Sen. MacEwen holds town hall call to discuss session

State Sen. Drew MacEwen, R-Shelton, had a telephone town hall Feb. 22 for 35th District constituents.

MacEwen was eager to have a live community conversation and said the town hall calls were “an effective way” to communicate.

He told callers the short legislative session, which ends March 7, “is down to the wire,” but should end on time.

MacEwen was eager to talk about the six public initiatives that garnered enough signatures to be certified by the Secretary of State.

The six initiatives are:

■ I-2109 Repeals the state’s capital gains tax.

■ I-2111 Prohibits the state, counties, cities, and other local jurisdictions from imposing or collecting income taxes.

■ I-2113 Removes restrictions on police pursuits and would allow pursuits upon reasonable suspicion of a crime and posing a threat to the safety of others.

■ I-2117 Repeals the state’s cap- and-invest program adopted as part of the Climate Commitment Act.

■ I-2124 Allows employees to opt out of the state’s long-term care program at any time.

■ I-2081 Concerns parental rights relating to their children’s public school education.

A poll taken during the call found respondents all supported each initiative. The 35th District covers all of Mason and parts of Thurston and Kitsap counties.

MacEwen said he was disappointed that each of the initiatives would not get a hearing.

“People want their voices heard. At a minimum, follow the state Constitution and hold a hearing,” he said.

Currently, I-2113, I-2081 and I-2111 have scheduled hearings.

MacEwen said he would “absolutely” have a hearing on an initiative he didn’t agree with, unlike the Democrats.

A caller who said he was a real estate broker was concerned about the recent state House passage of a rent control bill.

MacEwen said he did not support rent control. He said it didn’t make sense that homeowners insurance continues to go, property taxes continue to go up, but if you are renting out a home you can’t raise the rent accordingly.

“I don’t know that there are votes to advance the bill,” MacEwen said.

Another caller said he is a senior citizen on a fixed income and property taxes are his biggest monthly expense.

MacEwen sympathized.

“This Legislature has no desire to provide property tax relief,” MacEwen said about the Democratic majority.

“It’s getting harder and harder to make ends meet in this state,” he said.

Washington’s energy grid was concerning for one caller. He wanted to know if the grid could handle adding more electricity.

“We have an inadequate transmission system,” MacEwen said.

He said it was concerning that government is “demanding something happen when we don’t have a way to support that.”

He pointed out the potential banning of natural gas.

“Where are they getting the additional energy?”

MacEwen said he was not opposed to solar or wind energy, but trying to make the switch before a reliable system was in place would not work.

MacEwen discussed I-2124, allowing opt-out of the state’s payroll deduction for long-term care, with callers and told them why he supports the initiative.

Currently, a tax is deducted from a person’s paycheck to cover long-term care. This can only be used for care in Washington and the money a person contributes is not transferable, MacEwen said. If you want to move to a warmer climate when you get older, you will essentially have contributed your money for nothing, he said.

Also, people may have insurance that covers long-term care and do not need the money.

“This is not a good program,” he said.

A caller from Hoodsport asked MacEwen to intervene and regulate homeowner association dues. She said her Lake Cushman dues have jumped 300% in one year.

MacEwen sympathized and said he and his wife were part of an HOA for “well over a decade.”

He advised the caller to get involved in her HOA and said that some organizations are operated better than others.

“Looking at how the state handles its budget, I’m not sure you want the state getting involved,” he said.

MacEwen said he enjoys the phone calls with constituents and looks forward to doing it again.

“I appreciate you and your concerns,” he said.