1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,000 How come I'm five years older than you? 2 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:03,640 I don't know, God, you look a lot older. 3 00:00:03,640 --> 00:00:08,640 I should be mad by you. 4 00:00:08,640 --> 00:00:09,680 Sorry, you threw it out. 5 00:00:09,680 --> 00:00:10,480 Wow. 6 00:00:10,480 --> 00:00:10,960 Just kidding. 7 00:00:10,960 --> 00:00:13,400 I'm just kidding. 8 00:00:13,400 --> 00:00:15,840 Welcome to County Connection, the official podcast 9 00:00:15,840 --> 00:00:18,200 of the Washington State Association of Counties, 10 00:00:18,200 --> 00:00:20,480 where we dive into the legislative issues shaping 11 00:00:20,480 --> 00:00:22,040 the future of our communities. 12 00:00:22,040 --> 00:00:25,480 From budgets to public safety, infrastructure to elections, 13 00:00:25,480 --> 00:00:28,040 we'll break down what's happening in Olympia 14 00:00:28,040 --> 00:00:31,160 and how it impacts counties from across the Evergreen state. 15 00:00:31,160 --> 00:00:33,800 Stay informed, stay engaged, and join us 16 00:00:33,800 --> 00:00:38,440 as we amplify the voice of Washington's 39 counties. 17 00:00:38,440 --> 00:00:41,160 Welcome back, everybody, to episode number three 18 00:00:41,160 --> 00:00:42,840 of the County Connection podcast. 19 00:00:42,840 --> 00:00:45,480 I'm Paul Jewell, government relations director 20 00:00:45,480 --> 00:00:47,960 with the Washington State Association of Counties. 21 00:00:47,960 --> 00:00:51,760 I'm back in the studio, and this time I've got Brad. 22 00:00:51,760 --> 00:00:53,000 Brad, good to see you again. 23 00:00:53,000 --> 00:00:53,600 How are things? 24 00:00:53,600 --> 00:00:54,840 We're at the end of week four. 25 00:00:54,840 --> 00:00:57,080 The weather's been a little nuts. 26 00:00:57,080 --> 00:00:59,720 The legislature's been going full bore. 27 00:00:59,720 --> 00:01:00,560 How are you holding up? 28 00:01:00,560 --> 00:01:01,720 Good to see you, Paul. 29 00:01:01,720 --> 00:01:02,840 Yeah, holding up fine. 30 00:01:02,840 --> 00:01:04,600 I mean, I think the weather is sort of tracked 31 00:01:04,600 --> 00:01:06,000 with session a little bit, right? 32 00:01:06,000 --> 00:01:09,040 It's like we had this nice sunny start to the session, 33 00:01:09,040 --> 00:01:11,840 and there was no rain, and everybody was feeling good. 34 00:01:11,840 --> 00:01:14,240 And then it just sort of progressively got colder 35 00:01:14,240 --> 00:01:17,640 and kind of messier, and all the things that come with it. 36 00:01:17,640 --> 00:01:20,720 And so I feel like there's some cosmic connection maybe with it. 37 00:01:20,720 --> 00:01:22,960 You're starting to show your artistic side a little bit. 38 00:01:22,960 --> 00:01:24,600 Well, you know, I'm deep down. 39 00:01:24,600 --> 00:01:26,480 Once you get past my way deep. 40 00:01:26,480 --> 00:01:29,400 Once you get past that crusty exterior. 41 00:01:29,400 --> 00:01:29,880 Yeah. 42 00:01:29,880 --> 00:01:30,880 Yeah, I'm a poet. 43 00:01:30,880 --> 00:01:31,800 I'm a poet at heart. 44 00:01:31,800 --> 00:01:32,920 Oh, that's nice. 45 00:01:32,920 --> 00:01:33,760 I had no idea. 46 00:01:33,760 --> 00:01:34,720 I know. 47 00:01:34,720 --> 00:01:35,760 Wow. 48 00:01:35,760 --> 00:01:37,720 I look forward to reading some of your poetry. 49 00:01:37,720 --> 00:01:40,320 Well, it's not been a huge seller so far. 50 00:01:40,320 --> 00:01:43,080 Is your full collection, is it, here on this podcast? 51 00:01:43,080 --> 00:01:45,720 You know, I'm hoping we can do an edition of that, 52 00:01:45,720 --> 00:01:49,200 where I can come in and just do some vibing and vamping with, 53 00:01:49,200 --> 00:01:49,680 you know. 54 00:01:49,680 --> 00:01:51,960 Well, we definitely should, but we'll 55 00:01:51,960 --> 00:01:54,000 have to do that a little bit later. 56 00:01:54,000 --> 00:01:54,520 Another time? 57 00:01:54,520 --> 00:01:55,200 Yeah, another time. 58 00:01:55,200 --> 00:01:56,640 We don't have time for that today. 59 00:01:56,640 --> 00:01:58,160 We're going to talk about cops today. 60 00:01:58,160 --> 00:01:59,160 Yeah, let's talk about cops. 61 00:01:59,160 --> 00:02:01,120 There's a lot going on in the legislature in this space. 62 00:02:01,120 --> 00:02:01,960 Well, what's going on? 63 00:02:01,960 --> 00:02:04,120 Well, you know, and interestingly, I mean, right, 64 00:02:04,120 --> 00:02:05,640 I think we maybe have touched on this 65 00:02:05,640 --> 00:02:07,880 in some of our previous podcasts. 66 00:02:07,880 --> 00:02:11,320 This is a heavy public safety year, just in general. 67 00:02:11,320 --> 00:02:15,440 Legislature's really interested in, you know, everything. 68 00:02:15,440 --> 00:02:16,640 There's been a ton of bills. 69 00:02:16,640 --> 00:02:18,040 Ton of bills. 70 00:02:18,040 --> 00:02:19,600 And kind of all over the place. 71 00:02:19,600 --> 00:02:21,240 It's not like it's sort of just been one area 72 00:02:21,240 --> 00:02:22,280 that they wanted to focus on. 73 00:02:22,280 --> 00:02:23,520 It's really been pretty broad. 74 00:02:23,520 --> 00:02:24,200 Yeah, it has. 75 00:02:24,200 --> 00:02:25,280 Which is interesting. 76 00:02:25,280 --> 00:02:28,360 I mean, it keeps you busy, and it keeps you hopping. 