disappointed we aren’t fully funding a cost of living increase for our PERS 1 and TRS 1 retirees. I also don’t think it’s wise to ignore the $13.8 billion we have on the books in unfunded pension liability. We have the revenue to pay some of that down due to our strong economy. Kicking the can down the road even further doesn’t make fiscal sense.
Navy Appreciation Day at the Capitol
As a Navy veteran, it’s a privilege to celebrate Navy Appreciation Day at the Capitol every year. On Wednesday, I had the opportunity to deliver remarks on the House floor in support of House Resolution 4678. You can watch the video of my remarks by clicking on the image below.
Contacting me
Please feel free to contact me any time with comments, questions or concerns. My email address is drew.macewen@leg.wa.gov, and my phone number is (360) 786-7902.
It is an honor to serve you in the Legislature.
Rep. Drew MacEwen, R-Union, provides information about the House supplemental operating budget proposal, expressing disappointment with its overreliance on tax increases. He also shares information about his telephone town hall event scheduled for Monday, Feb. 26.
Sixteen-year-old home-school student Marietta Barrett traveled to Olympia last week to serve as a page in the state House of Representatives. She was sponsored by 35th District Rep. Drew MacEwen, R-Union.
Marietta is the daughter of Adam and Desiree Barrett. Her hobbies include playing the violin and the piano, and she also enjoys reading and knitting in her free time.
While serving as a House page, Marietta attended page school every day, delivered messages and documents to legislators and staff, and fulfilled other tasks critical to the efficient operation of the Legislature.
“Serving in the House Page Program is a unique and valuable opportunity,” said MacEwen. “I admire students like Marietta who have a passion to learn more about how their state government works. I really enjoyed having the opportunity to sponsor her as a page, and am thankful for her service.”
Each year, students from around the state apply to participate in the House Page Program. To become a page, applicants must have a legislative sponsor, be between the ages of 14 and 16, and obtain written permission from their parents and school. Pages earn $35 per day while serving in the program. For more information about the House Page Program, click here.
Sponsored by 35th District Rep. Drew MacEwen, Bradley Haskins Jr. traveled to Olympia last week to serve as a page in the state House of Representatives.
Bradley attends Oakland Bay Junior High School in Shelton. His favorite sports are baseball and football, and he loves cheering on the Seattle Seahawks.
During his week in Olympia, Bradley attended page school every day to understand the inner workings of the Legislature. He also learned to navigate the many buildings on the Capitol campus while delivering messages and documents to legislators and staff.
“Bradley’s a great kid, and I’m glad I had the opportunity to sponsor him as a page last week,” said MacEwen, R-Union. “I’m always impressed when students like him take the time to come to the Capitol and learn about the Legislature. That says a lot about them.”
To become a page, applicants must have a legislative sponsor, be between the ages of 14 and 16, and obtain written permission from their parents and school. Pages earn $35 per day while serving in the program. For more information about the House Page Program, click here.
Rep. Drew MacEwen, R-Union, tells iFiberone Newsradio KMAS he will not be forced into voting for a carbon tax because of the perceived threat of a ballot initiative if proposals die in the Legislature. Appearing on “Daybreak with Jeff Slakey,” MacEwen also responds to the recent decision by Public Lands Commissioner Hilary Franz to cancel the state’s lease with Cooke Aquaculture Pacific following last August’s net-pen collapse releasing non-native salmon into the Puget Sound.
Rep. Drew MacEwen, R-Union, gives his reaction to President Trump’s State of the Union speech, discusses bipartisan support for rural economic development and says his primary goal is to ensure a reasonable supplemental budget is passed this year in his appearance on “Daybreak With Jeff Slakey” on iFiberone Newsradio KMAS.