It’s fair season in eastern Washington

No surprise - Washington ranks high nationally for 'red tape'

August 15, 2024

Note: The following e-newsletter was sent to Sen. Padden’s subscribers August 15, 2024. To subscribe to Sen. Padden’s newsletter, click here.

Dear friends and neighbors,

One of the favorite times of the year for so many people – fair season – is upon us. Many fairs already have been held on both sides of the Cascades, with more coming in the weeks ahead.

Fairs play an important role by helping to educate visitors about agriculture’s importance in eastern Washington and throughout the state. Fairs are fun and provide a showcase for all that is positive about agriculture and our rural communities. They are a wonderful annual tradition for people of all ages, and a perfect place to take the family.

A young boy pets a cow at a fair.

At a fair, you can see firsthand what farmers grow or raise, from crops to livestock and other animals. You can see old friends and meet new ones, and no visit to a fair would be complete without sampling the different kinds of tasty food available.

Our big local fair is the Spokane County Interstate Fair in Spokane Valley, coming September 6-15. The S.E. Spokane County Fair will be held soon thereafter; it’s September 20-22 in Rockford.

According to the Washington State Fairs Association, many other fairs in eastern Washington are underway or set to start in the coming weeks:

More than 60 years ago the Legislature declared it is in the public interest to “hold agricultural fairs to train youth, to educate the public about the production of food and fiber, and to promote the welfare of farm people and rural living.”

For that reason, there is a “fair fund” in the state treasury, which receives regular appropriations from the state operating budget to provide a modest level of assistance with the costs of operating fairs.

Also the 2021-23 and 2023-25 state capital budgets approved by the Legislature each provided $8 million to the state Department of Agriculture for grants to be used for health and safety improvements to fairgrounds and facilities. Fair organizers have been able to submit applications equal to or less than $250,000 for capital improvements.

But what fairs need most is people coming through the turnstiles – so if you can, find a fair or two and go!

If you have questions about how to participate in state government this year or thoughts to share on anything in this e-newsletter, please give me a call or send me an email.

Thank you, as always, for the honor of representing you in Olympia!

Best Regards,

Senator Mike Padden

Current and former Padden staff reunite at local baseball game

Senator Padden with current and former legislative employees and former state Representative Bob McCaslin at Wednesday night’s Spokane Indians game against Vancouver.

Over the years, I’ve enjoyed hosting former and current legislative staff members at a Spokane Indians baseball game. Last night was the third time for such a get-together.

About 50 people joined me at the baseball game, in which the Indians defeated the visiting Vancouver Canadians by a score of 3-0. The game itself was entertaining, and it was so nice to see and chat with many of the legislative employees, including my legislative assistants, who worked with me during my years in Olympia. Their willingness to come to Spokane Valley and watch the baseball game with me is very appreciated!

Washington continues to rank 8th nationally for most ‘red tape’

If you operate a business in Washington, you know that our state is notorious for having many, many regulations. In fact, a recent study shows that the Evergreen State ranks very high nationally for regulations.

A story in The Center Square last week reported Washington is the eighth most regulated state in America, according to a new study by the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. It’s the second year in a row that the study ranked Washington eighth in the U.S.

The study found that as of 2023, the Washington Administrative Code (known as “WAC”) contains 201,634 restrictions and more than 18.3 million words. The report showed that the three most regulated industries in Washington are animal production, ambulatory health care, and petroleum and coal products manufacturing.

The study also mentioned that utilities, waste management and remediation services, crop production, food and beverage stores, educational services, support activities for transportation, and chemical manufacturing also are among the 10 most regulated industries in Washington.

Meanwhile, the study ranked Idaho, our neighboring state to the east, at 48th in the land, with a total of 31,497 regulatory restrictions.

Even though Washington’s state government has long been considered a regulatory monster that makes it harder for businesses to thrive, there is a way for state leaders to make our regulatory climate better.

The next governor (and the state agencies he will oversee) and the next Legislature can examine the rules and regulations that have existed for many years and eliminate rules and regs that have outlived their usefulness or are otherwise counterproductive. It’s time for Washington to get rid of unnecessary red tape. Doing so will help improve our state’s economy and produce more jobs. 

Over the years, bills have been offered by legislators (usually Republicans) to require many state rules or regulations to expire (or “sunset”) after a period of time. For instance, a 2021 proposal, which did not receive a Senate committee hearing, would have set state agency rules to expire by June 1 of the year following adoption unless the Legislature acts to postpone the expiration.

The Legislature in 1977 enacted the Sunset Act, which authorizes the automatic termination of programs. Currently, a few programs are subject to termination under the Sunset Act, including the underground storage tank program, alternative public works contracting procedures, joint center for aerospace technology innovation, drug takeback program, office of the corrections ombuds, dual enrollment scholarship pilot program and port district noise mitigation grant program.

New 4th District Government Guide still available at many locations 

Copies of the new 4th District Government Guide are still available for district residents to use. The free guide includes names and contact information for officials at the federal, statewide, legislative and local government levels. It also provides other helpful information. If you would like to have a copy of the new government guide mailed to you, please call my legislative assistant, Annalise Hemingway, at 509-921-2460 or email her at annalise.hemingway@leg.wa.gov. 

There also are copies of the updated government guide at these locations: 

  • Millwood City Hall (9103 E Frederick Ave., Spokane) 
  • Argonne Library (4322 N Argonne Road, Spokane) 
  • Spokane Valley City Hall (10210 E Sprague Ave., Spokane Valley) 
  • Spokane Valley Library (22 N. Herald Road, Spokane Valley) 
  • Liberty Lake City Hall (22710 E Country Vista Drive, Liberty Lake) 
  • Liberty Lake Library (23123 E Mission Ave., Liberty Lake) 
  • Otis Orchards Library (22324 E Wellesley Ave., Otis Orchards) 
  • Spokane Valley Senior Center (2426 N Discovery Place, Spokane Valley) 

Contact us!

If you have a question or concern about state government, please do not hesitate to contact our office. During the interim we are conducting business from our district office in Spokane Valley. We are here to serve you!

Phone: 509-921-2460

Email address: Mike.Padden@leg.wa.gov

PLEASE NOTE: Any email or documents you provide to this office may be subject to disclosure under RCW 42.56. If you would prefer to communicate by phone, please contact Sen. Padden’s Olympia office at (360) 786-7606.

To request public records from Sen. Padden, please contact Randi Stratton, the designated public records officer for the Secretary of the Senate and Senate members.