77 00:02:28,360 --> 00:02:32,040 That combined with a new governor in town, who also seems 78 00:02:32,040 --> 00:02:34,920 to have some interest in the public safety and law 79 00:02:34,920 --> 00:02:37,000 and justice space, obviously being a former attorney 80 00:02:37,000 --> 00:02:39,400 general, I guess we shouldn't be surprised by that. 81 00:02:39,400 --> 00:02:42,080 But yeah, so he's coming in with some significant requests, 82 00:02:42,080 --> 00:02:43,500 particularly on the fiscal side. 83 00:02:43,500 --> 00:02:44,440 And we can talk about that. 84 00:02:44,440 --> 00:02:45,520 And so I think it's sort of creating 85 00:02:45,520 --> 00:02:47,200 an interesting juxtaposition between, I think, 86 00:02:47,200 --> 00:02:49,960 where the legislature wants to go in terms of policy, which 87 00:02:49,960 --> 00:02:52,520 is, I think, mostly where they've been focused so far. 88 00:02:52,520 --> 00:02:55,320 And the fiscal side and the funding mechanisms, 89 00:02:55,320 --> 00:02:57,560 where I think the governor is interested in putting 90 00:02:57,560 --> 00:02:58,720 his efforts. 91 00:02:58,720 --> 00:03:01,640 And I think the two are now starting to meet a bit. 92 00:03:01,640 --> 00:03:02,520 And so, yeah. 93 00:03:02,520 --> 00:03:03,560 Well, let's talk about that. 94 00:03:03,560 --> 00:03:04,360 Because we can dig in. 95 00:03:04,360 --> 00:03:06,080 Yeah, the governor has an obvious one 96 00:03:06,080 --> 00:03:08,200 that he's right that was part of his campaign 97 00:03:08,200 --> 00:03:11,000 that he's made kind of a centerpiece of the start 98 00:03:11,000 --> 00:03:13,080 of his tenure as governor, right? 99 00:03:13,080 --> 00:03:14,480 His four-year term. 100 00:03:14,480 --> 00:03:17,360 It was something that he mentioned, I believe, 101 00:03:17,360 --> 00:03:19,000 in his inauguration speech. 102 00:03:19,000 --> 00:03:20,520 And that's the $100 million, right? 103 00:03:20,520 --> 00:03:21,320 That's right. 104 00:03:21,320 --> 00:03:23,600 He wants to provide local governments for more law 105 00:03:23,600 --> 00:03:24,120 enforcement. 106 00:03:24,120 --> 00:03:25,440 Let's talk about that a little bit. 107 00:03:25,440 --> 00:03:26,320 What are the details? 108 00:03:26,320 --> 00:03:29,440 Yeah, so it's an interesting proposal. 109 00:03:29,440 --> 00:03:30,520 And you're right. 110 00:03:30,520 --> 00:03:33,160 It's something he has carried over from his campaign. 111 00:03:33,160 --> 00:03:36,040 And he did talk about it during his inauguration 112 00:03:36,040 --> 00:03:38,400 and has been very active so far on the Hill in terms 113 00:03:38,400 --> 00:03:40,160 of wanting to push this agenda. 114 00:03:40,160 --> 00:03:43,120 And he did a lot of stakeholdering, actually, I think, 115 00:03:43,120 --> 00:03:45,280 just as he was kind of coming into office 116 00:03:45,280 --> 00:03:47,400 or as he was preparing to get sort of officially 117 00:03:47,400 --> 00:03:47,960 into office. 118 00:03:47,960 --> 00:03:50,800 I know you participated in some of those work sessions 119 00:03:50,800 --> 00:03:53,600 with his staff to talk about his interest in this space. 120 00:03:53,600 --> 00:03:56,720 So yeah, he's got a governor request legislation, which 121 00:03:56,720 --> 00:04:00,400 is Senate Bill 5060, 5060. 122 00:04:00,400 --> 00:04:02,280 And I think Senator Holey, if I recall, 123 00:04:02,280 --> 00:04:05,000 is the prime sponsor of that bill. 124 00:04:05,000 --> 00:04:09,200 And yeah, it's a pretty straightforward bill. 125 00:04:09,200 --> 00:04:13,440 It essentially adds $100 million to the criminal justice 126 00:04:13,440 --> 00:04:14,080 training account. 127 00:04:14,080 --> 00:04:15,800 So we call that the CJTC. 128 00:04:15,800 --> 00:04:16,880 CJTC. 129 00:04:16,880 --> 00:04:18,400 CJTC, right? 130 00:04:18,400 --> 00:04:19,840 Criminal Justice Training Commission. 131 00:04:19,840 --> 00:04:20,400 Yeah. 132 00:04:20,400 --> 00:04:21,240 Commission, that's right. 133 00:04:21,240 --> 00:04:22,320 Yeah. 134 00:04:22,320 --> 00:04:23,840 But and that provides what? 135 00:04:23,840 --> 00:04:25,840 Funding for training for officers? 136 00:04:25,840 --> 00:04:26,560 It does. 137 00:04:26,560 --> 00:04:28,000 Training for officers provides. 138 00:04:28,000 --> 00:04:32,200 It's a little bit more narrow than some of the other accounts, 139 00:04:32,200 --> 00:04:34,200 which we can talk about maybe in a minute. 140 00:04:34,200 --> 00:04:36,880 Like, for example, the criminal justice assistance account, 141 00:04:36,880 --> 00:04:38,720 which is a much broader account in terms 142 00:04:38,720 --> 00:04:40,080 that local governments can access 143 00:04:40,080 --> 00:04:43,200 to do a variety of things in this space 144 00:04:43,200 --> 00:04:46,520 to support law enforcement and criminal justice activities. 145 00:04:46,520 --> 00:04:49,960 But yeah, the CJTC is really pretty focused 146 00:04:49,960 --> 00:04:55,320 just on training and workforce and other very specific law 147 00:04:55,320 --> 00:04:57,840 enforcement personnel tools. 148 00:04:57,840 --> 00:05:02,360 So the bill by Senator Holey will do what? 149 00:05:02,360 --> 00:05:04,480 It'll put $100 million into this account. 150 00:05:04,480 --> 00:05:05,800 How much of that's for counties? 151 00:05:05,800 --> 00:05:06,920 Ooh, that's a good question. 152 00:05:06,920 --> 00:05:10,520 I think it's split, if I recall. 153 00:05:10,520 --> 00:05:12,280 We may need to double check that, actually. 154 00:05:12,280 --> 00:05:13,440 I don't know if you want to pull that up. 155 00:05:13,440 --> 00:05:14,080 I'm pulling it up right now. 156 00:05:14,080 --> 00:05:15,760 Probably should know that. 157 00:05:15,760 --> 00:05:17,080 That's the beauty of a podcast. 158 00:05:17,080 --> 00:05:17,360 I know. 159 00:05:17,360 --> 00:05:17,880 I actually. 160 00:05:17,880 --> 00:05:18,600 You can just sit here on a computer 161 00:05:18,600 --> 00:05:19,360 and pull that sucker right up. 162 00:05:19,360 --> 00:05:20,200 That's a good question. 163 00:05:20,200 --> 00:05:24,040 I thought it was a split between cities and counties. 