MORNING SESSION

Senate Chamber, Olympia, Wednesday, May 27, 2015

The Senate was called to order at 11:00 o’clock a.m. by President Owen. The Secretary called the roll and announced to the President that all Senators were present with the exceptions of Senators Habib, Jayapal, King, Kohl-Welles, Miloscia and Padden.

The Sergeant at Arms Color Guard consisting of Mr. Charlie Friend and Mr. Aditya Uppala of Overlake High School in Redmond, guests of Senator Hill, presented the Colors. The President led the Senate in the Pledge of Allegiance. Senator Angel offered the prayer.

MOTION

On motion of Senator Fain, the reading of the Journal of the previous day was dispensed with and it was approved.

MOTION

There being no objection, the Senate advanced to the first order of business.

REPORTS OF STANDING COMMITTEES

May 26, 2015

SB 6125 Prime Sponsor, Senator Honeyford: Concerning emergency drought response. Reported by Committee on Ways & Means

MAJORITY recommendation: That Substitute Senate Bill No. 6125 be substituted therefor, and the substitute bill do pass. Signed by Senators Hill, Chair; Braun, Vice Chair; Dammeier, Vice Chair; Honeyford, Vice Chair, Capital Budget Chair; Hargrove, Ranking Member; Keiser, Assistant Ranking Member on the Capital Budget; Bailey; Becker; Billig; Brown; Conway; Fraser; Hasegawa; Hatfield; Hewitt; O'Ban; Parlette; Rolfes; Schoesler and Warnick.

Passed to Committee on Rules for second reading.

May 26, 2015

SB 6126 Prime Sponsor, Senator Braun: Addressing collective bargaining. Reported by Committee on Ways & Means

MAJORITY recommendation: That Substitute Senate Bill No. 6126 be substituted therefor, and the substitute bill do pass. Signed by Senators Hill, Chair; Braun, Vice Chair; Dammeier, Vice Chair; Honeyford, Vice Chair, Capital Budget Chair; Bailey; Becker; Brown; Hewitt; O'Ban; Parlette; Schoesler and Warnick.

MINORITY recommendation: Do not pass. Signed by Senators Hargrove, Ranking Member; Keiser, Assistant Ranking Member on the Capital Budget; Billig; Conway; Fraser; Hasegawa; Hatfield and Rolfes.

Passed to Committee on Rules for second reading.

MOTION

On motion of Senator Fain, all measures listed on the Standing Committee report were referred to the committees as designated.

MOTION

On motion of Senator Fain, the Senate advanced to the eighth order of business.

MOTION

Senator O'Ban moved adoption of the following resolution:

SENATE RESOLUTION

8675

By Senators O'Ban, Angel, Dammeier, Roach, Darneille, Conway, and Fraser

WHEREAS, The United States Open Championship, or U.S. Open, in men's golf celebrates its 120th year in 2015, starting from humble beginnings in Rhode Island; and

WHEREAS, Washington will host the 2015 U.S. Open men's golf championship in June at Chambers Bay Golf Course in University Place; and

WHEREAS, Washington will benefit from this historic event, which will promote tourism and raise the public profile of our region; and

WHEREAS, Professional sport provides an opportunity for people of all walks of life to join in good sportsmanship, camaraderie, and enjoyment; and

WHEREAS, Hundreds of thousands of visitors are expected to attend this year's U.S. Open, boosting economic activity and attracting global attention to Chambers Bay Golf Course and its surrounding communities; and

WHEREAS, An estimated $140 million in economic activity will result from hosting the U.S. Open at Chambers Bay Golf Course, through increased tourism, retail, transportation, lodging and dining, and construction; and

WHEREAS, Washington's state and local governments have worked together to improve nearby parks and recreation activities to welcome guests from around the world for the first-ever U.S. Open men's golf championship in the Pacific Northwest;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington State Senate recognize the significant economic and cultural contributions of the U.S. Open golf tournament to Pierce County and the entire state of Washington, and recognize how this historic first for the region will promote interest in hosting significant events in our region, such as a future U.S. Open, by demonstrating the hospitality, natural wonder, and recreational opportunities Washington has to offer; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the citizens, officials, businesses, and community partners involved in the tournament are commended for their hard work on behalf of the region and the State, for without their diligence, the U.S. Open tournament would not have been possible.

With permission of the Senate, business was suspended to show a brief video of the Chambers Bay Golf Course.

