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[0:00] Thank you for tuning in to this 2022 primary election candidate forum for legislative District
[0:22] 22, Position 2. This forum is presented by the League of Women Voters of Thurston County
[0:28] in collaboration with Thurston Community Media. The League of Women Voters is proud to be nonpartisan,
[0:35] neither supporting nor opposing candidates or political parties at any level of government,
[0:40] but always working on vital issues of concern to members and the public to defend our democracy
[0:46] and empower voters. I am Donna Cobb of the League, and I will be moderating this forum.
[0:53] The candidates are Jessica Bateman and Kate Plager. Kevin Young is also a candidate for
[0:59] this position, but he did not respond to our invitation despite multiple requests. For this
[1:04] forum, each candidate will have the opportunity to answer a series of questions, and the questions
[1:10] will be alternated so that each has the chance to start first. Candidates, please
[1:16] let me know if you want me to repeat the question. Each candidate will have one minute
[1:20] to respond. The timer will show you a sign when you have 30 seconds left, and then show
[1:27] you a stop sign when your time is up. If you don't notice the sign, I'll tell you when
[1:32] your time is up. You will also have the opportunity to make a one-minute closing statement.
[1:38] For the first question, I will begin with Jessica Bateman. What makes you the most
[1:43] qualified candidate for this position? Thank you for that question. It's been
[1:48] an honor to serve as State Representative for the last year and a half. Prior to serving
[1:54] in the legislature, I served on the Olympia City Council from 2016 to 2020, both as a
[2:01] City Council Member and as Deputy Mayor. During that time, I focused my work on increasing
[2:08] our housing resources. The city worked very diligently to create unhoused resources
[2:14] including a mitigation site. I led the campaign to pass a home fund, which is the first municipally
[2:19] funded permanent supportive housing in South Puget Sound. We've since seen a real change
[2:26] in how we address homelessness in the community. There's a lot more work to do, but it was
[2:31] really important to get that started at the municipal level. One of the reasons
[2:34] why I ran for the State Legislature in 2020 was because I wanted to take my experience
[2:39] and expertise in housing and homelessness and work upstream on the actual solutions at
[2:44] the state level because I had that experience working at the local level. I also served as
[2:49] an Olympia Planning Commissioner before that. Thank you. Thank you.
[2:53] Kate Plager. Can you repeat the question? Of course. Sorry. What makes you the most
[3:01] qualified candidate for this position? Well, I feel like I've waited my whole life
[3:06] to apply for a job like this. I'm retired and I have a background in clinical psychology,
[3:14] social work from the University of Washington. I ran programs, I directed programs, I managed
[3:22] programs in the nonprofit and profit sector during my career. I managed staff. I was
[3:29] the manager of the behavior education department on a national level where I hired, supervised
[3:34] and developed staff. I worked for performance-based contracts, which means you don't get paid unless
[3:40] you do the job. I've had hands-on experience with all kinds of populations, including, of
[3:46] course, marginalized populations. I wrote grants and managed grants. I have had my
[3:55] pulse on the people for quite a while now in my retirement and I'm concerned about
[4:00] my community. I started an organization last year called Council for Wise Leadership.
[4:06] I wanted to bring together the community and have us discuss what's going on in our communities,
[4:12] in our law enforcement, in our rising crime. Is it time? Yes. Okay. Thank you. Thanks.
[4:18] Okay. For the second question, I will begin with you, Kate Plager. What do you think
[4:23] is the most important issue in your district that the state should address? Building
[4:28] a strong economy? I think that what I've been hearing from people as I go out in Doorbell
[4:34] and been meeting people for a long time, people are concerned about being able to afford
[4:40] filling up their gas tank. They're concerned about public safety as well, with the rising
[4:47] car thefts. Car thefts have increased 88 percent. Across the state of Washington,
[4:54] there have been 12,596 cars stolen since the new laws took effect. People who are marginalized,
[5:04] people who are senior citizens have had their cars stolen. They cannot replace them because
[5:09] there's no more insurance left on it, so they're stuck. They have no way to get another
[5:13] car. Their catalytic converters get stolen. They cannot afford to buy them. I'm concerned
[5:18] about working people who are working very hard to feed their families and the criminals
[5:24] seem to know what they can get away with, and so crime has increased not just in auto
[5:28] thefts but everywhere else. Thank you. Jessica Bateman, what do you think
[5:34] is the most important issue in your district that the state should address? The number
[5:39] one issue that I feel my constituents communicating to me about is our lack of affordable housing.
