Back on March 2, we wrote about how Erik Landaas had thrown his hat in the ring, to challenge appointed Commissioner Karen Valenzuela. Today, the Olympian is reporting he’s dropped out of the race.

The Olympian is reporting that Landaas works for Grays Harbor County government, coordinating chemical-dependency programs. His office receives some federal money and a law called the Hatch Act, which was created to prohibit federal employees from participating in partisan political activity, prevents him from running for the commission.

1,760 cities, towns and municipalities in 80 countries have already committed to VOTE EARTH for Earth Hour 2009, as part of the worlds first global election between Earth and global warming.

Switch off your lights for one hour, 8:30 PM to 9:30 PM, local time, Saturday, March 28

On March 28 you can VOTE EARTH by switching off your lights for one hour.

Or you can vote global warming by leaving your lights on.

For the first time in history, people of all ages, nationalities, race and background have the opportunity to use their light switch as their vote – Switching off your lights is a vote for Earth, or leaving them on is a vote for global warming. The World Wildlife Federation is urging the world to VOTE EARTH and reach the target of 1 billion votes, which will be presented to world leaders at the Global Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen 2009. This meeting will determine official government policies to take action against global warming, which will replace the Kyoto Protocol. It is the chance for the people of the world to make their voice heard.

Earth Hour began in Sydney in 2007, when 2.2 million homes and businesses switched off their lights for one hour. In 2008 the message had grown into a global sustainability movement, with 50 million people switching off their lights. Global landmarks such as the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, Rome’s Colosseum, the Sydney Opera House and the Coca Cola billboard in Times Square all stood in darkness.

In 2009, Earth Hour is being taken to the next level, with the goal of 1 billion people switching off their lights as part of a global vote. Unlike any election in history, it is not about what country you’re from, but instead, what planet you’re from. VOTE EARTH is a global call to action for every individual, every business, and every community. A call to stand up and take control over the future of our planet. Over 74 countries and territories have pledged their support to VOTE EARTH during Earth Hour 2009, and this number is growing everyday.

We all have a vote, and every single vote counts. Together we can take control of the future of our planet, for future generations.

Click here for more information.

Attend a Washington Sea Grant workshop in Olympia and learn about identifying, cultivating and safely harvesting shellfish on your beach.

Register now for this free workshop:
Saturday, May 23
9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Prosperity Grange #315, 3701 Steamboat Island Rd. N.W., Olympia, Washington

Participants will learn about the biology of bivalve shellfish, which shellfish grow best on their beach type, and various methods for enhancing tidelands with clams, oysters and mussels. Each workshop will also focus on ways to protect water quality so that harvested shellfish will be safe to eat.

Workshop instructors include local shellfish farmers and Washington Sea Grant staff. Each workshop will feature classroom and on-the-beach activities.

Bring a sack lunch and your mud boots!

One-on-one technical assistance will also be offered to all participants, as part of the Bivalves for Clean Water program*.

Space is limited, so pre-registration is required. To register or for more information, contact Teri King or Janis McNeal, Washington Sea Grant, at wsgcanal@u.washington.edu or 360-432-3054.

*Funding for the Bivalves for Clean Water program is provided in party through EPA Grant Number C9-00044905 to the Washington Department of Ecology from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The Department of Ecology allocates and administers funding for this project.

Although it’s too late to file an appeal against this year’s assessment (property owners have only 30 days from the date the Value Change Notice was mailed or by July 1 of the Assessment Year, whichever is later), homeowners might want to download a copy of this 86-page guide from the American Homeowner’s Association. Although its copyright is five years old, “The Homeowner’s Property Tax Reduction Kit” does a decent job of reviewing common sources of assessment errors and provides tips on building a case for you to take to the County’s Board of Equalization.

Click here for the County’s Assessor’s web site and click here for their page entitled “Appealing Your Assessed Value”

Have you mounted a successful appeal on the assessment of your property? If so, what resources did you find useful, in building your case? Click on the “Comments” link below, and leave your comments for the rest of us.

The Washington State Senate passed SB 5895, the 2009 version of the Homeowner’s Bill of Rights. The vote was 25 to 24, mostly split along party lines. Our own senator, Tim Sheldon, voted against the bill.

The primary component of SB 5895 is a warranty that requires builders to stand behind their work for several years, giving buyers of new single family homes the assurance that if a defect is discovered, the builder will be coming back to fix it.

