'Simple majority' bill for levies misses deadline

Holmquist excited

OLYMPIA — The Senate Democrats killed their version of a simple majority bill in regard to the percentage of votes needed to pass a school levy Wednesday.

"I have been opposed to this bill from the very beginning," Sen. Janea Holmquist, R-Moses Lake, said. "It is a mistake to lower the threshold for raising property taxes, especially as many families are already being taxed out of their homes."

Two hours before the session deadline, a motion was made to adjourn before consideration of the bill. Wednesday was the cutoff day for the legislature to consider their own bills before 5 p.m.

Sen. Joe Zarelli, R-Ridgefield, made a motion to consider the bill, which Democrats balked at before entering into an impromptu caucus and then responded with a move to adjourn.

"It is quite apparent that the majority party was not interested in passing the simple majority bill," she said. "After failing to gain the required votes in their prior attempt, Democrats had enough votes to pass the measure this time around."

The Senate will soon hear a different version of the bill put together by the state House of Representatives, she added.

The new version will probably be more unattractive than the previous, she said.

"The move to kill debate two hours before cutoff sent a strong message," Holmquist said. "On an issue as critical as simple majority, one has to wonder what Democrats were thinking when they effectively eliminated their chances of approving the proposal."