The House takes its first cut at early cuts

This morning, House members passed the "early action savings" bill, the first budget bill of the session and the first small step to bridging a $2.6 billion shortfall.

It comes only twelve days into the 2010 session and allows legislators to capture some early savings without waiting to vote on the full supplemental budget, a budget that won't be approved until the final days of session.

The bill makes $46.7 million in savings and extends numerous cost-saving measures approved by the Legislature last session.

The savings include:

• $18.6 million in administrative savings such as not hiring for vacant positions and reducing contract, travel and equipment spending.
• $9.4 million in efficiency savings such as consolidating printing functions in DSHS and expediting nursing home discharges.
• $10 million in service reductions to programs such as the Passport foster care program or Special Commitment Center services.
• $8.7 million in underexpenditures/federal funds including money unspent in the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction.

The measure now heads to the Senate.

Legislature honors the state's men and women in uniform

Major General Timothy J. Lowenberg addressed Democratic members of the House of Representatives today after lawmakers passed a package of bills to honor and help the state's soldiers, veterans and military families. Lowenberg is the commander of the Washington Army and Air National Guard.

Today's hot list

8:00 HHR A Education
Work Session: Gangs in Schools.
Public Hearing:
HB 2834 - Regarding gang and hate group activity at schools and school activities.
HB 2835 - Increasing school safety.
HB 2801 - Regarding antiharassment strategies in public schools.

9:00 HHR E Public Safety & Emergency Preparedness
Possible executive session: HB 2115 – Allowing booking photographs and electronic images at jails to be open to the public.

10:00 Floor Action - National Guard Day and vote on "Early Savings Bill"

1:30 HHR D State Government & Tribal Affairs
Public Hearing: HB 2603 – Requiring agencies to give small businesses an opportunity to comply with a state law or agency rule before imposing a penalty.

1:30 HHR A Finance Jt. w/ Health Care & Wellness
Public Hearing: HB 2388 – Concerning public health financing (candy tax)

Security Lifeline bill offers hope and opportunity for neighbors in need

Today, a bill that will reform Washington’s general assistance program (GAU) for people who are temporarily unemployable due to disabilities, came before the House Human Services Committee. Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson’s (D-Seattle) Security Lifeline bill, House Bill 2782, creates a reform program called “Disability Lifeline,” which would emphasize access to mental and physical health care, housing assistance in lieu of full cash grants, and quicker transitions from state to federal assistance for those who qualify for SSI benefits.

As Dickerson pointed out, “The Security Lifeline bill is an effort between philanthropy, community organizations, colleges and the state to offer hope and opportunity to some of our neediest neighbors during this time of economic crisis.”

A vital resource for more than 20,000 people with disabilities in Washington, GAU addresses one of the most critical needs of the mental health population. Witnesses told the committee that the Disability Lifeline helps communities by helping citizens struggling with poverty or temporary disabilities to avoid homelessness, or emergency rooms or jails. “This bill is actually a form of crime prevention,” Assistant Seattle Police Chief Nick Metz told the committee.

Moeller hosting forum to discuss Gov proposals about Vancouver's school for blind and deaf

“Hey, not so fast there, Governor.”

That’s the message southwestern Washington lawmakers are broadcasting about a plan to change who has the ultimate say-so at the Schools for the Blind and the Deaf in Vancouver.

State Rep. Jim Moeller from Vancouver testified in a Senate committee hearing yesterday morning against the proposal in Senate Bill 6491. He said later that the ideas in the bill have received “neither the appropriate level of fiscal scrutiny nor the appropriate level of public involvement.”

Moeller has arranged a public forum to discuss the legislation this Saturday, Jan. 23, at 10 a.m. The forum will be held in hearing room A on the first floor of the John L. O’Brien Building on the Capitol Campus in Olympia. Citizens can call or e-mail Moeller for driving directions. His Olympia phone number is 360-786-7872, his local Clark County phone number is 693-0804, and his e-mail address is moeller.jim@leg.wa.gov.

State Rep. Jim Jacks, another Vancouver and 49th Legislative District Democrat, as well as fellow Vancouver Democratic state Reps. Deb Wallace and Tim Probst, who both represent the 17th Legislative District, share Moeller’s concerns about the proposal. The legislation would transfer governance of the Washington State School for the Blind and the Washington State Center for Childhood Deafness and Hearing Loss to the state Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction.

The legislation was requested by the governor. It directs that the state Superintendent of Public Instruction would make all appointments that are now made by the governor for the two facilities. Currently, the State School for the Blind is under the direction of the school’s superintendent, who works with a board of trustees. The governor appoints the school’s superintendent and the trustees. The governor also appoints the director of the Washington State Center for Childhood Deafness and Hearing Loss, as well as the center’s board of trustees.

Moeller points out that “I simply haven’t heard any concrete reasoning, either financial or otherwise, for making such a dramatic change in the way these two long-standing, very successful institutions are governed. There is no specific information about how such a reorganization would save money or improve services provided to these unique populations. It seems to me that proponents of this idea haven’t done enough to involve the most obvious stakeholders. Students, parents and advocates for children who attend these facilities must certainly be involved in the process.