Senators O'Ban, Dansel, Fraser, Ericksen, Sheldon, Conway, Becker and Rolfes spoke in favor of adoption of the resolution.

The President declared the question before the Senate to be the adoption of Senate Resolution No. 8675.

The motion by Senator O'Ban carried and the resolution was adopted by voice vote.

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT

President Owen: “Senator Conway, you asked who has played Chambers Bay. I have not because I do not play golf courses that take a ladder to get in and out of the sand [traps]. And they do have ladders, if you noticed that [in the video], to get in and out of the sand.”

INTRODUCTION OF SPECIAL GUESTS

The President welcomed and introduced Mr. Danny Sink, Championship Director, US Golf Association (USGA); The Honorable Pat McCarthy, Pierce County Executive; and Mr. Hunter T. George, Communications Director, Pierce County, and Fircrest City Councilmember, who were seated at the rostrum.

With permission of the Senate, business was suspended to allow County Executive Pat McCarthy and Mr. Danny Sink to address the senate.

REMARKS BY EXECUTIVE PAT MCCARTHY

County Executive McCarthy: “Thank you and thank you for this wonderful honor. I wish John Ladenburg was standing beside me because, quite frankly, it was his vision. And I feel like it was a baton that was passed to me when I became county executive in the depths of a recession with a major golf event so many years out. So, I will tell you it has been a labor of love for the county to lean in and make sure that we had, have a fabulous US Open because as I like to say all the time, ‘We want it to be the gift that keeps on giving.’ And bringing that economic benefit to the region, not just to Pierce County, not just to University Place but, quite frankly, to the entire region in the state of Washington. That’s what events like this do and it was John’s great vision and the team that I’ve had that gave really made it happen. We have had a fabulous relationship with the USGA. I like to say what I like about this organization is they just don’t swoop into town, take their bag of money and leave town. What they do is they embed somebody, and they embedded a championship director by the name of Danny Sink sitting here to my left and he has just been fabulous. He has probably done two hundred presentations across the county to talk about the event. But the enthusiasm of the people of the Pacific Northwest, since we’ve never had an event of this magnitude, has been infectious and people are so excited about coming. Thank you for your support. Thank you Senator Fraser. You are absolutely right. This is a story about reclamation. It’s story about conservation. It’s such a bigger story, it’s about public access with our trails, with the bridge to the beach. We have other things that we want to do out at Chambers Bay but it is more than a golf event but that is really what’s driving, the benefit to all of us is, has been the US Open.”

REMARKS BY MR. DANNY SINK

Danny Sink: “First off I want to thank everyone for being here. It’s truly an honor to see such a beautiful building and all the work that you do. As I was sitting here, listening to your work, I saw a group of school kids come in this side, then this side and there’s another one coming in. One great thing that brings me a lot of pride in what I do. I get to do this every year, children twelve and under get into our championship free, thirteen to seventeen get in at a deeply discounted rate. And you got to think about what this event means, not only for us in the room, not only for the state, for the county but there are going to be kids that come to the US Open with their mom or dad, little boys, little girls that come to their first golf event that have never been exposed to the game, that see it for the first time. You never know what happens to those kids. There will be a story in twenty years of a kid that came to Chambers Bay. A little girl that came with her mom that eventually plays in the US Open. So, little stories like that that we like to tell at the USGA about this event is more than Tiger Woods, Phil Michelson and Rory Mcllroy. It’s about the future of the game, it’s about the future of sports, it’s about health, talking about a game you can play for the rest of your life. So little things like are what make my job special, having the kids sitting up there, knowing that some of them will see their first golf event, be exposed to the game and play it for the rest of their lives is something truly special. Thanks again for having us. I’ve lived here for two and half years. I’m a transplant but one of the most beautiful places in the world and the hospitality that my family and I have received since we arrived here has been unprecedented. So, you should be very proud for what you have here. Thank you.”

Senator Fraser announced a meeting of the Senate Democratic Caucus immediately upon going at ease.

Senator Parlette announced a meeting of the Majority Coalition Caucus immediately upon going at ease.

MOTION

At 11:30 a.m., on motion of Senator Fain, the Senate was declared to be at ease subject to the call of the President.

AFTERNOON SESSION

The Senate was called to order at 1:22 p.m. by President Owen.

MOTION

At 1:22 p.m., on motion of Senator Fain, the Senate adjourned until 10:00 o’clock a.m. Thursday, May 28, 2015.

BRAD OWEN, President of the Senate

HUNTER G. GOODMAN, Secretary of the Senate