164 00:05:24,040 --> 00:05:24,520 OK. 165 00:05:24,520 --> 00:05:26,000 Yeah, so I mean, I think really what 166 00:05:26,000 --> 00:05:27,400 he's trying to do with this money 167 00:05:27,400 --> 00:05:29,240 is create a grant program. 168 00:05:29,240 --> 00:05:31,960 So that is important, that it is a grant program. 169 00:05:31,960 --> 00:05:34,120 And I think that's one of the criticisms 170 00:05:34,120 --> 00:05:37,400 that we've heard so far is how sustainable is a grant program. 171 00:05:37,400 --> 00:05:39,800 Is that a one-year, two-year proposal? 172 00:05:39,800 --> 00:05:41,360 Obviously, it's a two-year proposal. 173 00:05:41,360 --> 00:05:43,720 But what's the long-term implications of that? 174 00:05:43,720 --> 00:05:45,560 Because this is a considerable amount of money 175 00:05:45,560 --> 00:05:47,000 to add to the base budget. 176 00:05:47,000 --> 00:05:51,080 So really, I think the goal from the governor's perspective 177 00:05:51,080 --> 00:05:53,320 is to use this money in increasing 178 00:05:53,320 --> 00:05:56,200 the numbers of law enforcement agents or law enforcement 179 00:05:56,200 --> 00:05:58,720 officials who are operating in this space. 180 00:05:58,720 --> 00:06:01,880 And I think that includes wanting to hire a lot more. 181 00:06:01,880 --> 00:06:04,080 I think that really was the crux of his promise, 182 00:06:04,080 --> 00:06:07,080 was to get more law enforcement officers in this space 183 00:06:07,080 --> 00:06:09,080 at the local government, city, and county level. 184 00:06:09,080 --> 00:06:10,200 Now, is there any funding? 185 00:06:10,200 --> 00:06:12,000 So this would be for the first biennium, right? 186 00:06:12,000 --> 00:06:12,600 It would be, yes. 187 00:06:12,600 --> 00:06:14,360 And is there any guarantee of funding beyond that? 188 00:06:14,360 --> 00:06:14,880 No. 189 00:06:14,880 --> 00:06:16,720 And I think that's one of the big challenges here, right? 190 00:06:16,720 --> 00:06:18,120 I think especially that's something 191 00:06:18,120 --> 00:06:20,160 we deal with all the time at the local level, right? 192 00:06:20,160 --> 00:06:25,520 Where there can be a lot of generosity in a two-year budget. 193 00:06:25,520 --> 00:06:28,200 But then subsequent budgets, you never know what can happen. 194 00:06:28,200 --> 00:06:31,240 And then local agencies, local counties, cities, et cetera, 195 00:06:31,240 --> 00:06:33,840 build out programs, build out staffing levels, 196 00:06:33,840 --> 00:06:35,920 and then are sort of stuck trying to figure out 197 00:06:35,920 --> 00:06:37,440 how to maintain that long term. 198 00:06:37,440 --> 00:06:41,280 So I remember kind of looking at some grant applications. 199 00:06:41,280 --> 00:06:44,880 And I think these still exist, the COPS applications 200 00:06:44,880 --> 00:06:48,280 that were funded at the federal level for local law 201 00:06:48,280 --> 00:06:49,360 enforcement. 202 00:06:49,360 --> 00:06:50,720 And you could apply for that money. 203 00:06:50,720 --> 00:06:54,160 I think you got it for a period of two years. 204 00:06:54,160 --> 00:06:57,320 It would help you bring on new personnel, new officers. 205 00:06:57,320 --> 00:06:59,040 But then it created like an obligation 206 00:06:59,040 --> 00:07:02,480 for another two or four years, where you basically said, 207 00:07:02,480 --> 00:07:04,680 OK, I'm going to take this money, but I'm going to. 208 00:07:04,680 --> 00:07:06,480 But I'm committed to pick up the tab long term. 209 00:07:06,480 --> 00:07:08,560 I'm committed to pick up the tab for that other two 210 00:07:08,560 --> 00:07:09,720 or four year period. 211 00:07:09,720 --> 00:07:12,600 And if you didn't, you'd have to pay back those federal funds. 212 00:07:12,600 --> 00:07:14,640 And that worked for some jurisdictions. 213 00:07:14,640 --> 00:07:18,600 But for our jurisdiction, I was in Kittitas County. 214 00:07:18,600 --> 00:07:21,640 And we didn't have the money now. 215 00:07:21,640 --> 00:07:22,360 And so what? 216 00:07:22,360 --> 00:07:23,920 To make that kind of commitment. 217 00:07:23,920 --> 00:07:25,560 So how would we make that? 218 00:07:25,560 --> 00:07:28,760 What was going to change in the two short year period, 219 00:07:28,760 --> 00:07:31,320 a short two year period, where we'd have the money later? 220 00:07:31,320 --> 00:07:33,280 And so we had to turn down some of those grants. 221 00:07:33,280 --> 00:07:34,880 Do you think that's going to be an impediment here? 222 00:07:34,880 --> 00:07:35,720 I do. 223 00:07:35,720 --> 00:07:38,280 And that's something I think counties have increasing. 224 00:07:38,280 --> 00:07:39,920 Well, local governments in general. 225 00:07:39,920 --> 00:07:41,120 But I think counties in particular 226 00:07:41,120 --> 00:07:44,160 have been very sensitive to this notion of money. 227 00:07:44,160 --> 00:07:46,600 It's always a shiny thing. 228 00:07:46,600 --> 00:07:48,480 And it's easy to be attracted to it, 229 00:07:48,480 --> 00:07:50,440 especially when you are trying to beef up 230 00:07:50,440 --> 00:07:51,440 these type of programs. 231 00:07:51,440 --> 00:07:55,080 But when you have to look long term and start to figure out, 232 00:07:55,080 --> 00:07:56,660 how good is this actually for us? 233 00:07:56,660 --> 00:08:00,000 And will it just set us up for difficulty down the road? 234 00:08:00,000 --> 00:08:03,160 Or God forbid, then you ramp up and then 235 00:08:03,160 --> 00:08:06,480 you have to ramp down after you've built these programs. 236 00:08:06,480 --> 00:08:08,720 And no county wants to be in that kind of situation. 237 00:08:08,720 --> 00:08:11,120 Can you imagine hiring some new personnel? 