Article II Section 1 of our Washington state Constitution states: “the people reserve to themselves the power to propose bills, laws and enact or reject the same at the polls, independent of the legislature, and also reserve power, at their own option, to approve or reject at the polls any act, item, section or part of any bill, act, or law passed by the legislature. (a) Initiative: The first power reserved by the people is the initiative.”

The initiative gives “we the people” the ability to cancel new taxes at the polls.

During the past few years, our Washington Legislature and governor have passed laws, without the vote of the people, which created new taxes and new mandatory government controls of “the people.”

Initiative 2066 will remove government-created restrictions on our access to natural gas.

Initiative 2109 will cancel the new capital gains tax, a tax many voters consider an income tax, since capital gains are income.

Initiative 2117 will cancel the carbon tax and will reduce gas prices by about 40 cents per gallon. The attorney general used 15 pages in the voters pamphlet to try to save the carbon tax. Remember also that our governor claimed the carbon tax would only increase gas prices two cents.

Initiative 2124 will allow employed people to opt out of the “Long Term Care Act,” a law that created a mandatory government insurance policy that forces all employed people to pay the new tax for the rest of their working lives, for a benefit most will not use. The maximum benefit is $36,500, enough today for less than four months in a nursing home.

So if you vote yes for these four initiatives, you will eliminate these four tax-and-control laws.

One more thing, please note how U.S. Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez treats persons who disagree with her.

Mike Kimbrel

Oakville