Conservative group, teachers’ union clash

By Paul Queary

Associated Press

OLYMPIA — Rich in members, money and influence, the Washington Education Association walks tall in state politics — lobbying, backing candidates and even passing initiatives.

So why do union leaders redden with anger at the mere mention of the tiny Evergreen Freedom Foundation, a conservative think-tank with a handful of employees?

Because the foundation has spent the last few years snapping at the WEA’s heels, winning legal challenges that saddled the union with massive legal penalties and limitations on its political activities.

In the long-running political fight, the EFF says it’s simply defending teachers who don’t want their union dues to pay for the union’s political agenda.

"Teachers on the whole when they have a choice have chosen not to support the union’s political action and so the union has dipped into the general fund so they don’t have a choice," said Marsha Richards, spokeswoman for the foundation.

The think tank was formed in 1991 by Bob Williams, a former budget hawk in the state House and the losing GOP nominee for governor in 1988. The group regularly churns out suggestions for cutting public spending.

But the WEA sees the foundation as a shadowy front for big-money conservatives who want to weaken the union’s ability to oppose conservative education proposals such as vouchers for private schools.

"If we couldn’t be political, then we couldn’t exist," said David Scott, the union’s vice president. "And EFF would be just fine with that."

The fight dates back to 1996, when the foundation brought a campaign finance complaint against the union at the behest of a group of teachers. The complaint accused the WEA of violating the law by, among other things, using union dues for political activities without getting individual approval from each member. The requirement was imposed by voters in 1992’s Initiative 128, a sweeping overhaul of the campaign finance law.

The union settled the case in 1998, agreeing to pay $80,000 in fines, $20,000 in legal costs, and $319,000 in refunds to its members, according to Susan Harris, deputy director of the Public Disclosure Commission. The WEA also agreed not use dues for such political activity in the future.

In the 2000-01 school year, about 10,000 of the 75,000 teachers represented by the union donated money to WEA-PAC, its political action committee, said Rich Wood, a WEA spokesman.

Since the 1998 settlement, direct donations to candidates come from WEA-PAC, but regular dues still pay for lobbying and to oppose and support ballot initiatives. The foundation’s bid to halt that practice was stymied by the disclosure commission, which found the union could use some of its regular dues for such purposes because politics isn’t its principal function.

The union spends about $1 million a year on politics out of about a $20 million in revenue, Wood said. The EFF argues the figure is much higher — as much as 24 percent.

Last year, the foundation brought another complaint to the commission, accusing the union of spending money on politics from the mandatory fees paid by about 3,000 teachers who are represented by WEA but aren’t members of the union.

Using "agency fees" for politics is specifically against the law.

Thurston County Superior Court Judge Gary Tabor imposed a $400,000 fine in August, ruling that the union had intentionally violated the law thousands of times by mingling the fees with dues from its members.

The attorney general’s office is seeking nearly $200,000 in legal costs in the case. If granted, that would push the union’s total financial hit from the two cases to more than $1 million.

The union has appealed the fine. It concedes it violated the law, but says it was an innocent accounting error that has been corrected.

Despite the legal rulings, union leaders chafe at the restrictions. By nature, the budget and policy battles that affect teachers, schools and students are fought out in the political arena, they argue.

"We need a whole lot more money to bring about the changes that the people need," said Mary Lindquist, president of the Mercer Island Education Association, a local of the WEA. "We have an absolute obligation to protect the children. That means we have to be political."

Union leaders such as Lindquist see a darker motive in the EFF’s campaign. They point to a list of conservative foundations that provide much of EFF’s money — groups such as the Arkansas-based Walton Family Foundation, the Sarah Scaife Foundation in Pittsburgh, Pa., and the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation in Indianapolis, all advocates of school choice policies, including using public money to pay for private school vouchers.

"They’re now trying to attack us as a means of undermining public education," said Lindquist, who teaches high school social studies. "It’s all about taking money away from the kids in my school."

That accusation brings a derisive snort from Jami Lund, the point man in EFF’s face-off with the union.

"If somebody wanted to destroy public schools, they’d run an initiative," Lund said. "That’s a whole lot cheaper than what we do."

Lund concedes that the foundation agrees in principle with many of its donors — favoring vouchers and other ideas for making schools more competitive.

