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Broadcast Fax Source. (206) 285-6285
From: JIM IRISH, Seattle, 206-789-7472
E-mail bf777@scn.org
Page 1 of I - 7-1-99 at 12:53:04 |
1904 Third Avenue, Suite 633
Seattle, Washington 98101- 1183
Voice. (206) 622-8425
Fax: (206) 623-4474 |
10508 Palatine Avenue North
Seattle, Washington 98133-8725
Voice & Fax (206) 789-1472 |
FEBRUARY 13, 2000
WASHINGTON STATE LEGISLATIVE ALERT
IMMEDIATE ACTION NEEDED -
HEARINGS SCHEDULED
GAME PLAN
Legislative Procedure and Rules - How the system works.
This is more scripted than the Super Bowl, so a little info. (Please
excuse the football metaphors by a one (other) game a year watcher.)
All
bills which were not reported out of their policy committees by
the end of
the first period (2-4-00) are dead.
ALL BILLS OF PROFESSIONAL INTEREST TO APPRAISERS AND SUPPORTED BY
ACOW,
SURVIVED! All four (see below) originated in the Senate and
were reported
out after hearing by their assigned policy committee and sent to
the Rules
Committee as either a desirable substitute bill, SSB 5924 (establishing
the Real Estate Appraiser Commission) and SSB 6360 (refining temporary
practice permit issuance), or in their original form, SB 6494 (increasing
small claims court limits) and SB 6642 (causing the non-issuance
of an
appraisal certificate or license to certain registered sex offenders).
Thanks go to Committee Chairs (Senator Margarita Prentice (D-11,
Skyway
(King) of CTHF), and Mike Heavy (D-34, West Seattle (King) of Judiciary)),
Committee Members, to DOL Staff (Director Fred Stephens, Asst. Dir.
Alan
Rathbun (BPD Manager), Syd Beckett (RE Programs Mgr.) and Cleotis),
and to
appraisers who called or wrote Chairs, Members or other Senators,
or who
testified in hearings. Special thanks go to ACOW's Lobbyist,
T.K.
Bentler, for the great job he is doing again this year for the appraiser
community.
We are now in the second (and shorter) period of the five set by
the
Legislative Cutoff Schedule. This ends at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday,
February
15. All bills must be passed by their house of origin by that
deadline to
stay alive. THIS IS WHERE EACH APPRAISER COUNTS. IT
IS ESSENTIAL THAT
EACH OF US CALL OUR SENATOR, OR SEND AN E-MAIL, OR SEND A MESSAGE
VIA THE
LEGISLATIVE HOTLINE AT 1-800-562-6000 RIGHT NOW. Send a separate
message
for each of the four bills, and reference it by the bill number.
Your
message should ask that your Senator support the bill in the their
party
caucus and in floor action, and that he or she "Pull the bill"
in on the
Rules Committee (see below). The helpful hotline staff will
give you
direct office phone numbers, e-mail addresses and take a hotline
message
if you give them your District Number. Bill and member information
is on
the web at www.leg.wa.gov also.
PHONE CALLS AND E-MAILS TODAY - -
Each of the four bills now is in the Senate Rules Committee.
The Rules
Committee must pass a bill through two steps (each known as a "pull")
in
separate meetings. My understanding is that each member of
Rules can pull
two bill per meeting. The first "pull" is to move
the bill from the White
Sheet (which it is placed on when it is received by the Rules Committee)
to the Green Sheet. After the "pull" from "White
to Green" comes the
"pull" from the "Green Sheet" to the "Floor
Calendar" which makes the bill
eligible for floor action.
The Rules Chair is Lt. Governor Brad Owen (D), who also is President
of
the Senate. The Vice Chair is Senator Lorraine Wojahn (D-27,
Tacoma
(Pierce)) who also serves as the Senate's President Pro Tempore.
The
remaining eight Democratic members are Senator Al Bauer (D-49, Vancouver
(Clark), who also is Vice President Pro Tempore and was the prime
sponsor
of ACOW's 1999 SB 5652 which significantly raised the eminent domain
reimbursement allowance), Senators Jeri Costa (D-38, Everett (Snohomish)),
Tracey Eide (D-30, Federal Way (South King and North Pierce), the
Majority
Assistant Whip), Rosa Franklin (D-29, Tacoma (Pierce), Majority
Whip),
Calvin Goings (D-25, Puyallup (Pierce), Majority Assistant Floor
Leader),
Betti Sheldon (D-23, Bremerton (Kitsap), Majority Floor Leader),
Sid
Snyder (D-19, Long Beach (Pacific and Wahkiakum, and parts of Cowlitz
and
Grays Harbor), and the Majority Leader), and Harriet Spanel (D-40,
Bellingham (San Juan, plus parts of Skagit and Whatcom),and the
Majority
Caucus Chair).
