Mayor Leavitt? Why write this...

Mr. Mayor - Why write this letter, when you already know the answer?

You have been been a part of the Columbia River Crossing project process since 2004. I know, I have been around it myself and could tell you the answer you are going to get from both Department of transportations who are finding out they may not have the financial resources at either state level to pay for this project.

They will be looking at some how jury-rigging this process to some how find a way to toll as much of it as possible. Even as we speak, there are state legislators having problems with the whole eight to ten years of this process, the communication and lack of transparency.

Yes, I know how many different wonderful meetings you had to attend as a city council member, c-tran board member and a member of the SWRTC board? And you switched the deck chairs with other council members when you became mayor in 2009 to lessen your workload some. And in  2008-09, you took the role of head of the C-tran board chairmanship as well.

Watching you for some time, I even said to many people when you were speaking of the county commissioner firing squad with Dan Tonkovich, Jeanne Stewart and you were speaking to them at a very LOW point between the two during the last comprehensive plan process... Thought things might have improved a bit since two of the former members of the board have now retired and new people have taken their place through the elective process.

What my issue is with you, is why did you write this letter, when you know it probably will not it will not go any where?

Is this some type of public relations stunt like the one you pulled on Royce Pollard  to create some separation, since you both sounded so close in stature, temperament and ideas right before the election in October 2009? And you needed some type of political blow back to hurt him to make sure you would win...

Are you trying to tell us that you will be running for mayor and will kick off the start of that process and fund raising you know you will need to survive, because you had one of the most expensive races in Clark County elections for a mayor? And until the recent races of Clark County commissioners were in the hundred of thousands, you expect the paltry sum of under one hundred thousand will barely cover it?

Honestly, I cannot say much more. You have me breathless... to your reasons for writing this letter to nowhere...

Oh and by the way, PLEASE do some thing about your atrocious, not updated blog off blogspot...

Is this a REAL investigation? Try some thing bigger than a box of office supplies...

Mike Baker from the Associate Press has started a few articles on the minor points of privilege for the legislators. I don't mind if they cover things like internet access, cell phone services, laundry cleaning reciepts and MINOR expense reports.

Most of this is what? a couple million dollars or less?  I could understand going after may be a little birdy type of things like art in a politicians office, which for some might not understand that if you live over on the Washington Coast or the furthest South and North eastern remote counties, is going to be a working home in the capitol.

And stuff like these minor expenses, make remote working on legislation and state business from their home districts possible. To look decent, professional and representative of the best we have to offer in the state?

I have to say, if it were some thing seriously outrageous like a baseball stadium passing a kickback, someone getting special treatment or favors Or there was real serious issue? (hypothesizing only folks. No burning bush here...) Then there would be some burning fire under the political stakes.

I just do not understand why this reporter is going after small and petty sums. Does the reporter have better things to cook up during the legislative session?

Beliefs....

Some might say, what do you believe in? A higher power? Yourself, a faith?

Though some might say I believe in listening to others are experiencing. Because when you listen to others, you learn some thing about their pitfalls, their issues, their pain, their experiences.... And what I do not want to repeat.

You might call it, your average walking education. Learn the greatest things... And some references to a higher power, a higher spiritual awakening for some.

But I do not directly believe in a god or higher power, directly. i do love listening to various speeches and ideas related to it. There are many worldly faiths around? And they all have rich, wonderful histories.

And there are agnostics - atheistic pursuits that should be wonderfully also mentioned. With the world at the fingertips, you can find a lot about some thing through a search engine. Now you can find the same thing through social media sites... (way too many to list and changes over the microsecond?)

The reason why I love Clark County, Washington has such a wonderful history of different cultures. And being connected to a wider metropolitan area of nearly two million people, I explore the oddity every single day.

With a seven billion people and growing in the world and a further growing of the on-line life as more and more come on every day, we get to learn more and more.

And with a small, but growing international airport in Portland, right across the Columbia River, any person can travel all over the physical world and a physical presence can be had, that a network site or social media could never give.

So if you have belief in some thing, as long as you do not impose it on others, please share? You never know, I might come across you at some point in my travels.

One more piece of legislation that got missed.