“I understand that our state is facing a huge budget and revenue crisis,” Moeller added. “I know that we have to make some very big changes in the way we do things. But let’s not make changes just for the sake of making changes – especially not if the proposed changes are not even going to save money, anyway, and certainly not if the proposed changes are going to foul up a perfectly sound system of governance at these two schools.”

All interested parties are certainly invited and encouraged to attend the forum. Staff from the governor’s office will be there, and interpreters and Braille copies of the legislation will be provided.

Parents, families rally at state Capital for autism insurance coverage

Families touched by Autism from around the state filled the Capitol Rotunda yesterday to support legislation that would cover the diagnosis and treatment of the developmental disorder that has risen dramatically in prevalence in recent decades.

The bill’s prime sponsor, Rep. Brendan Williamsknows all too well the toll the disability can take on a family, with a nephew of his own diagnosed with Autism. That experience has made him a leader in the state Legislature on the issue, pushing for better services for those afflicted, as well as better research into the growing epidemic.

It’s a need that’s currently going unmet, says citizen-advocate Arzu Forough, the founder of Washington Autism Advocacy (WAA), the group that helped organize the rally. “It’s very troubling that every single zip code in the state is now represented as reporting lacking in essential basic resources such as appropriate healthcare and research based education and family stability .”

Arzu, the parent of two children with autism, founded the WAA to help other parents navigate a health care system and agency bureaucracies that still have few answers and little support for families.

It’s why they came to Olympia – to put a human face on autism, and show their support for a bill they know will assist those families struggling to meet the special needs of those with autism.

Brendan introduced HB 1210 during the 2009 legislative session, which would require equal coverage by health insurers for autism conditions, along the same lines as a law passed in 2005, which provided health coverage to those suffering from mental illness. The bill has broad and bi-partisan support from his legislative colleagues, yet failed to pass last year. Despite the setback, and despite a state budget crunch that’s reining in any new spending, he isn’t giving up, believing this to be not only a health care issue, but a civil rights issue as well.

Brendan also serves on the state Autism Task Force tasked with studying, and making recommendations to the Legislature regarding the growing incidence of autism and ways to improve the delivery and coordination of autism services in the state.

For his commitment to helping families with autism, Brendan received the Autism Society of Washington’s 2009 legislator of the year award.

For more information about the WAA, visit: http://www.washingtonautismadvocacy.org

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To use, or not use, credit scores for insurance rates

At the request of State Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler, State Rep. Sharon Nelson sponsored HB 2513 to ban the usage of credit scores by insurance companies to calculate policy rates in our state.

It’s a very hot issue, so hot, in fact, that it was the only bill in the Financial Institutions and Insurance Committee agenda for last night’s hearing, which drew a large crowd and lasted almost four hours. It’s also an old issue. Rep. Steve Kirby, chairman of the committee, has sponsored the same bill year after year.

“This method of rating has disproportionally impacted communities of color, and even those with good credit histories may be just one financial crisis or one late payment away from a significant change in their credit score, which could considerably increase their insurance rates even if they’ve never filed a claim or had a driving infraction. Instead of this unfair process, insurers should set rates based on factors that have a proven correlation to insurance risk – factors like driving record, age and the condition of a property,” said Nelson in her opening remarks.

“The insurance industry’s reliance on credit scoring is unfair,” said Kreidler in his testimony, stressing that it’s even more so in this bad economy when so many people are out of a job. He also held that the practice has a negative effect on many Washington residents. “Thousands of consumers have contacted my office over the last ten years; upset because they don’t understand what their credit has to do with how they drive their car or treat their property. Many have contacted their insurance companies and can’t get a straight answer on what they can do to get a better rate.”

As an example of just how unfair the process is, Kirby shared a personal story. “I bought a car but after about a year I decided it didn’t suit my needs, so I traded it in for another one and, in the same year, my dishwasher broke, so I got a new one and put it on one of those six months no interest contracts. Then I got an adverse action notice from my insurer saying that those personal financial transactions had caused my rates to go up. And they went up substantially. Obviously it’s more likely that my house is going to burn down or that I’m going to crash my car into something as a result of those financial transactions, don’t you agree?” Kirby’s sarcasm drew laughter from the crowd.

When insurance industry representatives got their chance to make their case, they told the committee that multiple studies maintain that credit scores do predict insurance risks since they show that there is a significant correlation between a person’s credit history and the likelihood that he or she will file a claim.They also said that credit reports do not include information on a person’s race, age, gender, education and income, so it’s impossible for the practice to be discriminatory.

But testimony to the contrary was overwhelming. Consumer advocates raised questions about the fairness of the use of credit scores and the disparate impact of this practice on low-income and minority groups. Among those who showed up in support of Nelson’s bill were representatives from Neighborhood House, Statewide Poverty Action Network, Hispanic Legislative Day, Columbia Legal Services, Jewish Federation, Poverty Action Network, Washington State Association for Justice, National Organization for Women and Children’s Alliance.