Tim Eyman

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The lists in this article may contain items that are not notable, encyclopedic, or helpful. Please help out by removing such elements and incorporating appropriate items into the main body of the article. (January 2008)

This article has been nominated to be checked for its neutrality. Discussion of this nomination can be found on the talk page. (December 2007)

This biography of a living person does not cite any references or sources. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (April 2009) Find sources: (Tim Eyman – news, books, scholar)

Elections in Washington
Federal elections Presidential Elections 2000 · 2004 · 2008 Presidential primaries and caucuses Democratic Caucuses: 2008 Republican Caucuses: 2008 Republican Primaries: 2008 Senate elections 2000 · 2004 · 2006 · 2010 House of Representatives elections 2002 · 2004 · 2006 · 2008 · 2010
State elections Gubernatorial elections 1996 · 2000 · 2004 · 2008 Executive branch elections 2004 · 2008 State Senate elections 2004 · 2006 · 2008 State House elections 2006 · 2008 State Supreme Court elections 2004 · 2006 · 2008 Other judicial elections 2008
City of Seattle Mayoral elections 2009
Ballot measures 1972 276 2004 872 · 884 · 892 · 297 · 2295 2005 912 2006 920 · 933 · 937 · 4233 2007 957 2008 985 · 1000 · 1029
Local elections 2006 · 2008 This box: view • talk • edit

Tim Eyman (born 1966) is a conservative political activist in the U.S. state of Washington. He is known for using the tools of direct democracy, initiatives and referendums, to pursue the goals of tax revolt and limiting the power of the state government. As the author of 15 initiatives and one referendum since 1997, he has become a public figure in the Seattle area and Washington state due to the often controversial nature of his proposals.

Though he is very popular with his supporters, he is also strongly opposed, primarily by politically liberal groups. Many see his style as smug and self righteous, especially with respect to his claim that his initiatives are supported by "common sense"^[1][2][3][4]. Detractors also assert that his activities undermine the work of legislators elected to make informed decisions. For example, Washington State Legislator Ken Jacobsen (D) stated that Eyman uses the initiative and referendum system in an attempt to legislate without being held accountable to the voters for the results of his actions^[5]. Eyman has repeatedly refused to run for public office.

Contents 1 Initiatives 1.1 1997 1.2 1998 1.3 2000 1.4 2001 1.5 2002 1.6 2003 1.7 2004 1.8 2005 1.9 2006 1.10 2007 1.11 2008 2 Eyman's salary 3 Initiative 831 4 Personal life 5 List of initiatives and outcomes 6 Notes 7 External links 8 References

[edit] Initiatives

Eyman is most well known for his ballot initiatives.

[edit] 1997

Eyman launched his first initiative in 1997, Initiative 200. I-200 attempted to prohibit affirmative action in state higher education and government hiring and contracting. At first, Eyman had difficulty collecting the requisite signatures, 8% of the number of votes cast in the last gubernatorial election, to place the initiative on the ballot. He enlisted the help of local talk show host John Carlson, who was able to collect enough signatures to place the initiative on the ballot. In November 1998, voters approved the initiative.

[edit] 1998

In 1998, Eyman failed to gather enough signatures for a new initiative which would have eliminated Washington's relatively high motor vehicle excise tax (MVET). In 1999 Eyman proposed Initiative 695, which would have replaced the MVET with a flat $30 fee for yearly car registration fees, and also require voter approval for any tax or fee increases at the state or local level. This second provision was claimed to prevent the legislature from raising other taxes to make up revenue lost by the initiative. It was supported by the public but opposed by state officials.

Enlisting a number of volunteers from different regions of the state and working with fellow activists Monte Benham and Jack Fagan, Eyman succeeded in getting I-695 on the ballot. It passed, despite opposition from a broad coalition of businesses, labor groups, environmentalists, civic groups, and other organizations who argued that the loss of revenue would wreak havoc on state government. Several Washington newspapers called for its rejection, and city officials, including those in Seattle, passed resolutions opposing the initiative. After I-695 was passed, opponents contested the initiative in court. The initiative was declared unconstitutional by the Washington State Supreme Court because it had two subjects. Fearing voter backlash, the Legislature, with the cooperation of Governor Gary Locke, quickly acted to maintain the lower car tabs.

