Sure, sometimes it seems like the screamers and the insult artists are winning, but Secretary of State Sam Reed and the Foley Institute at Washington State University are teaming up to put in a plug for civility in public life.

Reed, the state Elections Division, and the Thomas S.  Foley Institute for Public Policy and Public Service recently hosted a “civility summit” at the state Capitol.  Reed and Nick Lovrich, Francis Benjamin and others from WSU were joined by longtime Democratic leader and strategist Paul Berendt and former senator and current GOP Chairman Luke Esser in a provocative discussion.  Lovrich reported on an in-depth survey of present and former legislators, media, staffers and interns and lobbyists that underscored that key players think civility – or lack thereof – makes a huge difference in the successes or barriers to progress in Olympia.

The panel told a standing-room-only audience that harsh campaigns sometimes spill over into Olympia, and that majority caucuses have the obligation and the opportunity to set the tone for bipartisanship and civility, since they have the power.  continue reading

In most corners of Washington, we’re in voting mode – and tomorrow is the deadline to get those ballots in.

Secretary of State Sam Reed put out a plea today for a strong turnout.

“As an officeholder who served in local government for years as Thurston County Auditor, I like to make the point that our local elections, including our springtime elections, are among the most important times for us to have our voices heard.  We have 254 different measures on the the ballot in 37 of our 39 counties – and I urge everyone to mark their ballot and get them turned in.”

Every county except Ferry and Pend Oreille has elections, and all but Pierce are being conducted by mail. Ballots must to be postmarked by Tuesday in order to count.  Election officials are urging folks who are voting Monday or Tuesday to take their completed ballots to the county elections office or to a designated drop box, and not run the risk of missing the postmark deadline.  (Pierce still has some polling places, but most county residents have switched to vote-by-mail.)

Do you know of a Washington corporation that’s doing great things in its community? Nominate them for a “Corporations for Communities” spring award now!

Secretary Sam Reed started the Corporations for Commmunities program last year as a way to recognize exceptional local businesses making a difference around Washington. Winners receive a National Association of Secretaries of State Medallion – the state’s highest civics award.

Last fall, KING 5 Television and Auburn’s Composite Solutions were picked from a statewide pool of nominees as Corporations for Communities award recipients.  Two more businesses – one small corporation and one large – will receive awards this spring.

You can nominate your favorite corporation from now till March 15. The award winners will be selected and announced in April.

In a bombshell ruling that comes as Olympia deals with a deep budget gap, King County Superior Court Judge John Erlick on Thursday held that Washington state is failing its constitutional mandate to adequately finance basic education for the state’s one million public school students.

The long-awaited decision came in a lawsuit brought by a group of school districts, parents, teachers and community leaders who asserted that the state relies too much on local special property tax levies to support the basics of K-12 education.  More than 30 years ago, the courts held that the Constitution’s reference to education being the state’s “paramount duty” means providing stable and ample financial support for the basics.
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Not to be a killjoy, but it’s been pointed out that one can’t willy-nilly (or Willy Tapeworm) go and change the Great Seal of Washington.   Turns out, to do so takes a constitutional amendment, and you can’t amend the Constitution by voter initiative.

As we’ve noted, James Vaughn of Ortingfiled an initiative to change the official seal from its depiction of the Father of the Country, George Washington, to one featuring a tapeworm dressed in a three-piece suit, attached to the nether region of the taxpayer.

But Patrick McDonald, assistant to the Secretary of State, and a serious observer of protocol and safeguarding the seal from unauthorized use, passes this along:

Article 18 of the Washington State Constitution:

SECTION 1 SEAL OF THE STATE. The seal of the State of Washington shall be, a seal encircled with the words: “The Seal of the State of Washington,” with the vignette of General George Washington as the central figure, and beneath the vignette the figures “1889.” continue reading

For five bucks and an idea, anyone can file an Initiative to the People – and they do.  Most are very serious, while others can be kooky or simply send a message. 

We’ve run across one that goes away from the beaten path: It’s a plan to change the prim-and-proper Great Seal of Washington.  As proposed by James Vaughn of Orting,  General George Washington and the year of admission to the union, 1889, would be replaced with, uh, a few subtle changes.

In the words of the initiative, the seal would feature ”a tapeworm dressed in a three-piece suit“ attached to the taxpayer.

The rest of the initiative includes recitations on Washington’s tax system, and says “We do not think that changing our state seal to reflect our government is FUNNY.” There you have it.

If you want to track all initiatives that are filed, or to get some history on what ideas have been proposed, and what happened to them over the past almost century, visit here.

Governor Gregoire says a $435 million windfall from the feds — in the form of more money for Medicaid — will help reduce the size of a proposed revenue package.

Gregoire, in a news conference called to report on the billions the state has received in federal recovery money, said she is confident that Congress will approve a healthy chunk of money requested by the White House to bail out the states’ medical assistance program. President Obama has asked for $25 billion nationwide in Medicaid matching funds.

The state Legislature and governor are grappling with a projected $2.6 billion deficit — a number that could grow after new caseload forecasts are factored in.  Gregoire has suggested cuts and fund shifts, plus about $780 million in new revenue.  She told reporters that the new federal dollars could help reduce the size of the tax package.  Lawmakers also are considering tax loophole closures, state employee furloughs and other strategies.

Part Ruddell family reunion and part a series of workshops on how to research your own family’s history, our “Ruddell Riddle” event attracted more than 100 people last Saturday. The event was held at the General Administration Building and hosted by the Office of Secretary of State.

About two-thirds of the attendees were Ruddell descendants who came from several Washington communities, as well as Oregon, Idaho, California and Nevada. Another 35 or so in the crowd were there to learn about the history of one of Thurston County’s most prominent pioneer families, and to find out tips on genealogy, using Digital Archives, researching your own home and how to do an oral history. continue reading

The main 2010 Census gets underway soon, but for those who don’t want to wait to get a snapshot of Washington, our counties and our cities, the number-crunchers have a fun “Quick Facts” webpage that gives factoids galore as we head into the new round of nose-counting.

For instance:

1. What’s the male-female split in Washington?  Almost even-Steven, 50.1 percent, a little more testosterone-y than the national percentage.
2. What about racial breakouts? We are 84.3 percent white or of Hispanic origin, 3.7 percent black, 1.7 percent American Indian or Alaska Native, 6.7 percent Asian, 0.5 percent Pacific Islander; 3.1 percent two or more races.  Hispanic breakout is 9.8.
3. Travel time to work?  About 25 minutes each way. Whew!
4. Homeownership? About 65 percent.
5. How many of us are foreign-born?  Not so many: 10.4 percent. About 14 percent speak a language other than English in the home.
6. Disabilities? Nearly 1 million Washingtonians – or about a sixth of the population – report having a disability of some kind.
7. Poverty? More than 11 percent of us live below the poverty line.

You can also click on a specific county or select a city for more drilldown.

… Washington-themed note cards are being sold for bargain prices through the Secretary of State’s Office!?  The Archives Division recently slashed prices for three separate packages of note cards:

Early Statehood note cards are scanned images of Washington trademark designs from 1892 and 1895; this pack includes eight cards and envelopes for $3.

The Salmon Run note cards feature salmon trademark designs from1982 and 1897; eight cards and envelopes are being sold for $4.

And, the Asahel Curtis note cards display beautiful scenes of Washington landscapes taken in 1925. Twelve cards and envelopes for $5.

Proceeds go to fund Archives programs and services. To take advantage of these low prices by visiting the Secretary of State’s online store, stopping by the Archives building, or sending an email to Jennifer.Baga@sos.wa.gov