[5:45] In Washington state, we are behind by a quarter of a million homes. We simply are
[5:51] not creating enough homes to keep up with our population and our job growth. We have
[5:55] people that are moving here, people that are growing up here, needing places to live,
[6:00] and we've been unable to build the housing that we need for those people. In Washington,
[6:06] the way that we allow for new housing to be created is all designed and operated
[6:11] at the local level. City councils make those decisions. I think that we should
[6:15] be addressing it at the state level by allowing diverse housing options like
[6:20] mother-in-law apartments so you can age in place so seniors can have an ADU on their
[6:24] property and maybe rent that out as supplemental income as they age. Duplexes,
[6:28] triplexes, these types of housing are more affordable than typical craftsmen, single
[6:34] family homes. I'm hearing from seniors on fixed incomes because of the shortage
[6:38] of housing and the increased rent costs that they're struggling to get by. Thank
[6:43] you. Okay, and for the third question, I'll begin with you, Jessica Bateman.
[6:49] Does the state require local jurisdictions to address climate change in their
[6:53] Growth Management Act comprehensive plan updates? Climate change is going to impact
[7:00] communities across Washington state. We see the evidence of climate change
[7:04] already occurring with increased incidences of storms, wildfires in other
[7:10] states, hurricanes, tornadoes. So it makes sense for us to ensure that our
[7:14] local governments are planning for how they're going to reduce their greenhouse
[7:18] gas emissions, how they're going to accommodate new housing and new
[7:22] businesses in their communities, while also working to achieve reductions of
[7:26] their carbon emissions. We had a bill, this legislative session, House Bill 1099
[7:31] sponsored by Davina Dewar. I co-sponsored that bill. Unfortunately, we were not
[7:35] able to get it through, but we will be bringing that back next year so that
[7:38] we will require cities to update their comprehensive plans with climate
[7:42] change. Thank you. Kate Plager, should the state require local jurisdictions to
[7:50] address climate change in their Growth Management Act comprehensive plan
[7:54] updates? This is a very important issue in terms of understanding what
[8:06] contributes to pollution in our world today. I'm very concerned that we
[8:13] already have systems in place. We have hydropower. As long as I'm not sure
[8:21] about the local jurisdiction, I'm not that experienced, but I will say that
[8:28] I would want to be included in understanding how hydropower is already
[8:35] utilized in our state. I'm talking about the Four Snake River dams. They provide
[8:40] jobs, they provide food, they provide water, irrigation, and also flood control.
[8:46] There's also the Waste to Energy facility in Spokane, Washington that's
[8:52] been there for many years. They provide electricity to over 13,000 homes. So I
[8:57] have a different view on climate change and that's... Thank you. And now the fourth
[9:05] question goes to Kate Plager. How important is it to you that the state
[9:12] maintain a rainy day fund in its budget? Not being really familiar with all the
[9:20] budget, all the money left in the budget. I was told in my research that
[9:26] there's money that hasn't been spent on programs that should have been
[9:30] spent on. It's accountability, a rainy day budget. I would hope that the
[9:39] money would go for understanding how to support our already existing
[9:52] systems for energy. I think that's what I would save money for. Thank you. Okay.
[9:59] And Jessica Bateman? Having been a legislative assistant through our last
[10:04] recession and seeing the impact of that recession on budget cuts and the
[10:09] extreme measures that were taken to reduce state expenditures as a result
[10:14] of those budget cuts, it has not lost on me how important that it is to
[10:18] have an adequate rainy day fund. When I ran in 2020, we thought with the results
[10:23] of COVID, we didn't know what the budget was going to look like. And the Office
[10:26] of Financial Management asks state agencies to provide estimates of 15%
[10:30] cuts across the board. And if you look at what those draft cuts were, they
[10:35] were programs for the most vulnerable individuals in our communities,
[10:39] individuals with developmental disabilities, low income moms. This
[10:43] is not the time for us to, especially now, thinking about a
[10:46] potential recession, to not have an adequate, robust rainy day fund. Thank you.
[10:52] Okay. And the fifth question goes to Jessica Bateman. What is your opinion
[10:57] on how the governor used his emergency powers during the pandemic? You know, I
[11:02] think it's an unprecedented public health emergency that we have not had a
[11:06] lot of experience in. However, going forward, I think that we need to be
[11:12] thinking about how we would handle a situation like this in the future.
[11:15] I think that he did the best that he could do considering the circumstances.
[11:19] And when we're in a crisis, we need to ensure that we're able to make
[11:22] decisions quickly, effectively, and at the state level that comes from the
[11:28] governor's office. We're doing things like planning for the future,
[11:31] especially for our long-term care facilities who are dramatically
[11:34] impacted by what happened during COVID, to ensure that when we move
[11:39] forward, when we have other public health emergencies, we have plans
[11:43] and operations for how they're actually going to provide their services
[11:46] and ensure that residents have those the rights that they're entitled to.