[edit] 2000

After I-695, Eyman formed a political committee known as Permanent Offense. He began working on Initiative 722, which was designed to cap property taxes at 2%. With the support of groups such as the state asphalt pavers' union, he also sponsored Initiative 745, which would have mandated that 90% of all transportation funding go to roads (interpreted by some as an attack on mass transit spending). Unlike I-695, I-722 and I-745 were placed on the ballot largely through the use of paid signature gatherers. While his opponents voiced some initial concerns, the courts have ruled that paid signature gathering is protected by the First Amendment. I-722 and I-745 both appeared on the November 2000 ballot. I-722 passed, but I-745 was rejected by voters. Political opponents contested I-722 in court, and it was overturned on the same grounds as I-695: that it was unconstitutional because it contained two subjects. The initiative had tried to reduce existing property taxes and enact a 2% cap on future property tax growth.

[edit] 2001

Eyman next proposed, in 2001, Initiative 747 which imposed a 1% cap on property tax rate growth in Washington. Like earlier initiatives, I-747 was supported with the use of paid signature gatherers. Despite well-funded and visible opposition from many of the groups who had opposed Eyman's earlier initiatives, I-747 passed. Opponents contested the initiative passed because voters didn't realize or comprehend that public services would actually be cut. Supporters contended that those same services and costs were unnecessary and could not be justified. Opponents^[who?] then attacked Eyman claiming he had received help from the Code Revisor's Office in drafting the initiative and sued to force disclosure of the work the code revisor did. The initiative went into effect shortly after passing. On June 13, 2006, King County Judge Mary Roberts threw out the measure, arguing that "The voters were incorrectly led to believe they were voting to amend I-722. The voters were misled as to the nature and content of the law to be amended, and the effect of the amendment upon it. The [state] constitution forbids this."^[6]In Nov. 2007 I-747 was ruled unconstitutional, although the state legislature entered a special session shortly after to consider reinstating the 1% cap.

[edit] 2002

After the November 2001 election, Eyman began promoting his next initiative, Initiative 776, which he called the "son of 695". The aim was to cut local car tabs fees which I-695 and the Legislature had failed to remove earlier. The local car tab fees funded regional transportation in four Washington counties, including Sound Transit, a multi-county agency operating bus and rail services in the Puget Sound area. The initiative was criticized because it asked voters statewide to vote on an issue which only affected four counties. Opponents questioned the constitutionality of allowing voters across Washington to vote on fees they were neither paying nor benefiting from. Supporters feared that similar fees would eventually be charged statewide. In November 2002, the initiative passed. Sound Transit had by then declared its local motor vehicle excise tax would not be affected because the tax was pledged to repay bonds. The intiative was ruled unconstitutional in February 2003 on the same "two-subject rule" argument. This ruling was reversed by the Washington State Supreme Court in October 2003, putting I-776 into effect. While the light rail eventually received federal funding, Eyman was successful in retaining local funds and taxes for other purposes.

[edit] 2003

Immediately following the 2002 election, Eyman announced Initiative 807, which would have required a supermajority for new taxes to be passed in the state Legislature. A lack of funding and other mishaps cost the initiative its place on the ballot. Eyman still claimed the year was a success, saying he had worked hard to ensure a "no new taxes" budget. Opponents^[who?] claimed that Eyman was taking credit for the efforts of Governor Gary Locke and Senator Dino Rossi, who had worked together for the goal of a no-new-taxes budget. The Legislature, however, raised the gas tax by five cents during the session. In the past they had consistently opposed Eyman's measures to slash taxes. Eyman quickly promised "revenge" for the raising of the gas tax, announcing his 2004 initiative, which would have slashed state property taxes, used exclusively to fund education, by the same amount that the gas tax had been raised. After I-807's failure, Eyman asked supporters to donate money to a personal compensation fund, which he called "Help Us Help Taxpayers". While he received no salary as promised during the initiative, he did ask for voluntary financial support after the effort.