"Some of the support of what we’re doing comes from folks that are interested in a more free discourse on education reform, and they feel the union has an unfair advantage in that discourse," Lund said. "But even if we got our money straight from the Communist Party or the Ku Klux Klan, it doesn’t mean that the things we are saying aren’t true."

EFF officials note the WEA jumped into three initiative campaigns this year, donating $25,000 to oppose property tax limitation, $5,000 to support increasing the tobacco tax and $1,000 in favor of a measure to revamp the home health care system.

"Arguably these have nothing to do with education," Richards said.

Initiative 747 dealt with property tax limitation, which could have some effect on local school levies. The other two initiatives were not related to education.

"It would be really easy for the union to solve these problems. All it would have to do is ask the teachers," Richards said.

But Scott, the union’s vice president, said it’s ludicrous to believe that most of the union’s membership doesn’t support its agenda.

"Everything the WEA does is because it’s what the membership wants," Scott said.

Evergreen Freedom Foundation: www.effwa.org. This site has a timeline showing the foundation’s side of the union dues fight.

Washington Education Association: www.wa.nea.org. This site tells what’s happening in the WEA.

Copyright ©2001 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

Vernon Streeter looks over the fence at the Skykomish Substation operated by Puget Sound Energy on Monday, Nov. 4, 2024 in Skykomish, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
‘Doesn’t make any sense’: Skykomish residents decry increased outages

Community members are frustrated about power outages and a lack of communication from Puget Sound Energy.

Glacier Peak, elevation 10,541 feet, in the Glacier Peak Wilderness of Mount Baker–Snoqualmie National Forest in Snohomish County, Washington. (Caleb Hutton / The Herald) 2019
2 years later, Glacier Peak seismometers delayed again

The U.S. Forest Service planned to install them in 2023. Now, officials are eyeing 2026.

Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson speaks at the Snohomish & Island County Labor Council champions dinner on Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2023 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Ferguson, WA Democrats prepare for new era of showdowns with Trump

Gov.-elect Bob Ferguson and Attorney General-elect Nick Brown are readying their legal teams.

Benson Boone (Photo provided by AEG Presents)
Monroe’s Benson Boone snags Grammy nomination for Best New Artist

The Monroe High grad this year has opened for Taylor Swift and won an MTV Video Music Award.

Lynnwood
Lynnwood caregiver accused of $674K check fraud

Prosecutors allege Sheila Saluquen defrauded the elderly owner of a car dealership for over a year.

Deborah Rumbaugh
‘Very hostile work environment’: Stanwood-Camano school supe resigns

Superintendent Deborah Rumbaugh said Tuesday she’ll be gone at the end of the school year.

Snohomish County Superior Courthouse in Everett, Washington on February 8, 2022.  (Kevin Clark / The Herald)
WA court system outage means firearm sales on hold

Buyers must wait until the Washington State Patrol can access databases for background checks.

David Hope, a Everett AquaSox ticket holder since 1994, talks about the stadium proposal presented to the public during a community information session on Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett residents voice support, concerns over AquaSox stadium

On Tuesday, the city presented potential plans for a new or renovated stadium and fielded questions.

A state Department of Transportation traffic camera from Highway 527 shows the aftermath of a school bus crash Wednesday afternoon on I-405. (Photo provided by the state Department of Transportation)
I-405 reopens after school bus crash blocked lanes in Bothell

The bus was carrying a girls soccer team from La Conner. No one on the bus was reported injured.

Flyers of support for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bob Ferguson. (Laurel Demkovich / Washington State Standard)
Somers, Liias among Snohomish County leaders on Ferguson transition team

Gov.-elect Bob Ferguson on Tuesday announced a 53-person team that will help with the transition from Gov. Jay Inslee.

The line for the Snohomish County Auditor’s Office extends around the Admin West building and onto Pacific Avenue Election Day as people wait for same-day registration, ballot issuance, and accessible voting services on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish County voter turnout down from 2020

Meanwhile, local Republicans celebrated the national results. And Democrats applauded the local.

People board a bus at the Canyon Park Park & Ride Swift Green Line stop in Bothell, Washington on Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2023. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
Big changes ahead as Community Transit mulls $254M budget

As ridership increases, Community Transit is planning for more service, security and a lower-emission fleet.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.