[11:51] And I think similarly with the emergency powers, we should look into
[11:54] how we can ensure in the future that we can have a clear, consistent
[11:57] path for the utilization of those powers. Thank you. And Kate Plager,
[12:03] what is your opinion on how the governor used his emergency powers
[12:06] during the pandemic? I think in the beginning, it was appropriate.
[12:11] No one knew what was really happening with the outbreak and the pandemic.
[12:17] However, after a while, I felt that it was shut.
[12:21] He shut, he kept the state shut down. He stopped businesses.
[12:28] I didn't feel, and I've been hearing this, not just myself,
[12:31] but a number of people that I have spoken to, they want those powers
[12:36] to stop. And what I'm hearing is that they want a 30-day limit put
[12:39] on the governor's emergency powers.
[12:44] Thank you. And Kate Plager, here is the third and final question.
[12:49] In light of current events, do you believe that there are any threats
[12:53] to our system of democracy? And if so, what are those threats?
[12:59] Can you repeat that, please? Sure.
[13:02] In light of current events, do you believe there are any threats
[13:06] to our democracy? And if so, what are those threats?
[13:30] Well, I have so many concerns about it. I don't even know where to begin.
[13:34] The threats could be that we lose our rights,
[13:44] that we...
[13:52] Well, even the Roe vs. Wade decision, there are people who are upset
[13:58] about that and concerned. There was some concern across the nation
[14:04] about rioting and things like that. So I would say that losing our
[14:13] democracy, I mean, everyone should have a point of view.
[14:16] And we shouldn't hate each other because we have different points of
[14:19] view. I think that's one way to not lose our democracy, not to be extreme.
[14:26] Thank you. And Jessica Bateman, would you like me to repeat the question?
[14:32] No, I have a lot of concerns about our democracy, both in terms of the
[14:39] massive proliferation of lies, including the big lie that our
[14:43] presidential election was not valid, which is completely untrue and
[14:47] fabricated. The effort in the attempt to decertify the
[14:52] duly elected president of the United States, the attack on our nation's
[14:55] capital, armed intimidation of voters at voting booths.
[15:00] Secretaries of state being pressured across the country to change the results of the election,
[15:06] public servants being threatened, being found at their homes being threatened. I think that
[15:12] all of this and the environment that we're in can create questions about the legitimacy
[15:19] of our state institutions, our government institutions, and it's essential that people
[15:23] have confidence in those systems. And we have that proliferation of these lies and conspiracy
[15:28] theories, it does chip away at that belief in that system. And most recently with legitimacy
[15:33] of the Supreme Court who just took away the right of women in the United States and people
[15:37] who can become pregnant to make their own decisions about their bodily autonomy. I have a lot
[15:42] of concerns. Thank you. Thank you. Okay, so you now each have one minute for a closing
[15:47] statement beginning with Jessica Bateman. Thank you. During my first term, we've worked
[15:53] together to solve our greatest challenges, fair and sustainable tax reform, equitable
[15:57] health care for all, protecting our environment and addressing our housing crisis. It is an
[16:02] honor to serve as your state representative and I ask for your support so I can continue
[16:06] this work helping working families, our most vulnerable and our seniors to ensure that
[16:11] we all have the opportunity to thrive. If you'd like to learn more about me or my
[16:15] campaign, please visit votejessicabateman.com. Thank you. Kate Plager, you have one
[16:22] minute for a closing statement. I'm not a politician. I never thought I'd be running
[16:28] for public office, but I have to say that I have been pulled into this race because
[16:33] a number of my friends have asked me to run. They knew I went into retirement. They know
[16:39] that I can do the job. They asked me to stand up to the plate. I'm concerned about
[16:45] our public safety. I'm concerned about our law enforcement having been crippled
[16:49] the past couple of years. I disagree that they should be defunded. I will wholeheartedly
[16:55] support first responders, law enforcement and also in building a strong economy. I have
[17:04] numerous people talk to me about inflation and that they can't afford to fill their
[17:08] gas tank. One person said it cost $170 to fill his gas tank and last year it was
[17:13] half of that. As a representative, I will pull the people to find out what it is that
[17:25] they want because as a representative I need to understand and I would hold community
[17:30] forums on a regular basis to pull and try to understand what they want.
[17:36] Thank you. Thank you, Jessica Bateman and Kate Plager for participating in this forum.
[17:43] We thank TC Media for producing it. Ballots will be mailed July 13th and must be mailed
[17:48] or placed in a ballot box by 8 p.m. on August 2nd. You can register to vote online through
[17:55] July 25th at vote.wa.gov and in person until 8 p.m. on August 2nd at the Thurston County
[18:04] Auditors Office. We encourage viewers to be a voter in the primary election. Thank
[18:13] you.