The last six Washington governors, including the current one, Christine Gregoire, and both Republicans and Democrats of the past have all come together to oppose Initiative 933. Theres a very good reason for this: it is a devastating proposal.
It claims to be a property fairness initiative, but it is clearly a way for special interests to make a pile of money fast. The part about the initiative that scares me the most is the bizarre item that says if someone decides to develop anything, anywhere, no matter how inappropriate and either the state or county tries to prevent the development through legal action, the legal fees of the developer are paid by the county or state. In other words, you and I, the taxpayers, actually pay for the developers legal fees.
In my 45 years of dealing with public initiatives here in Washington and in California prior to that, I have never seen one that digs into the taxpayers pocket to pay for developers greed. Its a positively scary initiative: a dream for the greediest developers; a nightmare for the rest of us.
I urge all taxpayers and voters to reject I-933. Protect yourself, your neighborhood and your wallet from this deceptive initiative.
Bruce Barnbaum
Granite Falls