Legislative work remains, but citizen interest seems low

by Dionne Searcey
Seattle Times Olympia bureau
OLYMPIA - For the past 91 days, lawmakers have speculated and pontificated about "the people."

The people want a property tax cut, they say. The people want a leaner state government. The people want more roads, more public transit and more money for education.

But on Friday, when Democratic House co-Speaker Frank Chopp slammed down his gavel to end a special legislative session, the people were nowhere in sight. Only a small tour group of schoolchildren watched from the visitors gallery.

Even the 98 desks where members of the House of Representatives usually sit were empty. Lawmakers had been sent home two weeks ago when budget negotiations broke down. The 2000 Legislature isn't done yet; members will come back when there's a budget deal for yet another special session, possibly as soon as next week.

Capitol-watchers blame the sparse attendance - and lack of public interest - on budget disputes that are complicated and matter only to political insiders. With the exception of those representing billionaire Paul Allen and Kaiser steelworkers, most of the lobbyists have left, too.

"The way the Legislature makes a budget is not very riveting stuff to ordinary people," said Stuart Elway, a political pollster who owns Elway Research. "They've gone through a regular and a special session and still don't have a budget. Now it's down to half a dozen leaders in a room, and most of the legislators aren't even there. So what is there to be paying attention to?"

Polls conducted by Elway in the past three years, each completed toward the end of legislative sessions, show that interest in the Legislature has remained steady with about 46 percent to 48 percent of voters saying they pay some attention to its work.

But consensus about lawmakers' performance hasn't been steady. In 1994 when Elway asked voters how effective lawmakers were in dealing with state problems, 62 percent of voters said they were "very" or "somewhat effective." This year that dropped to 45 percent.

Elway attributed the drop to a House that has been evenly split between Republicans and Democrats for two years, making it difficult to pass major legislation. Without big-impact laws under their belt, lawmakers tend to attract less attention - especially during a time of economic prosperity and when people are starting to focus on the Mariners, spring break and a bit of sunshine.

"Things are going along well," Elway said. "There's nothing to get stirred up about."

Also, lawmakers have agreed on the most controversial areas of the budget. They say they plan to keep ferries afloat and provide more money for roads and to local governments, all of which sustained budget blows when Initiative 695 whacked $750 million a year from the state budget.

Now they're left to fight about which pot of money to dip into to make those payments. It's a battle between the House and Senate, rather than a typical partisan spat.

Some lawmakers thought they might be scrutinized this year because of I-695, which eliminated the state's Motor Vehicle Excise Tax and passed overwhelmingly.

Opponents of the measure warned of cuts to road projects and bus service because of lost revenue, while supporters said the state would recover just fine.

No roads have been closed, the ferries are still running, people don't automatically connect I-695 to bus routes being changed or slashed. They think the I-695 debate is "over with" and that "everything is the same," said Sen. Darlene Fairley, D-Lake Forest Park.

Legislators and other officials insist the real impact of I-695 won't be felt for years.

Fairley and other legislators who have returned to their home districts in the past two weeks say constituents are confused. People mistakenly think the part-time Legislature is done for the year. Some think the Legislature already has secured a property-tax cut - an issue lawmakers are, in fact, still wrangling over.

And Fairley said several of her constituents mistakenly think the Lake Forest Park senator can influence a decision on Elian Gonzalez, the 6-year-old Cuban boy who is at the center of a custody battle between relatives in Miami and his father in Cuba.

"I get e-mail every day asking me not to let the Cuban kid go home," Fairley groused. "Nobody understands us. They don't even know we're here, and they think we're in Washington, D.C."

The disconnect between the Legislature and the rest of the state is obvious even in Olympia, where state government is by far the biggest business in town, employing about 100,000 people.

Olympia resident Kim Berke was pushing her infant son in a stroller through the Capitol campus last week. She was certain the legislative session was finished until informed otherwise. Berke said she moved to town about five months ago and "is more of a homebody," so she hasn't paid attention to the action going on four blocks from her home.

Sen. James West thinks the disconnect between people and government is widening. "At best, people see government as a necessary evil. At worst, they see it as a hindrance to progress. That doesn't bode well for what government could be," the Spokane Republican said.

West said people with a vested interest in what the Legislature is doing hire lobbyists to represent their interests. "The galleries are filled with tourists and schoolchildren, not interested citizens. Those other people up there are paid to be here," West said.

But Gov. Gary Locke says people pay attention to issues they care about. Teachers, for example, watch education policy closely. Health-care workers track developments in that industry. And Speaker Chopp says he often gets e-mail asking for more money for schools or roads.

"I don't think people are interested in political machinations. But they do care about kitchen-table issues," Chopp said. "When they take their kids to school they want to make sure they are getting a good education. They care about their commute to get that kid to their soccer game."

Chopp admitted he also gets Elian-type e-mail. "Some of us have proposed to have increased funding for civics curriculum in our schools," he said wryly.

Steven Peak, a locked-out Kaiser steelworker from the Spokane area, said he was baffled by state politics until he arrived in Olympia about a month ago to fight for unemployment benefits. He has since learned how to lobby lawmakers and understands the budget holdup. He's even talking like an insider now.

"People realize I-695 put a stick in the spokes. They understand that much. I don't know if they know how far apart the House and Senate are on the budget," he said. "Being here, I'm probably more aware of the differences than the average person."