On ballots that go out this week, Washington voters will be asked to express how they feel about two transportation-related taxes or premiums enacted by the Legislature this year. But that's all they'll do. As with previous state "advisory votes," these carry no binding authority, only the opportunity to vent or cheer.
The tax-related questions put to voters have been a staple of Washington ballots since 2007, when anti-tax, initiative activist Tim Eyman ran and won voter approval for Initiative 960. The campaign's success meant that anytime the Washington Legislature opted to raise taxes, their actions would be subject to judgment by voters.
Again, no matter whether voters give their thumbs up or down, no action follows the vote. Even though the measures ask whether the taxes should be "repealed" or "maintained," it is essentially a poll.
For Eyman and tax skeptics, the votes serve as an accountability tool; for most Democrats, they're viewed as a waste of resources and ballot space.
The two votes this year both relate to transportation.
The first, Advisory Vote 39, concerns a 7-cent per gallon increase in taxes on aircraft fuel — from 11 cents per gallon to 18 cents. The increase is a small part of the 16-year, $17 billion transportation funding measure approved by lawmakers — almost exclusively Democrats — last legislative session. Staff in Olympia estimated the tax bump on aircraft fuel would raise $26 million over 16 years, with the revenue restricted to air-related transportation.
The second, Advisory Vote 40, concerns transportation network companies — aka Uber and Lyft. The Teamsters Union struck a deal with the companies during the previous legislative session, agreeing to a minimum wage for drivers, as well as some basic employee rights, in exchange for a broad preemption barring local jurisdictions from passing their own regulations on the companies. The deal creates a base of earnings for drivers and takes the threat of defining them as employees rather than independent contractors off the table — a red line for Uber and Lyft.
As part of that deal, lawmakers directed the state Department of Labor and Industries to assess a premium on the companies to cover workers' compensation for drivers, a portion of which the companies can deduct from driver pay. The amount of that premium has not been set yet.
The companies also must pay 15 cents of every passenger fare into a newly created "Driver Resource Center" that will help resolve disputes between drivers and the companies, including deactivations.
The language of the two advisory votes was written by the state Attorney General's Office. Unlike other issues on the ballot, the voter guide does not include any arguments for or against.