The Ranking Republican Member is Senator Jim West (R-6, Spokane
(Spokane),
who serves as the Republican Leader). The remaining six Republican
members of the Rules Committee are Senators Alex Deccio (R-14, Yakima,
Selah and Union Gap (Yakima), and Republican Whip), Patricia Hale
(R-8,
Richland and Kennewick (Benton), and Republican Caucus Chair), Harold
Hochstatter (R-13, Moses Lake (parts of Grant, Adams, Kittitas and
Yakima)), Jim Horn (R-41, Mercer Island, Factoria & Newcastle
and
northeastern Renton (King)), Steve Johnson (R-47, Covington, Black
Diamond
and Kent (King), and Republican Floor Leader), and George Sellar
(R-12,
East Wenatchee (Chelan and Douglas, and parts of Grant and Okanogan),and
co-sponsor of ACOW's 1999 SB 5652).
The final decision to take floor action rests with the Majority
Leader,
Senator Sid Snyder (D-19). The other members of the Majority
Leadership
are shown with their titles as Caucus Officers, as are the members
of the
Republican Leadership.
NEXT PERIOD - -
Wednesday, February 15, begins the Legislature's third period when
bills
passed by their house of origin are considered by the policy committee
to
which they have been assigned by the opposite house. Inasmuch
as few
bills have yet been passed by their house of origin, the chairs
of the
policy committees in the opposite house have published their tentative
schedules for this week's hearings based upon their informed expectations
of which bills are apt to be passed and are assumed to be referred
to
their committee, or have scheduled work sessions on other topics.
House
committees have Co-Chairs and two Vice Chairs representing both
of the two
major parties because forty-nine Democrats and forty-nine Republicans
were
elected as members to their respective caucus in November 1998.
This tie
and the resultant power sharing means that controversy must be avoided
if
a bill is to move forward.
- - HEARINGS FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 1:30 P.M. - -
The House Financial Institutions and Insurance (FII) Committee Co-chairs,
Representatives Brad Benson (R-6, Spokane (Spokane)), and Brian
Hatfield
(D-19, Long Beach (Pacific and Wahkiakum, and parts of Cowlitz and
Grays
Harbor)), have scheduled the hearings on SSB 5924 (establishing
the Real
Estate Appraiser Commission) and SSB 6360 (refining temporary practice
permit issuance), its first set of public hearings on this Friday,
February 18, at 1:30 p.m. in House Hearing Room D in the John L.
O'Brien
House Office Building. Six bills are planned to be heard.
SSB 5924 is
the first on the agenda, and SSB 6360 is third. The hearing
is scheduled
for television by the State's TV Washington (TVW). Appraisers
should plan
to meet in the Legislative (Capitol) Building ground-floor Cafeteria
at
noon.
SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 5924
ACOW's APPRAISAL
PROGRAM ENHANCEMENT EFFORT
The Senate Rules Committee, on successive pulls by Senator Alex
Deccio
(R-14, Yakima, Selah and Union Gap (Yakima), has moved SSB 5924
to the
Floor Calendar, making the bill eligible for its Second Reading
on the
Senate Floor. With enough immediate support from appraisers,
the third
reading and floor action can be follow in time for passage, so call
your
Senator to ask for that support.
Senator Deccio should be thanked by all for his support and
favorably-phrased questions in the Senate Commerce, Trade, Housing
and
Financial Institutions (CTHF) Committee on 01-20-2000 when Sheridan
Shaffer and Jim Irish testified in support of the bill for ACOW,
as should
Chair Senator Margarita Prentice (D-11, Skyway (King)) and Vice
Chair
Senator Paul Shin (D-21, Edmonds (Snohomish)).
Substitute SB 5924 is the result of some two weeks of negotiations
following the public hearing between Jim Irish and DOL, assisted
by ACOW
Lobbyist T. K. Bentler (who simultaneously has been negotiating
with the
banking industry lobbyists). Substitute SB 5924 preserves
the ACOW goal
of creating the Real Estate Appraiser Commission (a Class and board
with
rule-making powers) to replace the current Real Estate Appraiser
Advisory
Committee (a Class I board with only advisory, no rule-making, authority).
