The Washington State Supreme Court will decide whether to uphold or invalidate Spokane’s ordinance banning camping within 1,000 feet of schools, day care facilities, parks, and playgrounds. Last November, Spokane voters passed the measure – Proposition 1 – after a significant influx of homeless people setting up camp and storing personal property in the city. The measure effectively bans camping in much of Spokane and nearly all of downtown.

Of course, like any rational measure, Proposition 1 faced fierce opposition from the left. Prior to the vote, Jewels Helping Hands and Ben Stuckart filed a lawsuit to remove the measure from the ballot. Shift readers may remember the organization from the story we broke back in 2015 of the embezzlement conviction of Jewels Helping Hands registered agent and treasurer, Jason Green. As Shift reported, while Vice President of Finance for U.S. Foodservice, Green, along with his friend, Jimmie Dillingham, were convicted of stealing nearly $500,000 from the company. Green was sentenced to 30 months in prison and to make full restitution of the stolen funds to the company.

And Shift readers may remember former Spokane City Council President Ben Stuckart from our many reports of his history of ethics violations. While a member of the City Council, Stuckart was fined for leaking a confidential email to the firefighters’ union, violating ethics rules. In 2018, he narrowly allocated city funds to the Carl Maxey Center, a non-profit he supported, and expedited the process to fit its budgetary timeline. During his mayoral campaign, a formal complaint was lodged against a campaign supportive of him, funded by his friends in the firefighters’ union, for failing to disclose the source of $80,000 used for negative ads. Before leaving office, Stuckart supported a $740,000 contract with Jewels Helping Hands, despite its officers’ criminal pasts, which led to an ongoing city investigation. And, after leaving office, he has started a consulting company, raising concerns over potential ethics violations. The City of Spokane’s Code of Ethics prohibits former employees from representing clients in matters they were involved in within a year of leaving office.

Jewels Helping Hands and Ben Stuckart’s efforts to stop Proposition 1 were denied by a state superior court judge, and the measure was upheld by a court of appeals. The state Supreme Court will now examine whether the measure exceeds the scope of local initiatives, as defined by state law. According to the Washington State Standard, this review does not address the measure’s constitutionality, a matter influenced by the Ninth Circuit’s Martin v. City of Boise ruling, which limits enforcement of anti-camping laws without adequate shelter beds. The U.S. Supreme Court is also deliberating on a similar issue in the City of Grants Pass, Oregon v. Johnson case. The lower courts ruled that Proposition 1 adhered to legislative, not administrative, criteria and did not conflict with state law. We now await the State Supreme Court’s decision. Read more at the Washington State Standard.

Nearly never a good idea, the Everett City Council wants to follow King County’s example on a key economic decision. Everett City Council is considering a proposal to increase the minimum wage to $20.24 – just shy of King County’s $20.29 minimum wage. It should come as no surprise that the local county labor council is pushing for the hike, while also seeking a ballot measure AND urging the council to create a backup ordinance. As the Washington Policy Center warns, a minimum wage hike will result in layoffs, reduced working hours, and higher consumer prices, which will negate the benefits for workers. Additionally, employees working fewer hours may lose their benefits. The Everett City Council would be wise to consider the long-term negative impacts for an outsized minimum wage law. Read more at the Washington Policy Center.

Bob Ferguson does not want to focus the race for governor on pressing matters affecting people across our state daily, including escalating crime rates and the burden of high living costs. Likely, it’s because Ferguson’s far-left, ideologically driven policy positions only exacerbate existing problems. So, in the absence of any proven solutions, he is resorting to distracting voters with issues that do not impact them and attacking his opponents. In a recent interview on KIRO News Radio, gubernatorial hopeful Dave Reichert called out Ferguson for his cynical strategy.

Unlike Ferguson, Reichert emphasized that public safety is his top priority, given his background as a sheriff and congressman. And, unlike Ferguson, Reichert has a plan. Expressing concern about our state’s low number of police officers per capita and its impact on crime rates and accountability, Reichert outlined a 10-point plan focusing on police recruitment, law enforcement, and tackling drug trafficking and domestic violence. Reichert also addressed issues like homelessness, mental health, substance abuse, and education. Read more at KIRO News Radio.

A very relevant question…

Yet another reason to vote in November…

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