By Susanna Ray
Herald Writer
OLYMPIA — Some legislators viewed their chamber chandeliers Tuesday through "Happy Eyes" — cardboard sunglasses that superimpose smiley faces over the lightbulbs.
"We need it," said Rep. Dave Schmidt, R-Bothell, demonstrating his pair of smile spectacles during a lull in debate just before Tuesday’s 5 p.m. deadline for passing bills from one chamber to the other.
"It keeps us relaxed in all these tense moments."
Happy Eyes might be good mood therapy for opponents of a sewage plant in Edmonds and numerous other activists, lobbyists and legislators whose pet bills died Tuesday.
A bill that would have kept King County from siting its Brightwater sewage plant on Edmonds waterfront property didn’t make it, which was a big disappointment for its sponsor, freshman Rep. Brian Sullivan, D-Mukilteo.
"I’ve spent almost all my time on the Brightwater issue," Sullivan said, adding that King County had lobbied forcefully and successfully against his bill.
Since there are ways to get past legislative cutoffs, he said he won’t give up, although, "I think it’s pretty bleak for this year."
Legislators have proposed almost 1,300 bills for consideration in this year’s short, 60-day session, which began Jan. 14.
The sheer logistics of giving all those bills public hearings means most of them don’t see the light of a committee room.
During the last short session, two years ago, they only passed 260 of the 1,600 that were proposed.
So Brightwater’s opponents, who formed a group called the Washington Tea Party, aren’t alone in their frustration.
Community Transit once again was stymied in its efforts to get the Legislature to force a merger with Everett Transit. That bill never made it out of committee after its contentious hearing two weeks ago.
The Orca whale won’t grace the state’s license plates, either. It never got out of committee, even though the three Snohomish High School seniors who wrote the bill drove through afternoon traffic in Seattle to testify on its behalf.
And a plan Snohomish County Sheriff Rick Bart had pushed to let cities charge impact fees to developers to pay for the extra law enforcement new residents need failed as well.
But defeat isn’t the only game in town.
A bill to keep the NFL from blacking out the Seahawks’ local games on television has passed the House and is awaiting the Senate’s consideration.
A seatbelt use measure written by Democratic Rep. John Lovick, a state patrol trooper from Mill Creek, is on its way. His bill, which would let officers stop and ticket unbelted motorists, passed the House and is headed for success, because a similar proposal passed the Senate as well.
Proposals to regulate the mail-order bride industry passed the Senate and just need the House’s approval before they’re sent to Gov. Gary Locke’s desk.
So did another Snohomish High School trio’s plan to encourage schools to honor the victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks with annual moments of silence, along with Mukilteo Democrat Sen. Paull Shin’s second attempt to change the term "Oriental" to "Asian" in state documents.
In addition to all the bills that have swapped chambers and now have to start the hearing/voting process all over on the other side of the rotunda today, lawmakers still have to tackle the budget and transportation plan before their scheduled March 14 adjournment.
That means many more tense moments, contentious debates and occasions to don Happy Eyes over the next three weeks.
You can call Herald Writer Susanna Ray at 360-586-3803
or send e-mail to ray@heraldnet.com.
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