238 00:08:11,120 --> 00:08:13,800 They relocate their family to a new community. 239 00:08:13,800 --> 00:08:16,880 And a year or two later, you just go, jeez, sorry. 240 00:08:16,880 --> 00:08:18,560 We just don't have the funding anymore. 241 00:08:18,560 --> 00:08:19,720 I mean, that just doesn't work. 242 00:08:19,720 --> 00:08:22,440 And honestly, from a recruitment standpoint, right? 243 00:08:22,440 --> 00:08:22,960 Well, right. 244 00:08:22,960 --> 00:08:24,080 Who's going to agree? 245 00:08:24,080 --> 00:08:24,580 Yeah. 246 00:08:24,580 --> 00:08:25,120 Who's going to do that? 247 00:08:25,120 --> 00:08:26,080 I mean, I sure wouldn't. 248 00:08:26,080 --> 00:08:27,080 So I get that. 249 00:08:27,080 --> 00:08:29,840 So I was looking at the bill, just the specifics of it, Brad. 250 00:08:29,840 --> 00:08:31,880 And it looks like it doesn't really specify. 251 00:08:31,880 --> 00:08:33,400 I was going to say, so I feel better. 252 00:08:33,400 --> 00:08:34,360 I feel better. 253 00:08:34,360 --> 00:08:35,520 Because I didn't think it did. 254 00:08:35,520 --> 00:08:40,600 It just says local or tribal law enforcement, up to $125,000 255 00:08:40,600 --> 00:08:41,680 per position. 256 00:08:41,680 --> 00:08:45,120 And there's a minimum 25% local cash match 257 00:08:45,120 --> 00:08:47,800 for every position that you apply for. 258 00:08:47,800 --> 00:08:50,160 So it looks like it could be a first come, first serve sort 259 00:08:50,160 --> 00:08:51,520 of thing. 260 00:08:51,520 --> 00:08:53,080 And for those who have resources, 261 00:08:53,080 --> 00:08:55,480 obviously, they're going to have an advantage. 262 00:08:55,480 --> 00:08:58,680 Those who don't, obviously, going 263 00:08:58,680 --> 00:09:00,360 to make it a little bit more difficult. 264 00:09:00,360 --> 00:09:00,840 That's right. 265 00:09:00,840 --> 00:09:01,080 Yeah. 266 00:09:01,080 --> 00:09:02,840 And I mean, if you're a county, for example, 267 00:09:02,840 --> 00:09:05,360 that has grant writing staff that could help you. 268 00:09:05,360 --> 00:09:05,840 Right? 269 00:09:05,840 --> 00:09:08,760 So all of those things start to play in a little bit. 270 00:09:08,760 --> 00:09:11,040 So this is the governor's proposal. 271 00:09:11,040 --> 00:09:11,560 This is. 272 00:09:11,560 --> 00:09:12,800 Is there another proposal? 273 00:09:12,800 --> 00:09:14,560 There is. 274 00:09:14,560 --> 00:09:18,520 And I should note that this bill does have a house companion. 275 00:09:18,520 --> 00:09:21,600 I want to say it's $14.35, I think is the house version. 276 00:09:21,600 --> 00:09:24,200 Well, you know, the cool thing about the podcast 277 00:09:24,200 --> 00:09:26,200 is I have my trusty computer right here. 278 00:09:26,200 --> 00:09:26,680 I know. 279 00:09:26,680 --> 00:09:28,960 And I was just going to say, so I think that it is $14.35. 280 00:09:28,960 --> 00:09:29,560 Look at that. 281 00:09:29,560 --> 00:09:30,080 Nice work. 282 00:09:30,080 --> 00:09:31,280 Pulled that right out. 283 00:09:31,280 --> 00:09:32,680 Didn't even have that on my notes. 284 00:09:32,680 --> 00:09:33,360 You're amazing. 285 00:09:33,360 --> 00:09:33,880 Yeah, no. 286 00:09:33,880 --> 00:09:34,760 So $14.35. 287 00:09:34,760 --> 00:09:37,840 So identical bill, but just in the house, obviously. 288 00:09:37,840 --> 00:09:39,440 But there is an alternate proposal 289 00:09:39,440 --> 00:09:42,000 being offered by representative rule, 290 00:09:42,000 --> 00:09:44,840 and that's House Bill 1428. 291 00:09:44,840 --> 00:09:47,200 And this one specifically gets to the other account 292 00:09:47,200 --> 00:09:49,440 we just spoke about a minute ago, the Criminal Justice 293 00:09:49,440 --> 00:09:50,960 Assistance Account. 294 00:09:50,960 --> 00:09:52,880 And this one increases. 295 00:09:52,880 --> 00:09:55,560 And so this is an account that offers money 296 00:09:55,560 --> 00:09:57,200 both for cities and counties. 297 00:09:57,200 --> 00:09:59,720 So it provides both. 298 00:09:59,720 --> 00:10:04,120 We talked about it as it's more flexible than CJTC in terms of. 299 00:10:04,120 --> 00:10:05,120 So how so? 300 00:10:05,120 --> 00:10:09,160 In terms of the scope of services that can be funded, 301 00:10:09,160 --> 00:10:11,160 or activities that can be funded by the dollars that 302 00:10:11,160 --> 00:10:11,720 are in that account. 303 00:10:11,720 --> 00:10:12,560 It's pretty broad. 304 00:10:12,560 --> 00:10:14,360 And I was actually reviewing it the other day 305 00:10:14,360 --> 00:10:17,440 to look at what could counties try to do with this money 306 00:10:17,440 --> 00:10:19,280 if it were made available to them. 307 00:10:19,280 --> 00:10:22,680 Now, if I remember correctly, the Criminal Justice Assistance 308 00:10:22,680 --> 00:10:23,560 Account, you're right. 309 00:10:23,560 --> 00:10:24,800 It's a little bit more broad. 310 00:10:24,800 --> 00:10:26,960 But it also has a different kind of way 311 00:10:26,960 --> 00:10:28,800 that the funding is allocated. 312 00:10:28,800 --> 00:10:32,880 I think, isn't there a certain amount to every county based 313 00:10:32,880 --> 00:10:33,600 on population? 314 00:10:33,600 --> 00:10:36,400 But then there's also money that's allocated 315 00:10:36,400 --> 00:10:38,080 based on crime rates. 316 00:10:38,080 --> 00:10:38,600 That's right. 317 00:10:38,600 --> 00:10:40,560 So like enhancements essentially. 318 00:10:40,560 --> 00:10:42,520 Everybody gets sort of a base rate. 319 00:10:42,520 --> 00:10:45,480 And then based on different statistics or metrics, 320 00:10:45,480 --> 00:10:46,400 you can get additional. 321 00:10:46,400 --> 00:10:47,840 Really kind of based on need, right? 