I just did a nice, little review of the political reporters work over at Clark County's newspaper and it seems she missed a piece of legislation of Ann Rivers and Don Benton (along with some other co-sponsors?) have a piece of legislation, senate bill 5088, that would in essence elimiate a lot of wording in RCW 81.104 to the reference of "High Capacity Transit" and associated wording, that looks like it was eliminated to clean up the section:

(as of January 22, 2013, this is the current version) src: http://apps.leg.wa.gov/documents/billdocs/2013-14/Pdf/Bills/Senate%20Bills/5088.pdf

And the bill's digest suggests this is the apparent reason for the bill:

"Gives all eligible voters within the boundaries of a
transit agency the opportunity to vote on the transit agency's
plan to raise revenue for the purpose of creating a high
capacity transportation system."

and can be found at src: http://apps.leg.wa.gov/documents/billdocs/2013-14/Pdf/Digests/Senate/5088.DIG.pdf

You can further follow this bills run through the various committees and houses here:

http://apps.leg.wa.gov/billinfo/summary.aspx?bill=5088&year=2013

WA state Senator Don Benton, the white courtesy phone is ringing..

If you do a little research, Senators Don Benton and Pam Roach are co-sponsoring a bill in the washington state senate src: http://apps.leg.wa.gov/billinfo/summary.aspx?bill=5093&year=2013 that will affect the ability or change the wording to disallow the use of twenty dollar that municipal governments collects through the state department of licensing to not be used for "ANY THING" other than roads or highways.

Now, if you live in an area like Clark County, this may affect the ability of the constrained 2004 transit district that hovers around the smaller northern cities, the bigger brother the city of Vancouver and the urban clark county from using the revenue to benefit bus or light rail systems that is supposedly going to be built with Columbia River Crossing Project. src: http://www.columbiarivercrossing.org

This might hamper the ability of other already formed and using this same revenue through municipal governments in the state, that may use this money to fund their transit operations.

Read the legislative link, look at line 25 through 31 or so at the underline text to see the substantive change to the RCW RCW 82.80.140.

You can also find this modified language in Senate Bill 5885 being considered in the Senate Transportation committee

 "If the proposal for a high capacity transportation system plan and financing
  plan is rejected by the voters, the proposing transit agency may not
  devote any time or resources to the further development of the high
  capacity transportation system plan and financing plan until the voters
  approve the proposal. "

As it currently reads the change in bill as of January 22, 2012. This bill will be making this change in the same RCW 81.104 that contains a lot of the High Capacity Transit language and other basic transit system state language.

src: http://apps.leg.wa.gov/documents/billdocs/2013-14/Pdf/Bills/Senate%20Bills/5085.pdf

You can follow the progress of this piece of legislation and its historical record here: http://apps.leg.wa.gov/billinfo/summary.aspx?bill=5085&year=2013

More interesting things going on with Light Rail...

Have you ever thought HOW did C-tran form?

Well, in the mid 1970s, the state of Washington formed Public Transportation Benefit Area or (PTBA) to benefit the general public of certain areas of the state of Washington within the county or locality that it is located.

Many of the smaller, outside the main huge of washington, Puget Sound are run through this law src: http://www.mrsc.org/subjects/transpo/pubtransfin.aspx

If you would like to know the taxation, formation, laws, justification or thought process behind some thing the city of Vancouver or clark county? Why not use what THEY use for research, the MRSC system or municipal research services centers for local elected officials?

Ever want to find out some obscure law or how some thing works? Try that link... Because the minutia is one way you can have fun learning some thing new about government that your elected officials may not KNOW! :)

A wonderful thing, Fisher House in Clark County, WA

I have a personal stake in this because a family member of mine is in the VA hospital over the past ten years, multiple times for some very serious things. So when I read this article over at the Oregonian. (src: Fisher House ) I sure was happy for those that might have to come from other areas of Oregon to seek veteran treatment and the closest place to stay can be prohibitively for family to come see there family members.

This would be some thing akin to a Ronald McDonald House but for veteran's family, who need a place to crash.

It could be in Vancouver or Portland at some point in the future. Vancouver has a history of Army base and Long Term veteran care center here that is linked to the Veteran Administration hospital in Portland, Oregon.

So right now, the Fisher House Foundation and a group of like minded individuals are fund raising. Read the article for more information on this, if you are interested in helping out.