eye on business
To Be Continued
Don C. Brunell, AWB President
After 35 years working in Olympia, you learn a lot.
My first legislative session was 1979, the same year Barack
Obama graduated from high school. Jimmy Carter was president
and Dixie Lee Ray was governor. Inflation, unemployment and
interest rates were double digit. We thought we got a good deal
on a home loan at 10.75 percent. It was the worst of times.
Taxes and fees increased, workers’ comp rates and
unemployment costs went up, and our state’s new health care
law with its accompanying employer mandate and uniform
benefit plan was hailed as the prototype for “Hillary Care”
— except the unions didn’t like it and got the Legislature to
exempt them.
lessons learned
In 1994, AWB had a choice: fold or fight. We were
battered and fragmented, but determined.
We took a lesson from the way our state’s community
colleges organized and mobilized their supporters.
We stepped up our grassroots efforts traveling around
our state, building our membership and getting them
engaged in their own legislative races.
Today, we have more than 8,100 members. Given
today’s politics, their robust participation is key
because they are the ones who vote for their senators
and representatives.
But to stay engaged, they must have an equal say in
our association’s agenda. While government affairs
professionals provide invaluable expertise and insight,
we must remember that the secret to our success has
been — and will continue to be — our balance.
“One of the nicest things said about AWB is that it
feels like a big family. I hope that is our legacy.”
In 1980, Ronald Reagan carried Washington in his landslide
victory. Slade Gorton ousted Sen. Warren G. Magnuson, and
John Spellman whooped Jim McDermott in the governor’s
race. Soon after, Republicans wrested control of the Legislature.
It was a GOP clean sweep, but a global recession struck and
Washington’s economy tanked.
In an attempt to balance the state budget, Republicans
reluctantly — and temporarily — put the sales tax back on
groceries, a move that incensed Washington voters.
switching from red to blue
In 1988, Washington would become only one of 10 states to vote
for Democrat Michael Dukakis. In our state, presidential and
gubernatorial politics have not changed much since then. This
isn’t Kansas anymore, Toto: We are part of the “left coast.”
Our low water mark came in 1993. Bill Clinton was our new
president, Mike Lowry was just elected governor and Democrats
controlled the Legislature. It was a Democratic clean sweep.
8
association of washington business
we are family
One of the nicest things said about AWB is that it feels like a
big family. I hope that is our legacy. Remember, families have
their spats, power struggles and problems, but in the end they
pull together.
My father was an electrician, union leader and grassroots
political organizer. He was also a small town mayor and we
owned the garbage business. He was darn good at what he
did, especially as a father and mentor.
Dad would often show us the IBEW union logo — a
clenched fist with rays of power emanating from it. “As
long as we stick together and don’t allow them to break us )