[Capr-announce] CAPR News May, 2007

Mon May 21 20:40:16 PDT 2007

CAPR  NEWS

THE MONTHLY NEWSLETTER FROM CITIZENS’ ALLIANCE FOR PROPERTY RIGHTS
May, 2007

CAPR Installs 2007 Board of Directors

As its’ parting act, the 2006 CAPR Board of Directors installed the newly
elected 2007 Board members at its’ April 27, 2007 meeting.

The new CAPR Board is:

          President             Steve Hammond
          Vice-President    Preston Drew
          Secretary             Jeff Wright
          Treasurer            Pam Sias
          Directors             Jim Osborne
                                      Cindy Alia
                                      Dan Griner

Past–president Rodney McFarland was voted in as a Director but resigned the
slot and was appointed by the new Board to be Treasurer of CAPR Legal Fund.
The Board then appointed Dan Griner to the open Directors’ spot.

As most of you know, Rodney has worked tirelessly in support of property
rights.  In the case of the King County CAO referendum lawsuit, it was
literally Rod’s name on the filing papers, not CAPR.  Last year during the
I-933 campaign he worked full time for long periods, providing input for the
initiative’s text, managing CAPR’s petition drive efforts and then working
on various activities during the election season.  All with very limited
resources.

But these are just couple of his more visible activities.  With much behind
the scenes help from Pam Sias and Tony Zgraggen, Rod set up a solid
structure for CAPR, CAPR Political Action Committee and CAPR Legal Fund.
Also, in 2006, Rod and Tony rewrote the CAPR Bylaws to facilitate growth of
the organization beyond King Co. and to make it simple for folks in other
areas to set up their own CAPR chapters.

Rod has made many personal sacrifices along the way and deserves our
gratitude. He is a patriot.  Rod’s service will be recognized at the next
CAPR public meeting (see below).

Be there!

Supreme Court to Hear Kent CAO Case

On May 29, 2007, the Washington Supreme Court will hear oral arguments and
then decide whether the City of Kent’s Critical Areas Ordinance will stand
as the City intended it or whether extreme environmental forces will be
allowed their will.  The Court’s decision could have significant impacts
either way.

Kent amended its CAO in 2005 in response to the requirement in the Growth
Management Act (GMA) that local governments review their growth plans every
ten years.  Unlike many jurisdictions, Kent reviewed and updated its plan
based on the balanced list of requirements mandated by GMA.  It was an
unusual show of moderation given the current political climate in western
Washington.  Not surprisingly, Washington’s Department of Ecology (DOE) and
Community, Trade and Development (CTED) then appealed the CAO to the Central
Puget Sound Hearings Board on the grounds that its environmental protections
are not extreme enough.  The Hearings Board in turn ruled that the
environmental protections are not adequate, but also that GMA mandates that
environmental protection takes precedence over all else.  An absurd
statement indicative, not only of the Board’s typical actions, but also of
its arrogance in thinking that it might get away with such an
“administrative” change in the law.

The Hearings Board decision was quickly appealed.  However, the Superior
Court and then the Court of Appeals both bumped the case to the next level
without making decisions.  This was wise given that the case was bound for
the Supreme Court anyway.  This was most likely beneficial to Kent’s
position as the case is less likely to get bogged down in frivolous “best
science” arguments rather than whether it followed the letter of the law.
(It did.)   The case will clearly illustrate whether GMA will be perverted
once again or whether state law is actually worth the paper it is written
upon.

Pacific Legal Foundation, for PLF and CAPR, has supplied an Amicus Brief
which argues that the Hearings Board was improper in its ruling.  Brian
Hodges authored the brief and plans to attend the hearing but is not
scheduled to testify.

As a side bar, note that the current director of DOE is Jay Manning.
Manning, a close associate of Governor Gregoire, was previously head of the
extreme Washington Environmental Council (WEC), a private group.  That fact
is an indicator of how this all ties together.  WEC has been more than a
“stakeholder” in the CAO battle in Jefferson Co., using its financial clout
to bully the process.  Ask the folks in Jefferson what they think of WEC.

Stay tuned.

Speaking of Jefferson County

The various factions continue to wrangle in Jefferson Co. over the County’s
CAO update.  The good guys are working hard to inject some sanity into the
outcome, but are fighting some formidable forces.  The Washington DOE and
Washington Environmental Council continue to push for extreme protections.

One of the citizens’ panel members, Norman MacLeod, reports that his panel
has delivered its report to the County Planning Commission.  The panel
enlisted Dr. Kenneth M. Brooks to review DOE policy.  Dr. Brooks has a
stellar resume and produced a 62-page report that makes recommendations and
pokes holes in DOE’s “best available science”.  Brooks points out early in
the report that DOE refused to produce 28 scientific papers that helped to
produce the agency’s current policies but was able to get them through other
channels.  One wonders why DOE would not be forthcoming with some of the
foundation for its policies.  If one is naïve.  In a 28-page document, DOE
rebutted Dr. Brook’s work.  Then, in a 71-page response, Brooks dismantles
the DOE rebuttal with such thoroughness that it can only be seen as an
embarrassment to the authors of the DOE rebuttal.   It would be enjoyable
reading if it weren’t so deadly serious.  If you would like to read the
documents, email Jeff Wright at the address below and they will be forwarded
to you.

Support I-958, the Life Safety and Protection Initiative

There is still time to help the campaign to get state Initiative 958
qualified for the ballot.  The initiative would allow property owners to
clear trees and brush within 100 feet of their buildings and utility lines.
You can read the initiative at www.yesonI958.squarespace.com
<http://www.yesoni958.squarespace.com/> .  You can get involved by emailing
I958 at centurytel.net <mailto:I958 at centurytel.net>  or by calling
360-378-3776.

CAPR Meeting Schedule

The next meeting of the King Co. chapter of CAPR will be held at 7:00 PM,
Thursday   June 7th.  The meeting site is the IHOP restaurant located at
1433 NW Sammamish Rd. in Issaquah.  Consider coming early for dinner and
conversation.

Support the Cause!

As a volunteer organization, CAPR depends on our supporters and Board to get
things done.  If you have time to donate, please contact us.  If you would
like to make a financial contribution, you can do so with this link:
http://www.proprights.org/donate.php.

Jeff Wright
Secretary, CAPR
E-mail:        jeff at proprights.org <mailto:jeff at proprights.org>
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