Looking ahead to the needs of Mason County

As the Legislature prepares to begin the 2023 session, there are many issues before us. How those will impact Mason County, the 35th District, and our state will be top of mind as I approach each issue.

First and foremost, we begin the work on our biennium budget. The budget is our two-year spending plan for the state and is largely driven by policy decisions. I have had the honor to serve as one of the senior Republicans on the House Appropriations Committee for the past eight years.

In transitioning to the Senate, I made the decision to step away and instead serve on the Transportation Committee (more on that in a moment), however my interest and attention to our state budget remains as it is vitally important.

In the governor's proposed budget, he increases spending by over 8% to bring the total to $70 billion. Unfortunately, the governor does not provide tax relief or significantly boost our rainy-day fund. I believe this is the wrong course of action in a time of high inflation, higher interest rates and an economy teetering on the brink of recession. I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to address those concerns.

The governor has also released his transportation budget and I look forward to serving on what will be a new policy area for me. I chose to do this because we have critical transportation infrastructure challenges in this district that need immediate attention.

First on the list is the Belfair Freight Corridor (Belfair Bypass). In the governor's proposed budget, he removes funding for this vital project. This is a project that is way overdue and much needed. Leaders at all levels of government have worked hard and fought hard to bring this project to a point that it can be done. To now go full stop is a waste of previous resources spent on it but also a devastating blow to a much-needed project in our community. Rectifying this will be my main priority this session.

Additionally, we will need to address other issues, including the continued push for a miles-driven tax. I believe this is unfair to rural areas and will continue to work toward other funding solutions that do not involve additional taxes on you.

One such proposal is my bill to incrementally move sales tax from vehicle sales to the transportation budget from the operating budget. This is a direct nexus and makes sense as we continue to trend toward more fuel efficient and EV cars which result in declining gas tax revenue by their very nature. We can afford to do this!

I will be serving as the ranking Republican on the Senate Energy, Environment and Technology committee. There is no shortage of issues before this committee. Whether one agrees with the legislation or not the Climate Commitment Act is now law, and this committee will be largely tasked with various implementation legislation.

I will be working hard to ensure implementation recognizes the free markets and holds to its original intent of a 30-year implementation to carbon neutral. In doing so this will allow new technologies to continue to be developed and protect our economy in the meantime. We will also need to continue to increase rural broadband and critical infrastructure.

Part of meeting our energy needs is utilizing all available forms of energy. I am pleased that the governor is open to nuclear energy. I intend to partner with him on this issue, but in doing so there is always a give and take. I look forward to a robust dialogue with him to move this forward.

Over the 10 years I served in the House I always strived to form partnerships on both sides of the aisle and in both chambers. As I now move to the Senate, I have many of those relationships in place. Regardless of party, I will work hard on issues of relative common ground to better our community and our state. Recently, I spent an evening with outgoing Sen. Reuven Carlyle, D-Seattle. We got to know each other while we both served in the House. While there are many issues we disagree on there are many we have common ground on.

Our agreements have formed a bond, and our disagreements have always been professional. During the evening we were together (cheering for the Seattle Kraken), we had a lot of give-and-take discussions on taxes, environment, and technology policy issues. He also gave me a lot of good advice in working through issues inside of the Senate. It is this type of camaraderie I will continue to seek out regardless of party. In doing so I can help ensure the voices of rural Washington are heard.

As we embark on a new year, I wish each of you and your family a prosperous and safe 2023. May God bless each of you!

■ Drew MacEwen is state Senator-Elect for the 35th District. He previously served 10 years in the state Legislature.