School board member goes to Olympia

To The Eagle:

 I’m engaged in an effort to convince our state Legislature to exempt rural school districts from high-cost state prevailing wage requirements. Such an exemption would save our school district $2 million (or more) on an $8 million construction program. On February 13 I testified in Olympia before a Senate committee hearing in favor of proposed bill SB 5508 for that purpose. FYI: Ohio exempts all school construction.

 First, I’d like to publicly thank Sen. Hatfield for agreeing to sponsor this bill as a result of a campaign promise he made before the November election. He and his office were very helpful in getting this bill in committee for discussion.

 If you’ve never been to Olympia during a legislative session, then you can’t get a true feel for how state government works. Basically, it’s a madhouse with crowded halls, hearing rooms, everyone on cell phones, school children being shepherded through the museum-like facilities, all made accessible only if you can find a parking place within a mile radius since all close and decent parking is reserved for the anointed. One’s first response as a visitor is, “Boy, are we lost.”

 My testimony was simple: It seemed very strange to be in Olympia begging legislators to allow a rural school district like Naselle to save $2 million of our own money.

 Prevailing wages are metastasized, anachronistic legislation dating back to the late 1800s, created to keep low-cost Black-dominated Alabama construction outfits from winning bids for New York public projects. Nice. Now, however, they are purely laws to help higher-priced union shops compete “fairly” with lower-priced non-union by “leveling the playing field,” requiring all state construction projects to pay state-mandated, artificially high, labor rates. Even non-union companies must agree to pay these rates as a condition of bidding for such work. Yes, the field is leveled all right--at the high-plains level. This, and this alone, is why a $5-6 million project costs $8 million if it’s a public project.

 Although Sen. Hatfield was nice enough to help, I have not even had an email response from either Representative Blake or Takko. I had written them just as I did Sen. Hatfield’s office, but no reply. So, while in Olympia, my wife and I took the time to drop in to Blake’s office. He was in and we got by his visitor screener somehow, who recognized my name, a fact I thought interesting.

 Our conversation with Representative Blake went like this: I essentially summarized my presentation--about the district saving all that money if this bill were to pass. We also told him several senators said they thought it just might get passed in the Senate.

 His response: “It will never pass the House and the governor would never sign it,” so therefore he didn’t think it was worth his time. I countered that if people like he and Rep. Takko were to get enthusiastically behind it, perhaps it could pass.

 “Well, I think prevailing wages are needed, because those rates are good for the local community.” I asked how that worked. He said, “Because the local workers circulate all that money. If it weren’t for prevailing wages it would invite cheap Mexican contractors up here.”

 I asked him if Oregon contractors would be okay, but he seemed unfazed. He displayed absolutely no sympathy for the Naselle School District having to pay $2 million more than needed, because after all, that’s the way it is, and other school districts are paying it.

 It’s important to know what your representatives feel. He’s entitled to his opinion, and I’m glad he gave it, but I’m shocked that he couldn’t care less about helping his district constituents in an effort to shave significant costs to make needed repairs and improvements to our local school.

 If you feel inclined, please let Mr. Blake and Mr. Takko know how you feel, as well as thanking Sen. Hatfield. Senator Braun, from the district near Chehalis, was very friendly after the hearing and told me he enjoyed my testimony, and how he would like to see that and several other prevailing wage bills pass in an effort to help control excessive costs of government construction.

Art Hyland

Rosburg,

Naselle/Grays River

School Board Member