Gov. Inslee Has Issued 349 Proclamations in 2020, Most for COVID
Governor Inslee has issued a total of 77 proclamations since taking office in 2013, until this year. Most were for disasters, ten were for special legislative sessions to address budget issues.
However, beginning with the State of Emergency over COVID in February, Inslee has issued a staggering 349 proclamations, nearly all over COVID.
The Freedom Foundation has prepared a report showing how Inslee has more than quadrupled the number of edicts laid out by the Governor, many of them resulting in negative unintended consequences such as overuse of 911 services, verbal and physical confrontations between citizens and service industry workers over mask issues and more.
These also include using state agencies such as Labor and Industries as enforcement tools, which legislators cite as un-Constitutional. He also was behind setting up the infamous 'snitch site,' the website where citizens could report businesses who were allegedly not adhering to the lockdowns.
The Foundation says however, none of his proclamations have called for a special legislative session, something even West side media have been demanding. The Foundation refers to Inslee's actions as "seemingly unlimited powers the governor believes have been bestowed upon him through the issuance of unilateral dictates and proclamations."
The state had been facing a projected $8.5 billion dollar shortfall, depending upon which source you looked at, due to COVID business shutdowns and tax revenue. That number has been bounced around between $6 and $9 Billion but now mysteriously Inslee claims the biennium budget through 2021 is "good." He repeatedly points to some $445 million that was cut from the budget, 235 of which was new spending, saying that helped. And he mentioned the state's reported $3 billion in reserves at the end of the period. He made these comments during his Tuesday Oct.13 press conference.
However, legislators have been clamoring for the special session to specifically address the shortfall.
The Freedom Foundation says Inslee needs to issue one more proclamation, to call the special session immediately. Growing numbers of critics and legislators believe he is purposefully waiting until after the election Nov. 3.
To read the Freedom Foundation story, click on the button below.