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 http://www.yakima-herald.com/cgi-bin/liveique.acgi$rec=10383?home
 

Lawmakers Snub Yakama Tax Bill

Published in the Herald-Republic on Wednesday, February 16, 2000
 

BY TOM ROEDER
YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC

OLYMPIA -- With his bill to accommodate the Yakima Nation's alcohol tax
dead, Gov. Gary Locke adopted a strident tone Tuesday that could turn up the
heat in negotiations with the tribe.

The governor said time is running out for a deal between the state and the
tribe to block the tax, which will be paid by buyers and sellers of
alcoholic beverages sold within reservation boundaries.

"We contest the validity and necessity of the tax the Yakamas have imposed,"
Locke said in his strongest statement to date against the tax, which took
hold Jan. 4.

Tribal leaders, who refused comment Tuesday, say they need the tax to fight
alcoholism and drunken driving. Tribal law now requires sellers of alcohol
to pay a $5,000 licensing fee and give the tribe tax revenue for every
bottle, can and keg of intoxicants sold. The tax is 40 cents on a can of
beer and $1 on a fifth of whiskey.

So far, businesses have not paid the tribe, relying on merchandise brought
in before the tax took effect and, in some cases, attempting to smuggle
liquor Prohibition-style onto the reservation.

While Locke didn't answer questions about whether he would take the tribe to
court over the tax, top administration officials say litigation is one of a
dwindling number of options that remain open for the governor.

Unless the tribe agrees to a compromise, Locke can either let the alcohol
tax go ahead or seek to have it blocked by a federal judge on the grounds
the tribe lacks taxing authority.

Locke had asked legislators to accommodate the tribe by allowing their tax
to take the place of state taxes on alcohol. But lawmakers panned his bill,
which never even received a vote.

"The bill did not make it anywhere and will not make it anywhere this
session," said Sen. Pat Thibaudeau, a Seattle Democrat who sponsored the
measure.

Thibaudeau said she has no intention of reviving her bill. She admitted she
sponsored it only as a courtesy to Locke.

"I have no great commitment to it because I haven't explored all of the
ramifications," she said.

Rep. Jim Clements, a Selah Republican, said the bill, SB6828, was "dead like
a road-kill skunk."

The failure of the bill comes after two months of unsuccessful negotiations
between Locke and tribal leaders.

At one point, state negotiators attempted to placate the tribe with $4
million in federal alcohol treatment grants for which the Yakamas hadn't
applied.

The tribe refused to budge and twice has acted on tribal court search
warrants to enforce the tax.

While Locke said negotiations are continuing, he repeatedly stressed his
administration is running out of time.

Reacting to the tax, Locke's administration ordered state liquor franchises
in Toppenish and Wapato last month to move off the reservation after the
last whiskey and vodka from their pre-tax inventory had been sold.

The governor's comments Tuesday came as Central Washington lawmakers
increased pressure on Locke to find a solution, in court if necessary.

>From the state House, Republican Reps. Barb Lisk of Zillah and Bruce
Chandler of Granger have sought to secure money in the state budget for a
possible lawsuit against the tribe.

"There are jurisdictional questions that have to be addressed," Lisk said.

In the Senate, Republican Jim Honeyford of Sunnyside has done likewise.

"We are getting down to the point where our only option is to go to court,"
Honeyford said.

The House Commerce and Labor Committee, where Clements shares leadership, is
meeting on Thursday to discuss concerns raised by the tax.

Yakima County Prosecuting Attorney Jeff Sullivan said the pressure may be
forcing Locke to take action.

"From his comments, it appears he has changed his stance," Sullivan said.

Locke's statement questioning the validity and necessity of the tax frames
an argument that could be used in court to prove the tax is illegal,
Sullivan said.

The statement contradicts earlier comments from Locke that indicated the
tribe was acting within its legal authority in taxing alcohol.

But a court fight isn't necessarily a good solution for the reservation's
alcohol sellers, said Boyd Gray, president of the Mount Adams Country Club.

"There is always a question when you put things in the hands of a court,"
Gray said. "If we lose in court, then we have major problems."

Gray said he would rather have a solution between the governor and the tribe
that kills the tax.
 

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