322 00:10:47,840 --> 00:10:48,360 Yeah. 323 00:10:48,360 --> 00:10:49,760 That's really how it's designed to work. 324 00:10:49,760 --> 00:10:50,280 OK. 325 00:10:50,280 --> 00:10:50,780 OK. 326 00:10:50,780 --> 00:10:53,320 So if you've got a higher crime problem in your area, 327 00:10:53,320 --> 00:10:55,000 you're going to qualify for a little bit more money. 328 00:10:55,000 --> 00:10:55,680 That's right. 329 00:10:55,680 --> 00:10:56,400 That's right. 330 00:10:56,400 --> 00:10:57,560 It's pretty equitable. 331 00:10:57,560 --> 00:10:59,440 I think that's why it's been an account that I 332 00:10:59,440 --> 00:11:01,200 think for the most part is we've always 333 00:11:01,200 --> 00:11:02,600 preferred that mechanism. 334 00:11:02,600 --> 00:11:06,200 That it's really been responsive, I think, to local need. 335 00:11:06,200 --> 00:11:07,680 And I think we may be remiss. 336 00:11:07,680 --> 00:11:10,240 So $50 million is the increase in that bill 337 00:11:10,240 --> 00:11:12,600 for counties in this space. 338 00:11:12,600 --> 00:11:14,400 Yeah, this one's a 50-50 split. 339 00:11:14,400 --> 00:11:15,000 It is. 340 00:11:15,000 --> 00:11:16,960 50-50 split with the county or with the cities. 341 00:11:16,960 --> 00:11:19,280 So 50% cities, 50% counties. 342 00:11:19,280 --> 00:11:19,800 Yeah. 343 00:11:19,800 --> 00:11:20,300 Wow. 344 00:11:20,300 --> 00:11:22,960 So that's a considerable increase 345 00:11:22,960 --> 00:11:24,480 from its current levels. 346 00:11:24,480 --> 00:11:27,360 The other thing that this bill contains is growth factors. 347 00:11:27,360 --> 00:11:28,960 So it builds in the ability for this 348 00:11:28,960 --> 00:11:30,400 to continue to grow based on. 349 00:11:30,400 --> 00:11:31,840 So this isn't a one time. 350 00:11:31,840 --> 00:11:32,600 It's not. 351 00:11:32,600 --> 00:11:35,320 It's a forward moving, forward looking bill 352 00:11:35,320 --> 00:11:37,280 that's tied to the Revenue Forecast Council. 353 00:11:37,280 --> 00:11:38,280 Well, that's a big difference. 354 00:11:38,280 --> 00:11:39,240 It is a big difference. 355 00:11:39,240 --> 00:11:42,680 And I think not only is this a sizable investment, obviously, 356 00:11:42,680 --> 00:11:45,440 that we would benefit, I think, jurisdictions. 357 00:11:45,440 --> 00:11:48,440 Then you add in the flexibility that comes with this account. 358 00:11:48,440 --> 00:11:51,240 And then you add in this third piece around the longevity 359 00:11:51,240 --> 00:11:53,480 or the staying power of what is being proposed 360 00:11:53,480 --> 00:11:54,480 in this particular bill. 361 00:11:54,480 --> 00:11:56,360 And I think that's a recipe that certainly 362 00:11:56,360 --> 00:11:57,920 has gotten Wasack's attention. 363 00:11:57,920 --> 00:11:58,880 Yeah, I would say so. 364 00:11:58,880 --> 00:12:01,720 So am I going out on a limb here to say 365 00:12:01,720 --> 00:12:05,080 that we would actually prefer House Bill 1428 366 00:12:05,080 --> 00:12:07,840 and the funding going into the criminal justice assistance 367 00:12:07,840 --> 00:12:12,400 account versus Senate Bill 5060 and that one time $100 368 00:12:12,400 --> 00:12:14,000 million grant program? 369 00:12:14,000 --> 00:12:15,800 Well, you're my boss, Paul. 370 00:12:15,800 --> 00:12:19,560 So if that's what you say we prefer, then no. 371 00:12:19,560 --> 00:12:20,200 Seriously, no. 372 00:12:20,200 --> 00:12:21,880 Yeah, I mean, in all seriousness, no. 373 00:12:21,880 --> 00:12:23,360 I think that's a correct assessment. 374 00:12:23,360 --> 00:12:24,840 I think we would prefer that. 375 00:12:24,840 --> 00:12:26,600 And I think we would present to our members 376 00:12:26,600 --> 00:12:28,960 the benefits of what's being offered in 1428 377 00:12:28,960 --> 00:12:32,080 as a more holistic package than maybe what's 378 00:12:32,080 --> 00:12:33,800 being offered in 5060. 379 00:12:33,800 --> 00:12:36,000 I think both are good efforts, but I 380 00:12:36,000 --> 00:12:39,120 think there is more to like potentially in the 1428 381 00:12:39,120 --> 00:12:39,840 proposal. 382 00:12:39,840 --> 00:12:42,160 This is kind of setting up an interesting dynamic then 383 00:12:42,160 --> 00:12:43,240 at the legislature, right? 384 00:12:43,240 --> 00:12:43,740 It is. 385 00:12:43,740 --> 00:12:46,480 You have a proposal that's being carried by Senator Holy that 386 00:12:46,480 --> 00:12:50,400 really is what Governor Ferguson has said he wants to do. 387 00:12:50,400 --> 00:12:50,960 That's right. 388 00:12:50,960 --> 00:12:54,680 Versus you have an alternate proposal now in the House. 389 00:12:54,680 --> 00:12:56,560 And I don't think this one has a companion. 390 00:12:56,560 --> 00:12:57,560 It does not. 391 00:12:57,560 --> 00:12:59,640 So by representative rule. 392 00:12:59,640 --> 00:13:02,480 And it's actually something that we like a little better 393 00:13:02,480 --> 00:13:04,880 and would prefer for a couple of different reasons. 394 00:13:04,880 --> 00:13:06,400 It's more flexible funding. 395 00:13:06,400 --> 00:13:08,520 It's an even split between cities and counties. 396 00:13:08,520 --> 00:13:09,360 Got a growth factor. 397 00:13:09,360 --> 00:13:10,200 It's got a growth factor. 398 00:13:10,200 --> 00:13:10,880 It's permanent. 399 00:13:10,880 --> 00:13:11,680 It moves forward. 400 00:13:11,680 --> 00:13:14,480 I mean, you can never guarantee that anything's permanent, 401 00:13:14,480 --> 00:13:16,000 but the plan is that it will continue. 402 00:13:16,000 --> 00:13:16,880 And it's been that accounts. 403 00:13:16,880 --> 00:13:17,960 I mean, both these accounts, I guess, 404 00:13:17,960 --> 00:13:18,720 have been around a long time. 405 00:13:18,720 --> 00:13:20,400 But yeah, I mean, there's the mechanism. 