Making It More Expensive For Us To Live

Source: ShiftWA.org

Governor Jay Inslee has begun to unveil his 2021 legislative session priorities  – and it is good that after nine months of one-man rule he finally admits there is a legislative branch in Washington State government – and as expected, he wants to help out his special interest friends that made his re-election possible, and make it more expensive for the rest of us to live here.  While the governor has thrown minimal scraps at the employers and workers which his “emergency” orders have financially devastated, the governor’s “equity” proposals will increase the cost of insurance, energy, and housing for all Washington residents.  But that’s not all this week, as to pay for the union bosses’ demands for more government employees, Inslee is expected to attempt once again to introduce a state income tax on capital gains. (Shift Article)

Governor Inslee, whose previous climate change measures have dramatically failed to reach their CO2 reduction goals, has once again proposed an extremely expensive Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) that would increase the cost of living, working, and moving around in Washington State, yet provide very minimal environmental benefit. While private companies like Microsoft, Amazon, and Boeing are showing success in meeting their carbon reduction targets, Washington State (like nearly all government entities) has never come close to reaching the goals which liberal politicians (like Jay Inslee) have promised that their legislation would achieve.  Ironically, the governor’s latest proposal breaks his budget commitment to “equity” (which he made just 24 hours earlier), since Inslee’s LCFS also increases the cost of housing, which will impact low-income individuals the most.  Also, since an LCFS could increase the cost of gas between an estimated 47 – 63 cents a gallon, the cost of transporting basic necessities like food, clothing, and educational supplies will also increase, thus making it more difficult for low-income families to survive in Washington State.  If the governor were genuinely concerned about the climate, he would stop promoting the selfish agenda of his special interest supporters, and follow the examples of private industry, and invest in technology and projects which are cost efficient in reducing CO2 emissions.  Nah, that makes too much sense. (Washington Policy Center)