[edit] 2004

In 2004, Eyman announced Initiative 864, his refined initiative which now targeted local property taxes with a 25% cut. Opponents called the proposal outrageous and said it would gut public services including libraries, pools, parks, fire districts, and police departments. The idea for I-864 was originally announced in June 2003, but collection of funds to support it did not begin until January 2004. The initiative failed to collect enough signatures to be placed on the ballot, falling short by 43,000. Critics, such as Andrew Villeneuve of Permanent Defense, Steve Zemke of Taxpayers For Washington's Future, David Goldstein of TaxSanity.org, and Democratic campaign consultant Christian Sinderman, attributed this to the to the shrinking of Eyman's base of supporters and failing popularity of his initiatives. Eyman attributed the failure to lack of education and mis-education of the voting public.

In March 2004, Eyman unveiled Initiative 892, a proposal to allow "electronic scratch ticket machines" in venues other than tribal casinos. These machines are similar to slot machines, except that the outcome is predetermined. Unlike prior initiatives, the financial and political backing for I-892 was given by potential benefactors of the initiative rather than at a grassroots level. I-892 was quickly embraced by the entertainment and gambling industry, which provided all of its funding, and it subsequently earned a place on the ballot in July 2004. The initiative was opposed by a large campaign, spearheaded by Permanent Defense, TaxSanity.org, Taxpayers For Washington's Future, the Christian Coalition, Association of Washington Churches, 1000 Friends of Washington, and endorsed by important individuals such as Governor Gary Locke and King County Prosecutor Norm Maleng. However the vast majority of funds were provided by tribal gambling who feared competition against their gambling monopoly^{[citation needed]}. The opposition outspent Eyeman by a 20 to 1 margin. Washington State remains the only state where tribal casinos do not share gambling proceeds with the state general fund. Despite Eyman's prediction of victory, voters declined I-892 by over 60%. The outcome was considered by many to be a victory for communities and neighborhoods.

Eyman claimed a minor victory in that election with the passage of a county charter amendment reducing the size of the King County Council. The initiative was sponsored by the county jail guards' union.

[edit] 2005

Eyman's next proposed initiative was Initiative 900. With public support and backing from Michael Dunmire, Eyman gathered funds to hire paid-signature gatherers, obtaining enough signatures to place Initiative 900 on the ballot. In the summer of 2005, after Initiative 900 had qualified, The Olympian reported on Eyman's funding: "Eyman's I-900, which proposes an expansion of performance audits for state and local agencies - with the intent of increasing accountability of government employees and agencies."^{[citation needed]} While the bill was seen as poorly drafted and flawed, it was also thought to be ineffective and without harm. Thus, it faced very little opposition, and was passed in 2006.State Auditor Brian Sontag did not endorse or oppose the initiative, however once passed into law he aggressively utilized his new powers. The first half dozen performance audits identified millions of tax savings and have lead to a criminal investigation into the conduct of port commissioners at the Port of Seattle.

[edit] 2006

On January 30, Eyman filed an initiative and a referendum, both intended to repeal a measure which added sexual orientation to the list of categories against which discrimination in housing, lending, and employment is banned in the state of Washington. Supporters of the initiative argued the law it was attempting to repeal did nothing more than give preferential treatment to certain groups. In addition to seeking to remove "sexual orientation" from the law, Eyman pushed an initiative that would prohibit state government from requiring quotas or other preferential treatment for any person or group "based on sexual orientation or sexual preference. Eyman had announced he would be turning in the signatures for the gay-rights referendum on June 5. Instead, he showed up at the State Capitol dressed as Darth Vader and then announced he would turn in petitions the next day, at the deadline. He reportedly wasn't carrying any of the signatures, but instead was carrying signed petitions for another car-tab measure unrelated to the referendum. The next day, June 6, Eyman announced he had fallen more than 7,000 signatures short of the 112,440 required to get the measure placed on the November ballot. The state law that he had attempted to put to a public vote took effect on the same day.^[7]

On March 2, Eyman filed an initiative which would prevent universities in Washington from having prior knowledge of an applicant's race and gender before admitting them on grounds that such knowledge necessarily invades the public's privacy and again gives preferential treatment to some groups. This initiative was specifically targeted at the University of Washington, which introduced a new admissions process in 2005 that gave preferential treatment by race. Many Washingtonians viewed this as an attempt to dodge the I-200 initiative which passed in 1998 prohibiting affirmative action in higher education admissions.

