TVW Weekly Interview Programs

Here’s what we covered on our interview programs this week. With selected transcript detail so you can quickly find topics/quotes of interest.

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The Impact: The Race for Lands Commissioner

The Commissioner of Public Lands oversees the Department of Natural Resources which oversees 5.6 million acres of public lands in Washington. The types of land vary from forests to shrub-steppe or tidelands. As the agency responsible for generating revenue from trust lands while managing natural resources sustainably, DNR plays a big role in a funding stream that school districts and rural counties rely on.

Some of the major issues being debated in the Lands Commissioner’s Race this year are:

·???????? Proposed restrictions on logging in legacy forests, areas that haven’t been logged since before WWII.

·???????? Fire prevention,? forest health, and wildfire suppression policies and funding

·???????? Clean energy siting on state lands

·???????? Possible alternative revenue streams for timber trust beneficiaries

The Republican candidate, former Congresswoman Jaime Herrera Beutler, and the Democratic candidate, King County Council Chair Dave Upthegrove, draw sharp contrasts between their respective values, plans, and track records.?

Wildfire Response

-????????? Herrera Beutler 5:14- 6:15? “Well, first of all, I think we need to make sure that we're fully funding it. When my opponent was in the legislature as chair of the environmental subcommittee, he didn't fully fund firefighting response as part of the DNR, which was under his purview. And our current commissioner had to go to bat. She did a great job propping up, fixing and triaging our fire response system. But we need to do more. We need to make sure the aerial teams in eastern Washington have on contract immediate, planes that can respond and that they have the ability to fight those fires and not always wait for the state mobilization. We need to make sure that we're also doing the work upstream of the forest fire, which means managing our forests well for the benefit of the trust, for the benefit of the people of Washington, not setting aside and watching them deteriorate or, God forbid, burn. For the first time last year in all of recorded history, we have had more fires on the west side of Washington state than on the east side. That's because things are changing. It's also because we need to do a better job of managing our forests. And that's one of the things I'm passionate about doing, should voters send me to this role.”

?- Upthegrove 6:20-7:36 “It's critical for public safety. And for me, the key is going upstream to prevention, they say, and also prevention is worth a pound of cure. That's why I'm interested in increasing the work on forest health. Our current commissioners done an exceptional job in terms of treating lands in Eastern Washington and I would expand that work into Western Washington with things like increasing our control, burns, our commercial standing, our non-commercial funding, and also not overlooking things like invasive weed removal and land management that can help keep those land safe.? When I was in the legislature, I voted for wildfire funding. Every opportunity i had, and it's a stark contrast to my opponent. A few years back our entire congressional delegation voted for one hundred million dollars in wildfire prevention response. Even the other members of the northwest delegation were willing to break with their party and support this funding. My opponent and the other hand was the only member of the delegation to vote against one hundred million dollars in wildfire funding. Instead, siding with the tea party extremists in her own party, putting that ideology ahead of Public safety. I think that's why the Washington State Council of Firefighters have endorsed this campaign. They know what's at stake and they know I'm the one who's going to prevent wildfires and protect public safety.”

Clean Energy Siting

Choosing a place to build a new wind or solar farm is frequently a contentious process in Washington.? At the same time, we are barreling towards deadlines that the legislature has set without the adequate infrastructure in place to meet those goals. Where do each of them stand on wind, solar, or other clean energy projects on public lands? The Republican candidate said she is not opposed to exploring alternative uses for land that is not productive for forestry or agriculture.

-????????? Herrera Beutler ?15:55 - 16:38? “I think the number one responsibility that this commissioner has is to the benefit of the people in the state of Washington in particular the trust, according to the U.S.? Supreme Court, the State Supreme Court, we have to return revenues to the counties to the schools, right?? So we look at the productivity of land and a lot of these lands in the habitat conservation plan have been set aside for harvest today or future harvest, right? And in doing that, we're going to create a more healthy fire-resilient forest system.? We're going to protect our old growth.? Now there are other lands in Eastern Washington, for example, has, you know, a tremendous agricultural and raising land.? There's highlands along the coast. There's a tremendous amount of natural resources that this office manages, and there are parcels that are not as productive. .When it comes to energy projects, I want to make sure that we're keeping in with the spirit of the responsibility of this office, which is to make sure we're producing for the people of the state of Washington.”

