OLYMPIA – With the stroke of a pen, Governor Gregoire put her signature on legislation that streamlines a popular state program, creates 150 jobs, and helps restore the health of Puget Sound.
Rep. Steve Tharinger (D – Sequim) sponsored HB 1294 in the House, saying it would have a positive effect on the “triple bottom line” of financial, social, and natural resource capital.
“We’re taking a program with a proven track record and making it more efficient by consolidating it under one agency instead of four,” Tharinger said. “Then, we’re devoting a portion of that program to Puget Sound restoration efforts, which could help us attract more federal dollars moving forward.”
The bill puts the Washington Conservation Corps (WCC) program under the administration of the state Department of Ecology. A branch of the WCC will be known as the Puget Sound Corps, and will focus exclusively on projects to improve the health of Puget Sound, such as restoring habitat along streams and shorelines. The State Department of Natural Resources will seek federal grants to support Sound Corps, potentially creating at least 150 new jobs for young adults and veterans in the next two years alone.
While the employment rate in Washington has made gains in recent months, it has remained particularly low among both young adults and veterans returning from wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Recent estimates for unemployment for both these groups of individuals have reached as high as 20 percent.
“During these trying economic times, we have an obligation to help our veterans, especially those who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan, find good paying jobs,” said Sen. Kevin Ranker (D-San Juan Island), who sponsored the companion measure in the state Senate. “This bill not only promotes a green economy, it meets a pressing need – helping out of work veterans find employment and offering them training for the future. We owe them nothing less.”
“We can put young people and veterans to work, while cleaning up Puget Sound,” said Commissioner of Public Lands Peter Goldmark today. “I think we can all agree these are top priorities in these tough economic times. I am proud that we were able to consolidate multiple state agency functions to make government more efficient and effective.”
No new state funding is required as the measure goes into effect, making it budget neutral in the upcoming biennium. It had bipartisan support in both chambers, as well as the backing of veterans, the environmental community and the employment sector.