Courts have ruled that Washington law doesn’t permit homeowners to recover damages if something goes wrong with their home, which allows unscrupulous builders to completely escape accountability.

Andrew Villeneuve, founder of the Northwest Progressive Institute, writing for RedmondReporter.com, described the situation like this:

State law currently affords a family greater protection against a defective car or toaster it does for a new home. It sounds outrageous. And to those families whose savings have been wiped out, to those parents who have lost the ability to pay for their kids to go to college, and to those children whose safety has been at risk because they were living in unsafe homes, it is outrageous.

Other components of SB 5895 include:

• Creation of implied statutory warranties and requires third-party inspections for new residential construction and substantial remodels.
• Requires applicants for contractor registration to provide additionalinformation and directs the Department of Labor & Industry to establish worker certification requirements in the areas of foundations, framing,siding, roofing, windows, and doors.
• Increases bonding requirements for registered contractors.

Governor Gregoire has said that she’d work to pass the Homeowner’s Bill of Rights. Although a version was considered in last year’s legislative session, the bill failed to pass, largely through the efforts of the Building Industry Association of Washington.The Washington State Senate passed SB 5895, the 2009 version of the Homeowner’s Bill of Rights. The vote was 25 to 24, mostly split along party lines. Our own senator, Tim Sheldon, voted against the bill.

The primary component of SB 5895 is a warranty that requires builders to stand behind their work for several years, giving buyers of new single family homes the assurance that if a defect is discovered, the builder will be coming back to fix it.

Courts have ruled that Washington law doesn’t permit homeowners to recover damages if something goes wrong with their home, which allows unscrupulous builders to completely escape accountability.

Andrew Villeneuve, founder of the Northwest Progressive Institute, writing for RedmondReporter.com, described the situation like this:

State law currently affords a family greater protection against a defective car or toaster it does for a new home. It sounds outrageous. And to those families whose savings have been wiped out, to those parents who have lost the ability to pay for their kids to go to college, and to those children whose safety has been at risk because they were living in unsafe homes, it is outrageous.

Other components of SB 5895 include:

• Creation of implied statutory warranties and requires third-party inspections for new residential construction and substantial remodels.
• Requires applicants for contractor registration to provide additionalinformation and directs the Department of Labor & Industry to establish worker certification requirements in the areas of foundations, framing,siding, roofing, windows, and doors.
• Increases bonding requirements for registered contractors.

Governor Gregoire has said that she’d work to pass the Homeowner’s Bill of Rights. Although a version was considered in last year’s legislative session, the bill failed to pass, largely through the efforts of the Building Industry Association of Washington.

Here’s a summary of the pros and cons of this bill, based on public testimony, as compiled by legislative staffers:

PRO: Condo buyers have four-year statutory warranties, unlike single-family residences. As a matter of public policy, they should be treated the same. There are limited legal remedies in Washington for homeowners, which is why these protections are needed. Current warranties are not helpful, almost never enforced, and often you have to bring an action within one year of possession. Oregon has law to recover from any negligent contract, but our state doesn’t allow that. Insurance costs will not kill the industry, as demonstrated by the healthy condo market. In the end, both homeowners and contractors will benefit by the bill as the quality of the product increases. Although some homeowners do due diligence by checking into a contractor’s record with L&I, this wasn’t helpful in the end because the contractor did business under a different name or litigation against the contractor wasn’t revealed. Consumers need more information.

CON: This is a bad bill because of insurance requirements. Builders will not be able to get insurance, even those who never had a claim against them. This would be bad for the economy. Most builders build less than ten homes a year and the requirements under this bill will put them out of business. Oregon has a construction board to resolve disputes, we should look at that model. The bond rate is too high. There are stamping requirements (building envelope) which creates an issue for single-family homes. Litigation needs finality so fraud should be limited to six years. HB 1393 is more practical and insurable.

March 31 Update: From the Northwest Progressive Institute, we read that “Last week, the House Judiciary Committee decided to kill Senate Bill 5895”. This morning, the Labor, Commerce & Consumer Protection Committee, chaired by Senator Jeanne Kohl Welles (D-36th District), inserted some language that may virtually bring this back, from the brink of death.

“Gone are the express warranties. Instead, there’s a solid statutory warranty (which was at the heart of Senator Tom’s SB 5895) that can’t be waived, modified, or disclaimed. It’s a guarantee of safe home construction that homeowners and builders alike will be able to bank on for years to come.”