ACOW's original bill sought even broader responsibilities for the
new
commission, approaching those of a Class IV board. SB 5964
originally was
introduced in the 1999 Session of this Biennium under the sponsorship
of
Senators Ken Jacobson (D-46, Northeast Seattle (King), and Majority
Caucus
Vice Chair), Jim Honeyford (R-15, Sunnyside (Yakima), and Republican
Assistant Whip) and Georgia Gardner (D-42, Bellingham (Whatcom)),
thanks
to the hard work of ACOW's lobbyist, T.K. BENTLER.
SSB 6360 - TEMPORARY PRACTICE PERMIT CHANGES
Requested by DOL to bring Washington's temporary practice permit
program
into closer conformity with the model sought by the Appraisal Subcommittee
of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC).
SSB
6360 will amend RCW 18.140.155 to allow the term to be set by rule,
proposed to be six months. The out of state appraiser must
provide DOL
with a copy of the contract. DOL concurred with ACOW's request
for
amendment of the filed bill to reinsert the "copy" language
from the
original draft. CTHF heard testimony on 000128 in support
of SB 6360 from
Cleotis Borner, with T. K. Bentler signing in at the hearing in
support of
the bill on behalf of ACOW, and reported out Substitute SB 5924
with the
change requested by ACOW. SSB 6360 awaiting action in the
Senate Rules
Committee at last report.
SB 6642 - PREVENTING REGISTERED SEX OFFENDERS AS APPRAISERS
Jim Tesso testified in support as Chair of the REAAC at the 000203
CTHF
hearing. RCW 18.140.160 (5) can not prevent its approving
an application
on the grounds of moral turpitude beyond the provisions of other
Washington law. SB 6642 is a sequel to 1999 SB 5253 which
was broadly
sponsored at the request of DOL with the support of WAR, gained
unanimous
passage, and was enacted by Governor Locke as Chapter 46 of 1999,
to
prevent a registered sex offender from holding a real estate license.
Both bills affect only the more serious classes of registered sex
offenders, and are subject to the provisions of other statutes by
reference. SB 6642 has been made eligible for its Second Reading
on the
Senate Floor. Support from appraisers will lead to the third
reading and
floor action, so call your Senator to ask for that support.
SB 6494 - ADJUSTING SMALL CLAIMS COURT JURISDICTION.
This amendment to RCW 12.40.010 will raise the Small Claims Court
limit to
$4,000 from the present $2,500. ACOW supports this as it did
1998 HB
2311. T. K. Bentler signed in at the 000126 hearing before
the Senate
Judiciary Committee in support of the bill on behalf of ACOW.
SB 6494 has
been pulled to the Green Sheet, BUT (at last report) it still awaits
the
necessary second pull to the Floor Calendar so that it can become
eligible
for its Second Reading on the Senate Floor. With enough immediate
support
from appraisers, the third reading and floor action can be follow
in time
for passage, so call your Senator to ask for that support.
MESSAGES ARE A MUST
Contacting your own Senators and Representatives is essential.
Phone and
FAX numbers, E-mail and Post Office Addressees, bill copies and
any other
information which you need can be found by calling the Legislative
Hot
Line at 1-800-562-6000. The illustrative model e-mail address
for "Your
Favorite Legislator" is legislator_yo@leg.wa.gov.
Use the WEB at
www.leg.wa.gov for LEGInfo,
or access by FTP at ftp.leg.wa.gov
or by
E-mail at ftpmail@leg.wa.gov.
Also go to
http://www.onelist.com/subscribe.cgi/Appraisers-WA.
See ACOW on the Web
at www.acow-wa.org for details.
Request ACOW E-mail from bf777@scn.org
until a listserve is implemented. No part of this effort is
too small to
matter. PLEASE HELP OUR PROFESSION NOW!
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *** * * * * * * * * * * * *
* * * * * *
JIM IRISH 206-789-7472 bf777@scn.org
www.scn.org/~bf777
SRA Member of the Appraisal Institute
State Certified General Real Estate Appraiser
10508 Palatine Avenue North, Seattle, Washington 98133-8725
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APPRAISERS' COALITION OF WASHINGTON * at * www.acow-wa.org
Washington State Legislature's Toll-free
Hot Line 1-800-562-6000
E-mail "Your Good Member" (Senator/Representative) at
member_yo@leg.wa.gov
Find Bills at http://www.leg.wa.gov/pub/billinfo/1999-00/senate
(or house)
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