On January 9, Eyman filed an initiative to cap motor vehicle registration charges at $30 per year and repeal taxes and fees exceeding the $30 limit. On June 29, Eyman submitted 14,270 pages of signatures for this initiative to the Secretary of State's office. On July 7, Eyman submitted an additional 2,716 pages. While at the front desk, and prior to the counting of any signatures, Eyman requested that the receptionist date stamp a piece of note pad with the number 300,353 on it.^[8]

The note was stamped twice, as photographers failed to record the first stamping. Eyman then announced to the media in attendance that he had received a receipt from the Secretary of State for 300,353 signatures. On July 13 the Secretary of State's office announced that it had counted 265,809 signatures. Upon request of a recount, witnessed by an initiative supporter, the office amended the final number to 266,006 the next day. This number is above the 224,880 required to qualify for the ballot, but well below the amount normally required to account for duplicate or invalid signatures.

On July 23 Eyman charged the Secretary of State's office with "... gross incompetence, purposeful sabotage, or blatant dishonesty"^{[citation needed]} for the discrepancy of 34,347 signatures. Along with the "receipt" with the number 300,353, Eyman claimed to have kept weekly logs of the number of signatures collected, and wrote the weight (although not the number of pages or signatures) of each box of petitions on the boxes themselves. The Secretary of State's office could not provide the boxes, as they were recycled upon the cataloging of the signatures. It also denied the credibility of Eyman's receipt, noting that official counting had not even begun at that point, and calling attention to their own official receipts.^[9] Eyman has been completely unable to substantiate his claim of submitting 300,353 signatures, as he claims to have not made copies of the petitions. On July 28, the Secretary of State's office announced that it had conducted a random sample test of 4% of the signatures, finding an invalidation rate of 17.96%.^[10] Based upon this number, the initiative failed to make the ballot. A full check of all signatures collected confirmed this conclusion.

[edit] 2007

In 2007, Eyman spearheaded Initiative 960, intending to make it harder for the Legislature to raise taxes and fees.^[11]

[edit] 2008

In 2008, Eyman sponsored I-985, which attempted to reduce traffic congestion through various means including:

• Opening HOV/carpool lanes to all vehicles during non-peak hours, where "non-peak" is defined as any time outside of 6-9am and 3-6pm on Mondays through Fridays.
• Requiring local governments to synchronize traffic lights on heavily-traveled arterials and streets.
• Clearing out accidents faster with expanded emergency roadside assistance, which would be funded by vehicle sales tax revenues.
• Restricting toll usage such that they can only be used on the freeway or bridge being tolled, with any surplus revenue to be redirected to other congestion relief efforts in the state.

Eyman submitted approximately 290,000 signatures to get the initiative on the ballot for the 2008 general election.^[12] The initiative claims to follow the recommendations of a congestion study by state auditor Brian Sonntag, but former state transportation secretary Doug MacDonald stated that there is "no connection" between the study's findings and the initiative's goals.^[13] Auditor Sonntag himself directly refuted the claim that I-985 implements the recommendations of the state congestion audit.^[14]

Critics^[who?] argued that opening HOV lanes to more cars would not reduce congestion, and in fact would likely cause worse congestion since rush-hour traffic typically lasts longer than 3 hours each morning and night during weekdays.^[15] I-985 would also have stalled funding for the replacement of the Evergreen Point Floating Bridge, since the bridge's construction is currently dependent on tolls that will come from both the current bridge and the I-90 floating bridge. Since both bridges cross Lake Washington, requiring tolls on only one bridge would serve only to push traffic to the other.^[15] The initiative also directed no funding toward mass transit, counteracting the desired goals of the revised Propostion 1, which sought funding for expansion of light rail, commuter trains, and bus service in the Puget Sound region.^[16] Proponents of I-985 pointed out that highways I-405 and SR 167 have opened their HOV lanes during non peak hours without any noticeable problems.^{[citation needed]}

