Tim Eyman has devoted the last 20 years of his life to gutting funding for essential services in Washington state. Over the course of two decades, he launched dozens of initiatives that have slashed billions of dollars that would have boosted transportation, transit, education, affordable housing, mental health services, and more. The damage Tim Eyman has done to Washington’s public services cannot be overstated.
Now Eyman is back in 2019 with his latest bad idea: Initiative 976. Like most Eyman ballot measures, I-976 is meant to sound good on the surface by promising cheaper car tabs. What Eyman doesn’t want you to know is that I-976 would slash billions of dollars from voter-approved transportation and transit projects. He prefers to complain about government and make Trump-like promises about cutting taxes without talking about the implications. Sorry Tim, we’re not fooled.
Since Eyman won’t tell you what I-976 would actually do, we will. Here are just a few of the most damaging aspects of I-976:
- Halt voter-approved light rail expansions in their tracks. I-976 would eliminate a staggering $20 billion in funding for Sound Transit that voters just approved in 2016.
- Eliminate funding for updating bridges, overpasses, and tunnels to be earthquake safe and fix the over 160 bridges and overpasses experts say are in poor condition
- Cut popular, robust transportation options like special needs transit for our seniors, veterans, and disabled folks, Vanpools, and expanded transit and bus centers
- Endanger projects like widening I-90, I-405, and US 395
- Slash $60 million a year in funding for construction, road maintenance, and local transit services in 62 cities across the state from Anacortes to Zillah.
- Put public safety at risk by cutting funding $15 million annuals from the State Patrol.
As always, Eyman has no plan to replace one cent of the billions of cuts he is creating. This is just another instance of his favorite plays: to bluster and misrepresent the facts.
At this point, there’s no reason to believe anything this conman tries to sell us. Early in his initiative career, Eyman admitted paying himself $165,000 from funding he raised from supporters while claiming he would not pocket a dime. Just last week, a Thurston County Judge ordered him to disclose more than $800,000 he’s pocketed from his campaigns since 2012 alone. According to Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson, Eyman “has not had a job in nearly 20 years” and his only support has been from political donations “or from kickbacks related to campaigns.” And who can forget when Eyman stole a chair from Office Depot earlier this year.
The only thing Eyman has proven over the years is that he can’t be trusted, and that goes for I-976 as well. Together, we can send Tim Eyman packing once again and let him know that strong transportation makes Washington a more equitable, environmentally friendly, and overall better place to live!
Vote NO on Tim Eyman’s I-976 and keep Washington moving forward.
