Corruption & Abuse of Power in Olympia
Rep. Tarra Simmons Ethics Board Verdict.
Olympia is Disrespecting Taxpayers
No accountability in wake of ethics violations.
$500,000 project "in storage".
As reported in THE SUMMIT, the Legislative Ethics Board ruled that Rep. Tarra Simmons violated multiple laws regarding self-dealing. The Board also imposed over $36k in fines.
Simmons wrote a bill to fund Equity in Education Center (EEC), a non-profit she worked for at the time. The EEC never delivered on the $500k contract. Simmons also retaliated against a whistleblower in the matter.
The verdict implicates our ruling party’s leadership because they have nothing to say about the situation. This is an admission that Simmons’ behavior is really the norm in Olympia.
Where are leadership?
Governor Bob Ferguson is the top Democratic Party state official.
Nick Brown is Attorney General — our state’s highest law enforcement official.
Rep. Lori Jenkins is Speaker of the House.
Rep. Tarra Simmons is speaker pro tempore in the House.
Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon is House Democratic majority leader.
Shasti Conrad is Chair of the Washington State Democratic Central Committee, and in the party’s national leadership.
The Ethics Board made a clear case for finding Simmons guilty. Nevertheless, ruling party leadership shrug off their colleague’s cronyism. There is no accountability beyond the verdict, regarding the self dealing and $500k snatched from the state treasury.
Simmons has refuted the complaint against her. Considering there is no admission or apology by the legislator, there are ways Olympia leaders can hold her accountable:
- Removal from State House leadership.
- State House vote to censure.
- House expel Simmons.
Again, nothing from the ruling party. And GOP are quiet too!
Where Did the $500,000 Go?
State AG Brown can no longer continue to ignore this matter. There must be an investigation into what happened with the funds Simmons wrote into the bill benefitting her then employer — the Equity in Education Center.
Our State Attorney General has the ability to compel testimony. I want to hear EEC Executive Director Sharonne Navas explain why the $500k equity dashboard is “in storage”. EEC has also received over $10M in tax money. Let’s hear an explanation of the reported First-class flights and resort booze found in a state audit.
After paying the gas tax, sales tax, property tax and soon, income tax , hard working Washingtonians need to know what happened.
I’m not complaining about taxes — my issue is with Olympia’s carelessness with tax money .
Talking Points
Democratic Party leadership are mum on the lost $500k, reckless spending and sketchy bill writing. This leadership also wrote the ballot description for I-645, the initiative proposing to repeal the new state income tax:
This measure would decrease funding for public K-12 education, higher education (including universities and community colleges), and human services (primarily healthcare).
Considering the loose tax money in Olympia, the following ballot description is a better message to voters:
This measure would decrease funding for the ruling Democratic Party to enrich their employers and other patronage tracts.
We must demand Olympia govern honestly. This way, we could actually pay for education, public safety and healthcare — without raising more taxes.
Since taking control of Olympia, Democrats have doubled state spending, while raising taxes by billions of dollars. Now, our ruling party say our state is in a budget deficit. Considering how the majority in Olympia ignore the findings of the Simmons investigation — don’t believe what they’re saying.