FoxIsland.net
Updated
1/24/03
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CAT Is Back! Citizens Against Tolls has a new website; http://www.No-Tolls.com, and a new "No-Tolls" campaign. In 2002, a $2.5 Billion Dollar "Toll Tax" was imposed largely on Peninsula residents to fund 100% of the construction (and other associated) costs for a new Narrows Bridge. In 2003, Peninsula residents can expect additional taxes to be imposed on them for funding all the other mega projects in Washington - except the Narrows Bridge. Today, you can fight this tax inequity by supporting our legal battle for fairness. CAT has filed suit on behalf of the citizens of Washington. Our lawsuit will force the state to: 1. Reduce the cost of the project
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Take Action! Visit the all-new www.No-Tolls.com website today! |
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Press Information Bulletin
Citizens Against Tolls
P.O. Box 237; Gig Harbor, WA 98335
More Information: Randy Boss (253)
858-5100
Shawn Newman (360) 866-2322
TACOMA NARROWS BRIDGE LAWSUIT UPDATE
March 6, 2003
As most of you know the Citizens Against Tolls (CAT) filed our appeal of a Thurston County Superior Court Case with the Division II Washington State Court of Appeals in Tacoma, Washington on January 2, 2003. The State had 30 days to respond and they did file their reply on February 3, 2003. CAT then had an additional 30 days to reply to the State response, which we did and CAT did file that reply on March 5, 2003.
Now that the Court of Appeals has the full and complete record which they need to make a decision, the CAT attorney, Mr. Shawn Newman, will file next week a "motion to transfer" this case to the Washington State Supreme Court. When that request is filed, the Supreme Court will "reach down" and transfer the full and complete record from the Court of Appeals to the Supreme Court for review. During that review period the clock stops at the Court of Appeals.
The decision as to whether this case is ultimately transferred to the Supreme Court rest solely with the Supreme Court. After their review of the filed documents they will determine whether the case should be transferred based on RAP 4.2(a)(4) which states "A case involving a fundamental and urgent issue of broad public import which requires prompt and ultimate determination."
If the Supreme Court does believe this is an urgent issue of broad public importance they will rule to accept the case. This ruling could take weeks so in the mean time - we'll just have to sit and wait.
While we wait the State Department of Transportation continues to issue bonds to continue the construction of the new Tacoma Narrows Bridge. Our lawsuit contends those bonds are legally issued by the State Treasurer however they can not be paid back with tolls because they were originally authorized by a vote of the people as R-49 bonds which (by law) can only be paid back with State gas tax - not tolls. When we prevail on this issue, the state will have to find a way to collect enough gas tax from other existing sources to pay back the bonds they have already issued up and until that date. The more bonds they issue between now and then will be less debt that will be piled on the tollpayers of our area.
The second issue is the lack of competitive bidding for this project. We believe the state will have to stop construction while they take this project out for the competitive bid process they ignored when they handed this sole source contract to their partner Tacoma Narrows Constructors - a sub-company of Bechtel Kiewit - the same company that owned United Infrastructure Company.
Every public works project that has ever been built in this state has been competitively bid - that's the law - except the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. We believe that resulted in an ever-increasing price that will be significantly reduced once the state is required (by our lawsuit) to comply with state law.
Will this lawsuit stop the bridge?
We think at this stage in the project the State will have to transfer gas tax money from other projects around the State to pay off the bonds they have issued on this project. That will stop construction on hundreds of smaller construction projects across the state but we think they will be too embarrassed to stop this project at this late date. But they could!
Our lawsuit will have a chilling impact on the state and will finally require the Washington State Department of Transportation to comply with the same set of laws all the rest of the citizens of this state are forced to follow. This lawsuit will raise the bar and establish new standards for the State Department of Transportation to follow and will save us tollpayers hundreds of millions dollars over the life of this project.
With all that said - The CAT lawsuits continue and the attorney bills continue to be paid through generous donations from this community. We have raised over $15,000 to fund this portion of this lawsuit and we have spent almost $15,000. We are relying on your generosity to keep this fight alive.
Please take a moment, right now, to sit down and write a check to Citizens Against Tolls. Your donations are the only way we have to continue paying our attorney to keep this fight alive. $100 will pay for one hour of his time (that's half his normal rate to us) but more or less (whatever you can afford) will be greatly appreciated.
Mail your donations to: CAT P.O. Box 237 Gig Harbor, Washington 98335
If you have any questions just give me a call and I'll give a "live update" from the front lines.......
Randy Boss
(253) 858-5100
When you send in your check ask me for one of our 4" x 4" yellow and black "NO TOLLS" diamond bumper stickers. I'll drop one back in the mail to you.......
For Immediate Release:
Opening Brief Filed In Appeals Court On Tacoma Narrows
Lawsuit
(Gig Harbor, WA, January 2, 2003) - Citizens Against Tolls (CAT) today filed its opening brief in the Court of Appeals, Division II, in Tacoma, Washington to move forward its appeal regarding tolls, toll financing and the state’s contracting methods on the Tacoma Narrows Bridge Project. CAT’s appeal follows a dismissal of the case in September, 2002 by Judge Daniel Berschauer in Thurston County Superior Court.