-????????? Herrera Beutler (continued) 16:38-17:20 ”I've worked with, there's a legislator … who has a proposal that would take land that's within the urban growth boundary that's not being actively farmed or harvested, that is really not good for any of those traditional uses and wants to do a tax credit for affordable housing on that land. If they're going to build affordable housing, they'll get a tax credit for it.? So in that way we would be turning that land more productive for the people of the state of Washington. And I'm open to that when it comes to energy projects. I'm open to that when it comes to how we're going to get the best use out of it. The one thing I will not stand for and do not want to see though is conversion. I don't want to see forest land or agricultural land, or tide lands converted when they are active and productive. I want to protect them.

-????????? Herrera Beutler (continued) 17:29-17:52? “We get told that, you know, it's either the environment or it's the economy. We get told that because of climate change, we just have to manage a decline and I completely reject that. We have innovation and technology in the best practices in the world when it comes to farming. When it comes to forestry, we can make sure that we're doing it in a smart, responsible way here. Keeping those jobs here rather than importing, you know those,? those wood products or those other products and exporting our guilt.”

?

The Democratic candidate is enthusiastic about the prospect of repurposing public lands to accommodate difficult to build wind and solar installations.

Upthegrove 18:19 - 19:13 ?“I'm excited to use this position to help Washington State meet our clean energy goals. The legislature adopted some requirements that we need to be energy neutral by 2030, and that all utilities in this state have to produce energy from clean sources by 2045. And, you know, we're getting old. It's sneaking up on us, quickly. And so there's a demand for utility scale wind and solar and other energy sources. And I think this agency can help us meet that goal. I've proposed the development of a new clean energy trust where revenue generated, from new expanded investments in wind and solar be put back into rural communities for economic development, in those rural areas. I also think it's important for us to work upfront, collaboratively with tribal governments, with local governments, with agriculture, with environmental community to make sure that we're citing these and appropriate places and being considerate of those.”

The two candidates’ views on legacy forests, pre-WWII stands of timber, is a flashpoint of contention.

-????????? Jaime Herrera Beutler 8:28- 9:09? “My opponent has a plan to set aside 80,000 acres on day one of trust land. This is harvestable land. That's part of the habitat conservation plan. And that money is supposed to go to school districts in Washington state: Forks, Mount Baker and Concrete, Sultan, Port Angeles, Sequim, Rochester. Tumwater. Olympic– who have all come before the Board of Natural Resources begging essentially to have their money restored through the Timber Trust land program. And my opponent is telling them, because of activists in his ear that have said to set that land aside, we're going to set it aside and walk away. This election is about the future of our public lands in Washington state.

?-????????? Herrera Beutler? 20:40- 20:51 “My opponent is talking about taking $2 billion worth of timber off the, out of the habitat conservation plan, off the books, out of schools. And I keep saying and he keeps saying, I'll find it elsewhere. Where are you going to find $2 billion? Do you think that the legislature is going to give you $2 billion to replace this valuable asset?”

-????????? Upthegrove 9:50 - 10:15? “My plan is to fund our schools and our public services. What I'm proposing is that we make some modest changes to where we harvest in the short term in order to fulfill the responsibilities we have under existing plans and policies. By listening to the science that created our habitat conservation plan. We're going to do what's right for sustainable forestry. Let me explain.

-????????? Upthegrove 10:15 -11:10? “We entered into an agreement with the federal government some time ago, and it has always been the objective of that plan to restore 10 to 15% of our lowland evergreen forests to old growth light conditions in each part of the state. And that's in that plan, and it's also in the policies adopted by the department. I want to bring those to life and make sure we're complying with those policies that were created by scientists in these agencies and embraced by a wide range of stakeholders.

