In our view Feb. 22: Fair Funding

One of the many problems The Columbian has is the selective presentation of facts. Today's editorial, wherein they take a stab at discussing the issue of Clark County bleeding gas tax revenues, is all-too-typical of their exercise in propaganda.

I have yet to experience, in the 21 years I've lived here, a tax on or for any transportation issue, method or mode that this paper has opposed.

That is, this newspaper, physically located at the heart of any effort or outcome to "improve" transportation (Look it up: The first light rail debacle back in 96 or so, where this paper provided 10's of thousands of dollars in unreported in-kind donations to the "yes" side; both efforts, including the despicable gerrymandering effort now being emulated by Sen. Craig Pridemore, to jack up our sales tax for C-Tran; the idiocy of replacing a bridge with 3 through lanes with another bridge with 3 through lanes AND light rail... all have had this paper's most rabid support.) has never, ever questioned the need or the desire of the population it allegedly serves for any of these programs.

Dangle the words "tax" and "transportation" in front of these people, and they'll react like a starving pit bull confronted with a t-bone steak.

So now, they make a sordid attempt to shift our focus from the $4 BILLION gorilla in the room, an ape that has already wasted 10's of millions of dollars in a "study" with a pre-ordained outcome that only would support the Columbian's demanded outcome, rejecting the only sensible conclusion (That a 3rd bridge... and then a 4th bridge... would be needed before any effort to replace the perfectly functional, perfectly serviceable bridge that we already have takes place) that any group without an agenda would arrive at.

Relative to the nickels and dimes of the taxes discussed in this piece, taxes increased with the gloating approval of this very publication, the bridge replacement crushes all of these in comparison. The bridge replacement and loot rail will suck up all transportation funding for the next two decades or longer, all for a project that will make absolutely no difference to anyone, except the special interests like the Columbian demanding this massive waste of money.



In our view Feb. 22: Fair Funding
Beware jumping to conclusions about state transportation spending list

Sunday, February 22 6:00 a.m.

To enhance the accountability of the Washington Department of Transportation, state legislators recently asked the agency to compile a dollar-for-dollar list of spending in each of the 39 counties. Sources of funding include the base gas tax of 23 cents per gallon, a nickel boost in 2003 and a 9-cent increase in 2005. The report extends from 2004 through 2017.

We're glad the lawmakers requested the data; the report is informative and educational. Likely, it will be used by politicians and agency officials in planning projects and funding throughout the state. As state Rep. Deb Wallace, D-Vancouver, said in a Columbian story by Erik Robinson, "I think people want to know what they're getting for their dollar. … It does become a measuring stick for us."

But beware the cozy comfort of statistics. Jumping to conclusions about mere numbers can be a risky endeavor. And whether it's incumbent politicians campaigning for re-election or engineers deciding the scope of projects, the primary focus of transportation infrastructure should be trained on just one target.

That target is need. This is the foundation for virtually all tax systems in federal, state and local governments. When and where police protection is needed, that greater need is funded in part by taxpayers who may go months or years without a visit from a police officer. Similarly, the need to fund public education is met in part by people who have no family members enrolled in public schools.

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