The initiative was defeated 60% to 40% with only one of the state's 39 counties approving the initiative.^[17]

[edit] Eyman's salary

In February 2002, as mailing of the petitions for I-776 began, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported that Eyman had drawn a salary during the months he was working on I-745, causing some confusion about an earlier statement that he was working for free. Eyman had earlier created Permanent Offense Inc., a corporation which did not have to report its finances to the Washington State Public Disclosure Commission, the state equivalent of the Federal Elections Commission, and began transferring funds from his political action committee of the same name. After initially denying the reports, Eyman confessed to taking around $50,000 in funds for himself.^{[citation needed]} Eyman's co-sponsors and chairmen in the Permanent Offense political committee became more actively involved; Monte Benham of Kennewick became the head of Permanent Offense, though Eyman remained politically involved.

[edit] Initiative 831

During the campaign to collect signatures for I-807, a Seattle computer programmer named David Goldstein launched an initiative, I-831, to have Tim Eyman declared a "horse's ass".^[18] Mr. Goldstein declared that he was attempting to parody the initiative process to highlight its shortcomings and problems. After a brief period of support and funding by liberals, the initiative died in court after a challenge by Republican state attorney general Rob McKenna.

[edit] Personal life

Eyman was adopted as a baby by his parents, Don and Dolores Eyman of Yakima, Washington, who also had a biological son and daughter. The family lived in the West Valley neighborhood of Yakima.

He graduated in 1988 from Washington State University in Business, where he was a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity and was on the wrestling team. He married, adopted two sons, and moved to Seattle^{[citation needed]}. He lives and owns a small business in Mukilteo, Washington, selling fraternity and sorority-branded watches. He is a frequent diner at Sushi Zen, in Mill Creek^{[citation needed]}.

[edit] List of initiatives and outcomes

Initiative	Year	Purpose	Result
I-200	1998	Prohibit affirmative action in public employment, education and contracting.	Passed by voters.
I-695	1999	Cut the state motor vehicle excise tax (the yearly car tabs) and required voter approval for all tax increases.	Passed by voters but declared unconstitutional. Later the state legislature passed its own version of the initiative to prevent voter backlash, the part requiring voter approval for tax increases was not included.
I-722	2000	Cut state and local property taxes, which fund public services.	Passed by voters but declared unconstitutional.
I-745	2000	Required 90% of transportation funding to be spent on road building.	Defeated by voters.
I-747	2001	Cut state and local property taxes.	Passed by voters but declared unconstitutional in Superior Court and Supreme Court;[19] later, passed by a special session of the Democratically controlled legislature in 2007.
I-776	2002	Cut local motor vehicle excise taxes.	Passed by voters
I-267	2002	Divert money from the general fund for road building.	Failed to qualify for ballot.
I-807	2003	Require a supermajority vote for all tax increases.	Failed to qualify for ballot.
I-864	2003	Cut property taxes by 25%.	Failed to qualify for ballot.
I-18	2003	Reduce size of King County Council from 13 to 9 members	Passed by voters.
I-892	2004	Legalize slot machines.	Defeated by voters.
I-900	2004	Give state auditor ability to conduct performance audits.	Passed by voters.
Referendum 65	2006	Repeal ESHB 2661, legalizing discrimination based on sexual orientation.	Failed to qualify for ballot.
I-917	2006	Cap motor vehicle registration charge at $30 a year.	Failed to qualify for ballot.
I-960	2007	Require a 2/3 majority in state Legislature to raise taxes and fees.	Passed by voters.
I-985	2008	Attempts to reduce traffic congestion through various means.	Defeated by voters.

[edit] Notes

[edit] External links

• Voters Want More Choices - A grassroots taxpayer-protection organization, with Tim Eyman, Jack Fagan, and Mike Fagan directing the effort.
• Permanent Defense, an opposition group working to defeat Eyman, promote the value of public services, and work for tax reform
• TaxSanity.org
• MajorityRules.org sponsored by the Taxpayers for Washington's Future
• The Battles of Tim Eyman - A documentary film about Tim Eyman

[edit] References