Defendants in the case are the Washington State Treasurer, the State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) and the Washington State Transportation Commission. CAT is represented by well-known Olympia attorney Shawn Newman, who in November, 2000 won a State Supreme Court decision against the Department of Transportation on this same project.
The appeals court is being asked to rule on several issues connected with the project that involve violations of existing state laws and violation of the State Constitution. These violations are:
 | WSDOT awarded construction and consultant contracts that
were not advertised or competitively bid in violation of state law. CAT
contends that these contracts are illegal. |
| EHB 2723 passed by the 2002 Legislature violated the “single
subject rule” of the State Constitution because the bill’s title and
description did not make reference to exempting public works projects from
state bidding laws, and therefore EHB 2723 is illegal. |
| The State’s use of toll revenues to pay the principal of
and interest on the state-issued general obligation bonds that are being
used to finance the project conflicts with statutory requirements placed on
these bonds. These bonds were approved by a statewide vote in 1998 as
Referendum 49 and require that excise taxes on motor vehicle fuels be used
to pay their principal and interest. CAT contends that the state’s use of
toll revenues, instead of excise taxes on motor vehicle fuels, to pay off
these bonds is illegal. |
| WSDOT failed to prioritize the project by comparing it to
other needed transportation projects in the state. WSDOT did not follow
existing state laws requiring “priority programming” and, therefore, the
project itself and contracts issued by the state for the project are
illegal. |
| EHB 2723 also violated the State Constitution which prohibits enactment of legislation that revises or amends other laws without setting them forth at full length. In particular, EHB 2723 failed to explicitly amend other state laws that control how the Referendum 49 bonds will be paid back. |
Take Action! Visit the all-new www.No-Tolls.com website today!
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Thank You! | Write The Governor | Write Norm Dicks | Write Patty Murray |
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CAT Supporter,
All we are asking for is fair and equal treatment, but no one in Olympia wants to listen to the voice of the people, so off we go to court again to achieve the justice this community deserves. Citizens Against Tolls is in the process of raising funds to support the continuing fight for equity on the Bridge. As you may know, if passed, Referendum 51 will fund huge amounts, if not all of the funding needed for SR-520, SR-404 and the Alaska Way Viaduct, but provide no funding for the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. The latest contract on the Bridge continues the blank check philosophy of WSDOT as long as they can write the checks on the tollpayers check books. It is even worse than the previous contracts in many regards. We need help raising funds to force the State to provide funding for the Tacoma Narrows Bridge in the same proportional amounts that they will fund other projects. Citizens Against Tolls has retained attorney Shawn Newman, a well-respected and proven winner who lives and works in Olympia. Mr. Newman is the same attorney who won the last Supreme Court victory over WSDOT and who will once again, knock the stuffin' out of these guys. Thanks for your help and support in the past. I hope you will all sit down immediately, and send a check to CAT in any amount you can afford. A few dollars now will save this community $100,000,000 a year in tolls. Michael B. Murphy |
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Thank You For Participating!
Over 1000 e-mails have been sent to the State Legislature from this website since January 15, 2001, protesting the tolls and private financing and control of the new bridge. Using the links on this website, 306 people have contacted US Rep. Norm Dicks, 154 have contacted US Senator Patty Murray and 31 people have contacted Governor Gary Locke.
As reported in the News Tribune, US Rep. Norm Dicks personally contacted key State Senators in an effort to get Speaker Chopp's bill passed, saving the bridge users millions in project funds that were diverted to ferries and other projects. Thanks to the hundreds of e-mails from Peninsula residents, Rep. Dicks' was alerted to this issue, and assisted in gaining passage of HB2723.
While we didn't beat the tolls, we DID beat the private financing and bridge ownership deal, that had Bechtel financing the project, and charging the tollpayers for maintenance and operating costs of the bridge for years to come.
What's Next?
Asking for Federal Assistance for the project from US Rep. Norm Dicks,
and Senator Patty Murray is one way we can lower the cost of tolls. Click
the links below, and send your message to them via their websites:
Send e-mail to Senator Patty Murray at her website.
Send US Rep. Norm Dicks an e-mail, at his website.
Tell Governor Locke what you think
Interested in receiving Narrows Bridge Toll updates
via e-mail?
Join our Narrows Tolls e-mail Newsletter!
Click
here to join
On February 4, 2002, the State House of Representatives passed HB 2723, which authorizes public financing and the creation of a public tolling authority that will save taxpayers and toll payers money. The bill contains a sunset clause that allows the toll to be removed when the debt is paid, and requires that bridge maintenance be paid from DOT funds, not tolls. House Bill 2723 now heads to the Senate, where it also is expected to win approval and then be sent to Gov. Gary Locke for his signature.
From The News Tribune - 1/30/02
Construction of the bridge is expected to cost about $584
million, but other costs will require the state to borrow between $730 million
and $820 million.
It will take 41/2 years to build the bridge, which would open to traffic in January 2007. Motorists would pay a round-trip toll of $3 for the first few years, eventually rising to $5 a trip.
Tolls are expected to remain on the bridge until 2029. Over that period of time, motorists would pay between $1.7 billion and $1.9 billion in tolls.
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