Our legislature in Olympia held off on extending access to a property-tax levy Federal Way voters had approved years ago to address the outrageous shortfall in funds provided by the state for basic education. The legislative leaders promised to address the issue after the election, as if our vote to restore them to power would make for some form of quid pro quo. The election is over, and now it is time to fix the problem.
The big problem has been that the state is only paying about 70 percent for our teachers. We pay property taxes like everyone else, but we get shorted due to an inequitable and archaic funding process. Federal Wayans instituted the “Great American Work Around” and passed a supplemental tax levy to keep our schools functioning. The legislature seemed to think that it could refuse our access to those supplemental funds by imposing a “levy lid” and extort us for votes by threatening our children’s education. This funding lid threatened us from keeping about 130 teachers this spring unless the legislators were allowed to return from the election to do their job. I hope everyone is aware that the legislators refused to do their job while being held under contempt of court with a fine of $100,000 per day for failing on their paramount duty to fund basic education.
House Bill 1059 (2017-18) — the years are important because HB 1059 of a year ago had to do with sexual predators — would restore our access to our funding work around. I went to the Washington State Legislature website to relay my support and comments to our local representatives in Olympia about this outrageous situation our education system faces. I think it is in the interest of every community member to do the same. If it was wrong to threaten to put our children under the bus to maintain party power, it will be wrong to throw them under the bus in a vindictive party fight, not to mention the 130 teachers who will face the threat of job loss.
Once this short-term fix is resolved, the legislature can get to work on the inconceivable funding process that leaves Federal Wayans having to tax themselves twice to grant their children the right to a basic education. I hope the Washington Education Association and Federal Way Education Association are doing all they can to push the legislature to do their job. Our teachers have not been anywhere close to getting an appreciable pay increase over the past 15 years, and yet the state, great recession and all, has managed to pull in 5 percent more in revenue each year. Apparently we have oodles of revenue in the hands of numbskull priorities.
This has nearly been enough to change my perspective on the challenges faced by President Barack Obama. Maybe the unhelpfulness of Congress had nothing to do with his skin color and everything to do with being mean spirited for the sake of party politics and illusions of political power. In our case it’s sad that our children’s education and our collective futures are being placed at risk.
Hiroshi Eto, Federal Way
Ivanov’s apology not sincere
I just saw the Allen Ivanov (Mukilteo killer) apology. Pretty sincere until he mentioned Satan and gun control. Personally, I don’t believe in a Satan that can cause you to commit such horrific acts.
And I don’t believe that the “ease” that allowed him to purchase a gun contributed to his horrific act. If you think Satan is controlling your life, seek mental health care. Otherwise, as they say, people kill other people, not guns.
John Dunhauser, Federal Way
