Well, it’s over. The legislative session, that is. This year’s pre-election session was expected to be mild, with politicians holding back for fear of angering potential voters. The state Legislature passed more than 300 laws since January, and many of them seem anything but safe. Rather than make you sift through them all, we’ve distilled a couple of crucial issues to watch, dear



Weekly Volcano reader. Here goes …



First up is House Bill 2815, which will create a statewide, government-enforced plan to reduce greenhouse gases and invest in so-called green-collar jobs. The law budgets $1.58 million for state agencies to get the ball rolling.



The most contentious of provisions in the bill is approval of Washington’s participation in an effort known as the Western Climate Initiative, a coalition of seven states and two Canadian provinces that have agreed to develop a system aimed at cutting production of greenhouse gases. The part that seems to have upset many voters is the part about capping emissions — which would ultimately mean people would have to pay to drive Hummers, pre-’80s Cadillacs and other gas guzzlers. The law calls for programs aimed at enforcing mileage limits. People who want to drive a lot would have the option to pay for the privilege under current favored models. The law calls for mileage reductions of 18 percent by 2020, 30 percent by 2035, and 50 percent by 2050. The bill doesn’t really make any suggestions how to do that, but orders lawmakers to study the issue further.



Critics have raised a couple more red flags that probably deserve attention. The Western Climate Initiative doesn’t recommend limiting emissions from the transportation sector. Commerce-related transportation produces nearly 50 percent of all fuel-related emissions. Critics contend that it will be impossible to meet reduction goals if transportation emissions are not included in plans. Other concerns include the impact on people living in rural areas, who generally have to drive farther to get to essential destinations such as work and the doctor; and the undue burden on the poor, many of whom can’t afford to buy a new Prius to meet state requirements.



Next, in honor of “Sunshine Week,” March 16-22 — a movement that seeks to increase transparency of government — we’ll look at efforts to open government processes to tax payers. Half of the people recently polled by Scripps Howard news service consider state government to be secretive. Those who see local government as secretive increased from 34 percent in 2007 to 40 percent in the 2008 survey.



Unfortunately, several opportunities to make government transparent in Washington failed this year.



A law that would have increased penalties for violations of the open public meetings from a toothless $100 to $1,000 died in a close vote.



Another failed bill would have mandated taped recordings of so-called executive sessions, which are exempt from Open Public Meetings requirements. Executive sessions are generally about government personnel issues, lawsuits and real estate negotiations. But a state Auditor’s report revealed that many “executive sessions” were used to cloak meetings about subjects the public has a right to know about. Recording would only have been revealed to a judge if a citizen or lawmaker claimed the session was shady.



Another dead bill would have created additional protections for government whistleblowers who expose abuse of government authority or manipulation of scientific or technical information.



One good piece of news is a law that will make government reports about serious medical errors more available to the public. The law rose above several bills sponsored by the healthcare industry that would have put a clamp on state healthcare reports. 

Want to dig up dirt?

Visit Santa Fe Reporter’s guide.com">www.muckrakers guide.com

For more about the Western Climate Initiative, visit www.westernclimateinitiative.org