?-????????? Upthegrove 11:10 -11:42 “My opponent's plan is the industry's plan. It's doubling down on the same old way of doing things, which is log baby log. I believe we can do better. Of course, I'm going to fund our schools and public services. I'm married to a teacher. I've always fought for public school funding. My opponent is a long-time member of the Republican Congress. Voted time and time again to cut education funding. Voted to cut Pell Grants for low-income kids in her district. In fact, the National Education Association gave her an F rating. And if the Education Association can't trust her to fund our schools, how can the people of the state of Washington?”

The closing arguments got heated. We had to bleep out one word that starts with s.

?Herrera Beutler 21:22 -22:07 (Direct Link) “While you were chair of the environmental subcommittee, the special areas, the environmental areas within the DNR did not get funded. The recreational areas did not get funded. Both those programs had to go hand in mouth to get grants to do the maintenance work. And you want to add more land to that. You didn't fund the riparian easement program that helps small forest landowners make sure that they're meeting their needs. You didn't fund the program to remove derelict vessels to make sure that we're cleaning up the Puget Sound. Chinook salmon are in crisis today. And you take credit for the Puget Sound Partnership.? You've spent more time in government, and you have less to show for it. You know, from my work in Congress, rather Republican or Democrat, I worked with Democrats to get s#*t done. ?And I think that this place and this role needs to be about getting stuff done for the people of Washington.”

Upthegrove 22:12 - 22:57? (Direct Link) “I get it. We set some big, ambitious goals in this region, and we're continuing to make progress. The question is, are we going in the right direction? And the answer is yes. My opponent, on the other hand, would take us in the wrong direction, supporting and voting for policies and apparently continuing to support policies that take us backwards, voting to roll back clean water protections. 20;01?? Voting to gut the Endangered Species Act. Voting to take us backwards on climate. My vision for the future is one where we're protecting clean water, not rolling back standards, where we're improving habitat, not weakening the Endangered Species Act, and one where we support our climate future, not oppose the Climate Commitment Act. We can get big things done in this state and in order to have good jobs and a strong economy. We need to keep Washington State a great place to live.”?

?

Inside Olympia: 60 Years of Experience Retiring from the Legislature

One represents the south-of-Seattle district that includes SeaTac Airport. She is well known in the Legislature as a key player on health care, labor, and budget issues. The other represents the Spokane Valley area just east of the city of Spokane, and in addition to being a state legislator, was a Spokane County District Court judge. He’s well known as a conservative on social issues like abortion.

This week, Austin Jenkins sits down for exit interviews with soon-to-retire State Senators Karen Keiser of Des Moines and Mike Padden of Spokane Valley, who together have represented their respective districts in the State Legislature for nearly 60 years.

First, Karen Keiser, who will retire in the middle of her four-year Senate term…

On why she stepped down: 1:54 Direct Link

I was getting cranky, and I wasn't having fun. I've always enjoyed the policy, drafting, making of ideas that you do when you start with legislation in the beginning stages. And I just wasn’t having that much fun. And I was short tempered, and just not with the game. So I thought I should think about that.”

On why she originally ran for office: 5:15 Direct Link

“Probably the hottest issue in my district at that time was the third runway for SeaTac Airport … it was a very hostile relationship between our communities and the airport, the third runway we felt was being jammed down our throat…”

On increasing commercial air capacity in Washington: 25:34 Direct Link

“SeaTac Airport is running out of room and time and space, and a come to reckoning will have to happen here in the next few years, because something has to be done to increase capacity for aviation.”

On Democrats’ legislation being challenged this year by ballot initiatives: 9:40 Direct Link

“The initiatives on the ballot were not really popular initiatives, they were bought and paid for initiatives by a very wealthy person who has a very strong ideology … and I don’t think those initiatives have that much popular support; we’ll see.”

On climate change: 10:33 Direct Link

“Sometimes you have to have leadership. And when it becomes one of those ‘which side are you on’ questions to have to take action. Climate change is one of those issues. You have to take action. We have no choice, we have to deal with it.”

