Washington Election Issues Part 2

Washington Election Issues Part 2. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Fruit Grower Report.

Jon DeVaney with the Yakima Valley Grower/Shipper Association recently spent some time talking about how the November election will shape up in the long run for ag producers in the state and he says voters were sending a message.

DeVANEY: They were saying they really like Democrats but they really don’t want to pay for them. So we don’t really have an Occupy Wall Street kind of electorate in Washington. Now the legislators are trying to figure out what kind of mandate that gives them for governing the next legislative session.

DeVaney takes a look at the new Governor Jay Inslee.

DeVANEY: No one knows exactly what he is going to do on a lot of issues. He campaigned on a very general platform. He talked about he’s going to save money with the quote, “special sauce” of lean management principals that would save money in a number of places. But exactly what will that mean, no one sure exactly what kind of price tag you can put on savings. He has talked about making government more efficient and creating jobs. Very good, but what exactly will be his legislative priorities?

He says to expect to see new mandates from the state government that will cost industry money and show a victory for the state.

DeVANEY: Water quality is going to be a big one. There’s going to be a lot at stake in the next legislative session. Anything that increases our cost in doing business can further erode our competitive position and should be a serious concern.

That’s today’s Fruit Grower Report. I’m Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network.