406 00:13:20,400 --> 00:13:22,680 OK, so here's the tough part, right? 407 00:13:22,680 --> 00:13:24,240 Legislature has the power of the purse. 408 00:13:24,240 --> 00:13:25,800 They're the ones that are ultimately 409 00:13:25,800 --> 00:13:27,600 going to make this decision. 410 00:13:27,600 --> 00:13:29,880 Legislature is controlled by the Democrats. 411 00:13:29,880 --> 00:13:32,520 The governor is also a member of the Democratic Party. 412 00:13:32,520 --> 00:13:35,120 Are they going to find a path to see eye to eye on this? 413 00:13:35,120 --> 00:13:37,360 Or is someone going to have to make a change that someone 414 00:13:37,360 --> 00:13:39,360 or going to have to make a decision that someone else is 415 00:13:39,360 --> 00:13:40,680 not going to be happy with? 416 00:13:40,680 --> 00:13:43,920 Or noting that we also have a pretty significant budget 417 00:13:43,920 --> 00:13:44,880 problem. 418 00:13:44,880 --> 00:13:45,880 There's a backdrop here. 419 00:13:45,880 --> 00:13:49,400 Yeah, that we've talked about quite a bit in earlier podcasts. 420 00:13:49,400 --> 00:13:52,400 Is this even a realistic proposal? 421 00:13:52,400 --> 00:13:55,240 Does it have any chance of survival at all? 422 00:13:55,240 --> 00:13:57,160 So I've been thinking about that a lot, actually. 423 00:13:57,160 --> 00:13:58,560 And I think it's an interesting question. 424 00:13:58,560 --> 00:13:59,920 I appreciate you bringing it up. 425 00:13:59,920 --> 00:14:01,320 I mean, because I do think we have 426 00:14:01,320 --> 00:14:03,400 to see all this through the lens of the budget 427 00:14:03,400 --> 00:14:05,280 scenario, the budget, sort of the state of the budget 428 00:14:05,280 --> 00:14:06,280 that we're dealing with right now. 429 00:14:06,280 --> 00:14:08,160 We have to think about every bill this year through that. 430 00:14:08,160 --> 00:14:08,680 Right. 431 00:14:08,680 --> 00:14:12,040 And the legislature, frankly, has been very blunt 432 00:14:12,040 --> 00:14:15,760 this session in terms of saying bills that cost money, 433 00:14:15,760 --> 00:14:19,120 even small amounts of money, are going to have a problem. 434 00:14:19,120 --> 00:14:21,440 And I think we do expect in many programs 435 00:14:21,440 --> 00:14:24,120 and in many service areas reductions, actually. 436 00:14:24,120 --> 00:14:25,680 I think we see that that probably 437 00:14:25,680 --> 00:14:27,520 is going to be the case in the end. 438 00:14:27,520 --> 00:14:29,560 Well, we've seen that in the initial estimates 439 00:14:29,560 --> 00:14:31,240 and in the budget proposals in some areas. 440 00:14:31,240 --> 00:14:31,600 That's right. 441 00:14:31,600 --> 00:14:32,120 That's right. 442 00:14:32,120 --> 00:14:35,160 So I feel like in every other space, 443 00:14:35,160 --> 00:14:38,680 this conversation is sort of couched in that, right? 444 00:14:38,680 --> 00:14:41,200 In every other issue area, it's couched in the fact, 445 00:14:41,200 --> 00:14:42,480 like, well, budget's really tough, 446 00:14:42,480 --> 00:14:44,280 and we're going to have to think about it. 447 00:14:44,280 --> 00:14:46,040 This feels sort of like it's got this free pass 448 00:14:46,040 --> 00:14:47,160 for a conversation, right? 449 00:14:47,160 --> 00:14:49,160 It's like, yeah, we know the budget. 450 00:14:49,160 --> 00:14:50,520 We'll deal with that over here. 451 00:14:50,520 --> 00:14:52,360 But we've got a governor who's a new governor. 452 00:14:52,360 --> 00:14:54,160 This is a big request from him. 453 00:14:54,160 --> 00:14:56,760 We all agree that criminal justice and public safety 454 00:14:56,760 --> 00:14:58,120 is a big priority for everybody. 455 00:14:58,120 --> 00:14:59,880 And obviously, as we talked about earlier 456 00:14:59,880 --> 00:15:02,080 at the start of the podcast, the legislature definitely 457 00:15:02,080 --> 00:15:05,440 is dropping bills left, right, and center on these issues. 458 00:15:05,440 --> 00:15:10,320 I do think for now, it feels like the conversation is still 459 00:15:10,320 --> 00:15:11,760 kind of just freewheeling, right? 460 00:15:11,760 --> 00:15:13,360 And it's like, hey, we can put money here. 461 00:15:13,360 --> 00:15:14,400 We can put money there. 462 00:15:14,400 --> 00:15:16,520 And I think that's why these numbers are so high. 463 00:15:16,520 --> 00:15:19,000 I don't know if those numbers are sustainable or not, right, 464 00:15:19,000 --> 00:15:21,280 when it gets down to brass tacks and they start getting 465 00:15:21,280 --> 00:15:22,960 into the deep budget conversations. 466 00:15:22,960 --> 00:15:24,760 I think the other thing that we're 467 00:15:24,760 --> 00:15:26,920 going to have to see and wait, well, sort of wait and see 468 00:15:26,920 --> 00:15:29,880 what happens is these are two different approaches. 469 00:15:29,880 --> 00:15:32,680 And I think they reflect the two different positions 470 00:15:32,680 --> 00:15:35,640 that each chamber, at least the Democratic caucuses 471 00:15:35,640 --> 00:15:38,720 in each chamber, sort of see towards public safety, right? 472 00:15:38,720 --> 00:15:42,720 I mean, I think if you're looking at the House, 473 00:15:42,720 --> 00:15:46,280 they have not always, they've had a challenging relationship, 474 00:15:46,280 --> 00:15:48,760 I think, with law enforcement over the last five, six, 475 00:15:48,760 --> 00:15:51,080 seven years, right, that this has been an ongoing, 476 00:15:51,080 --> 00:15:53,080 it's been an interesting dynamic in that space. 477 00:15:53,080 --> 00:15:55,160 There's been a lot of police reform legislation. 