On being Senate health care chair and working with health care stakeholders during the period when the Affordable Care Act was passed at the federal level, and the state created the state Health Benefit Exchange health insurance marketplace: 14:11 Direct Link

“It is highly intense. And there are many different stakeholders. I will say the most active and intense stakeholders are the big pharmaceutical companies. And so since I left being chair of Health Care, I started, still on the committee as a member, I started focusing on prescription drugs, because that is one of the fastest growing costs in our medical world.” (also discusses cost containment, transparency, capping insulin costs, cutting the Basic Health Plan during the Great Recession, on her role in passing paid family leave)

On criticisms from business leaders that Democrats have made it too expensive, too regulated for business: (Keiser was a TV news journalist and WA State Labor Council communications director before running for office) 21:43 Direct Link

“We’re in the top five, in terms of rankings for business and labor in this, in this state, for the whole country … I think it’s a win win. I think when you have a well trained, skilled and adequate workforce that you will have successful businesses.” (also discusses the need for regulations, “they don’t come out of thin air”)

Any regrets, areas where she wishes she could have done more? 23:23 Direct Link

·???????? artificial intelligence, which she thinks will need to be regulated the state level, no confidence Congress will act

·???????? child care – “child care is a broken system” and “the parents who need it cannot afford to pay it”

And, Mike Padden…

On Padden being known as one of the legislature’s more conservative members, but also for his ability to work across the aisle: 29:33 Direct Link

“Generally I am, I am fairly conservative but there’s a lot of opportunities and for whatever reason people have come to me with bills that weren’t my ideas, but I thought they were good ideas, and they turned out to be popular, and some had support that I never thought they would...” (discusses employee ownership bill that passed in 2024)

On being known as an advocate for stricter DUI laws: 33:00 Direct Link

“I think it came from the time I was a district court judge and we were able to start a DUI therapeutic court which worked very well, but also having to sentence people and seeing it as such a preventable crime that really harms our society. And we, we’re in a crisis situation in our state, we had over 810 fatalities in 2023, over half of those were due to impaired driving, and we know, we know that the combination of drugs and alcohol is what’s on the ascendancy, alcohol-only impaired driving has been going down or staying level. So we spent a lot of money as a state trying to get a marijuana breathalyzer, WSU did research for number of years, they were never able to come up with anything…” (discusses his bill on roadside oral swabs, his bill to extend the lookback period for prior DUI convictions, the legislative push to lower the blood alcohol content standard from .08 to .05)

On being pro-life in a state that largely supports abortion rights: 38:55 Direct Link

“You know we’ve come so far Austin to show and prove the humanity of the unborn child. We’re doing these marvelous operations, in utero, at two months or even sooner and uh, the unborn child has to receive anesthesia because they, they, it’s painful for the operation. So I mean to me, the humanity of the unborn child has become more and more evidenced by science. And unfortunately I don’t think people hear the pro-life side very much in our state.”

On same-sex marriage: 42:12 Direct Link

“I did say I was concerned about religious liberty and the conflict between the gay rights movement and religious liberty at the time … and that’s, that’s proven true, there’s been conflicts and it’s still a major conflict within the federal judiciary, and other bills that are coming up, and we’ve had the Arlene’s Flowers case.”

On civil political discourse: 46:32 Direct Link

“Well I would say it’s not the norm, certainly on the federal level, the U.S. Congress and the Senate, but in our state, especially in the Senate, I think there still is a lot of civility, our lieutenant governor has made a special effort on that, and uh, I think generally senators agree with that and work together relatively well.”

On the national Republican Party and supporting Trump: 49:28 Direct Link

“Trump’s election in 2016 he did have strong support from social conservatives, a lot of whom have strong religious beliefs, not necessarily one denomination, but evangelicals, or Catholics, traditional Catholics, or LDS folks, or orthodox Jews or even orthodox Muslims, that may have agreement on social issues … I think there’s still a chance for a comeback on some of these issues. As you know Austin there’s a tremendous blowback on transgender people competing in women’s sports and winning things, and I think that is an issue that the majority of the country is on our side on.

“Yeah I definitely support him. I mean I think the alternative is very scary. Harris really had a record really to the left of Bernie Sanders, and of course she’s flip-flopped on a number of things. So I, yeah I mean I, nobody’s perfect and he certainly has some of his faults, but the policies, I mean at the time he was president we were economically very sound, we were energy independent, a lot of Middle East states were recognizing Israel, I mean we were in much better shape when he was president than we are now as a country, in my view.”