478 00:15:55,160 --> 00:15:56,320 There's been a lot of other sort of. 479 00:15:56,320 --> 00:15:58,480 Yeah, so making the switch to actually funding 480 00:15:58,480 --> 00:15:59,240 law enforcement. 481 00:15:59,240 --> 00:16:00,440 Exactly, it's an interesting juxtaposition. 482 00:16:00,440 --> 00:16:01,600 Yeah, it's a very different, it's 483 00:16:01,600 --> 00:16:03,760 kind of a different type of course 484 00:16:03,760 --> 00:16:05,800 than what they've been on in the last few years. 485 00:16:05,800 --> 00:16:09,000 And really, I mean, I can't think of a time when the state, 486 00:16:09,000 --> 00:16:10,920 not to mention what you're talking about as far 487 00:16:10,920 --> 00:16:13,560 as the political dynamics of the recent years 488 00:16:13,560 --> 00:16:16,440 and where law enforcement has been in the legislature 489 00:16:16,440 --> 00:16:19,560 and what sort of public safety or law and justice 490 00:16:19,560 --> 00:16:22,440 type of bills or policy they've been passing. 491 00:16:22,440 --> 00:16:25,720 But I can't even remember a time when the state has ever 492 00:16:25,720 --> 00:16:28,200 made a significant investment or contribution 493 00:16:28,200 --> 00:16:30,240 in local law enforcement at all. 494 00:16:30,240 --> 00:16:31,920 No, and in fact, I mean, I would say, 495 00:16:31,920 --> 00:16:34,360 I would go as far to say, at least in my time lobbying, 496 00:16:34,360 --> 00:16:36,680 I've certainly never seen that, but I've also 497 00:16:36,680 --> 00:16:39,040 heard legislators say, we don't do that. 498 00:16:39,040 --> 00:16:40,040 I have too. 499 00:16:40,040 --> 00:16:41,160 We just don't do that. 500 00:16:41,160 --> 00:16:43,800 And so this is definitely a shift, right, 501 00:16:43,800 --> 00:16:45,280 that we're even talking about this. 502 00:16:45,280 --> 00:16:47,360 And I think that it's a credit to Governor Ferguson 503 00:16:47,360 --> 00:16:49,960 in terms of that he has teed up this conversation, right, 504 00:16:49,960 --> 00:16:52,000 and he's sort of forced a new conversation, which 505 00:16:52,000 --> 00:16:52,680 is interesting. 506 00:16:52,680 --> 00:16:55,800 I think it remains to be seen how committed the legislature 507 00:16:55,800 --> 00:16:57,560 is to these ideas. 508 00:16:57,560 --> 00:17:00,140 And I think we're just going to have to see how that plays out 509 00:17:00,140 --> 00:17:04,040 as we move into that more budget centric sort of phase 510 00:17:04,040 --> 00:17:06,760 of session, which I think right now we're there, 511 00:17:06,760 --> 00:17:07,720 but sort of not there. 512 00:17:07,720 --> 00:17:09,120 And as I mentioned earlier, I feel 513 00:17:09,120 --> 00:17:11,120 like this is sort of getting a pass at the moment, right, 514 00:17:11,120 --> 00:17:12,560 to sort of have these conversations. 515 00:17:12,560 --> 00:17:13,080 Yeah. 516 00:17:13,080 --> 00:17:16,520 And when we talk about the political dynamics, 517 00:17:16,520 --> 00:17:19,800 that's one thing, but there's facts too, right? 518 00:17:19,800 --> 00:17:22,480 And the facts are that it is up to the legislature 519 00:17:22,480 --> 00:17:23,480 to make this decision. 520 00:17:23,480 --> 00:17:24,680 They do have the power of the purse. 521 00:17:24,680 --> 00:17:25,200 That's right. 522 00:17:25,200 --> 00:17:26,720 At the same time, though, the governor 523 00:17:26,720 --> 00:17:31,080 is not without tools in certain instances if the governor. 524 00:17:31,080 --> 00:17:33,120 He has his own levers that he can pull. 525 00:17:33,120 --> 00:17:33,640 Right. 526 00:17:33,640 --> 00:17:37,880 And as you pointed out, they are the majority party, right, 527 00:17:37,880 --> 00:17:39,760 in the state and or in the governor's office 528 00:17:39,760 --> 00:17:41,440 and in both chambers of the legislature. 529 00:17:41,440 --> 00:17:43,440 And so they are going to have to figure out 530 00:17:43,440 --> 00:17:46,040 how to work this amongst themselves, 531 00:17:46,040 --> 00:17:47,800 I think, as they have these conversations. 532 00:17:47,800 --> 00:17:49,400 And clearly, the Republicans are not 533 00:17:49,400 --> 00:17:51,080 going to sit by idly, right? 534 00:17:51,080 --> 00:17:53,840 They're going to engage in this conversation as well. 535 00:17:53,840 --> 00:17:55,760 And so yeah, it creates an interesting dynamic. 536 00:17:55,760 --> 00:17:58,680 And I think it's not one I would venture to say, 537 00:17:58,680 --> 00:18:03,120 I don't think the legislature expected 538 00:18:03,120 --> 00:18:05,240 to be having this dialogue this year. 539 00:18:05,240 --> 00:18:07,760 I don't know if they saw that fully. 540 00:18:07,760 --> 00:18:09,600 I think as it materialized, they kind of went, 541 00:18:09,600 --> 00:18:10,920 oh, this will be interesting. 542 00:18:10,920 --> 00:18:12,080 And I think we all watching it went, 543 00:18:12,080 --> 00:18:13,160 oh, this will be interesting. 544 00:18:13,160 --> 00:18:13,640 Yeah. 545 00:18:13,640 --> 00:18:16,120 Well, it certainly is shaping up to be interesting. 546 00:18:16,120 --> 00:18:16,600 It is. 547 00:18:16,600 --> 00:18:18,520 If you're a bit of a policy wonk, like I 548 00:18:18,520 --> 00:18:20,120 know you and I both are. 549 00:18:20,120 --> 00:18:23,440 That's why we're in this business. 550 00:18:23,440 --> 00:18:26,000 I don't want to be flippant at all, 551 00:18:26,000 --> 00:18:29,360 but it certainly does make for an interesting session. 552 00:18:29,360 --> 00:18:29,960 100%. 553 00:18:29,960 --> 00:18:30,480 Yeah. 554 00:18:30,480 --> 00:18:30,760 Yeah. 555 00:18:30,760 --> 00:18:32,440 And I don't think that's a negative, right? 556 00:18:32,440 --> 00:18:35,400 I mean, I think these aren't bad policy conversations. 557 00:18:35,400 --> 00:18:37,920 And I think it's probably something 558 00:18:37,920 --> 00:18:39,800 that needed to be talked about, right? 559 00:18:39,800 --> 00:18:40,960 And I think one of the dynamics here 560 00:18:40,960 --> 00:18:41,960 that we haven't touched on maybe, 561 00:18:41,960 --> 00:18:44,360 and this is maybe between the differences between the two 562 00:18:44,360 --> 00:18:48,360 proposals, is as workforce continues to be a challenge, 563 00:18:48,360 --> 00:18:50,400 which is broadly in a lot of sectors, 564 00:18:50,400 --> 00:18:52,400 that's particularly true in law enforcement 565 00:18:52,400 --> 00:18:53,680 and in the criminal justice space. 566 00:18:53,680 --> 00:18:55,840 It definitely is. 567 00:18:55,840 --> 00:18:59,600 If you go to these hearings and you listen to the advocacy 568 00:18:59,600 --> 00:19:01,720 groups like the Washington Association of Sheriffs 569 00:19:01,720 --> 00:19:04,120 and Police Chiefs, they'll tell you that they've got, 570 00:19:04,120 --> 00:19:05,960 not only do they have recruitment problems, 571 00:19:05,960 --> 00:19:07,200 they have retention problems. 572 00:19:07,200 --> 00:19:08,360 That's exactly right. 573 00:19:08,360 --> 00:19:11,400 And not only that, but they'll tell you that per capita, 574 00:19:11,400 --> 00:19:14,400 Washington state is one of the lowest, if not the lowest, 575 00:19:14,400 --> 00:19:17,440 states in the nation as far as law enforcement officers 576 00:19:17,440 --> 00:19:18,040 per capita. 577 00:19:18,040 --> 00:19:18,600 That's right. 578 00:19:18,600 --> 00:19:21,000 And these are statistics that are kind of glaring. 579 00:19:21,000 --> 00:19:21,400 They are. 580 00:19:21,400 --> 00:19:23,240 They're pretty amazing when you start to see them laid out. 581 00:19:23,240 --> 00:19:24,960 And I think that is one of the challenges, 582 00:19:24,960 --> 00:19:27,280 or maybe one of the dynamics between these two bill 583 00:19:27,280 --> 00:19:31,440 approaches, really is, are these dollars designed primarily 584 00:19:31,440 --> 00:19:33,280 to bring new law enforcement in? 585 00:19:33,280 --> 00:19:35,680 Or are they designed to retain current law enforcement? 586 00:19:35,680 --> 00:19:37,000 Or is it a mix of both? 587 00:19:37,000 --> 00:19:39,240 And I think if you talk to our friends at the Sheriffs 588 00:19:39,240 --> 00:19:40,600 and Police Chiefs, they would be saying 589 00:19:40,600 --> 00:19:41,920 what you just said, which is, we're 590 00:19:41,920 --> 00:19:44,560 doing everything we can just to hold on to the law enforcement 591 00:19:44,560 --> 00:19:45,480 folks we have. 592 00:19:45,480 --> 00:19:47,160 And we can't afford to lose them. 593 00:19:47,160 --> 00:19:49,680 So we definitely want to look at things like retention bonuses 594 00:19:49,680 --> 00:19:50,800 and those sort of things. 595 00:19:50,800 --> 00:19:52,440 But I think you can also hear the same argument 596 00:19:52,440 --> 00:19:54,800 where they're saying, and we'd love to have more. 597 00:19:54,800 --> 00:19:55,840 So it's. 598 00:19:55,840 --> 00:19:58,200 Yeah, you'll never make progress on that lowest 599 00:19:58,200 --> 00:20:00,120 in the nation per capita unless you can hire more. 600 00:20:00,120 --> 00:20:01,040 That's exactly right. 601 00:20:01,040 --> 00:20:03,120 But at the same time, you can't lose what you got. 602 00:20:03,120 --> 00:20:04,880 Well, and it's pretty tough to recruit 603 00:20:04,880 --> 00:20:07,680 if the ones who are there aren't happy, 604 00:20:07,680 --> 00:20:09,760 aren't satisfied with their work either. 605 00:20:09,760 --> 00:20:10,200 Wow. 606 00:20:10,200 --> 00:20:11,800 Well, Brad, fascinating topic. 607 00:20:11,800 --> 00:20:13,400 Thanks for bringing it to us today. 608 00:20:13,400 --> 00:20:15,520 It feels like there's a long way to go on this one. 609 00:20:15,520 --> 00:20:15,920 There does. 610 00:20:15,920 --> 00:20:19,160 I definitely feel like there's a podcast part two, probably, 611 00:20:19,160 --> 00:20:20,720 for this particular topic. 612 00:20:20,720 --> 00:20:22,960 You're definitely going to have to come back and tell us 613 00:20:22,960 --> 00:20:23,800 how everything turned out. 614 00:20:23,800 --> 00:20:25,440 Yeah, I'll make sure I have my notes a little better. 615 00:20:25,440 --> 00:20:27,000 And maybe we can. 616 00:20:27,000 --> 00:20:27,840 Yeah, it'll be good. 617 00:20:27,840 --> 00:20:29,840 But no, yeah, this is going to be an interesting conversation. 618 00:20:29,840 --> 00:20:31,080 And I look forward to seeing where 619 00:20:31,080 --> 00:20:32,400 the political dynamics take it. 620 00:20:32,400 --> 00:20:34,720 All right, well, thanks for coming by today. 621 00:20:34,720 --> 00:20:35,400 My pleasure. 622 00:20:35,400 --> 00:20:37,480 We'll catch you back on this one in just a little bit. 623 00:20:37,480 --> 00:20:38,160 Thanks a lot, Paul. 624 00:20:38,160 --> 00:20:38,680 Take care. 625 00:20:38,680 --> 00:20:41,360 Bye bye. 626 00:20:41,360 --> 00:20:43,440 Thanks for tuning in to County Connection. 627 00:20:43,440 --> 00:20:45,160 Stay in the loop by subscribing to us 628 00:20:45,160 --> 00:20:46,960 through your preferred podcasting app 629 00:20:46,960 --> 00:20:50,280 and following us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram. 630 00:20:50,280 --> 00:20:52,440 And don't forget to join the Hub, your go-to source 631 00:20:52,440 --> 00:20:54,760 for the latest news and updates from the Washington State 632 00:20:54,760 --> 00:20:56,280 Association of Counties. 633 00:20:56,280 --> 00:21:16,160 Until next time, stay connected and stay informed.