ELECTION 2024: 17th Legislative District candidates face off

Two of the three candidates vying for state Rep. Paul Harris’ 17th Legislative District Position 2 seat — including the mayor of Washougal — recently faced off during a League of Women Voters of Clark County candidate forum.

Washougal Mayor David Stuebe, who is running as a Republican for the state House of Representatives position, will compete against Democratic candidate Terri Niles, of Vancouver, and Republican candidate Hannah Joy, of Carson, in the Aug. 6 primary election. The top two vote-getters will run in the Nov. 5 general election.

Stuebe and Niles attended a June 26 League of Women Voters of Clark County candidate forum to promote their hopes for the 17th District. Joy declined to participate in the forum.

League of Women Voters moderator Jane Johnson asked Stuebe and Niles a number of questions about issues impacting the 17th District, which includes the cities of Camas and Washougal.

In their opening statements, the candidates explained why they were running for the Position 2 seat now occupied by Harris, the Republican state representative who hopes to succeed retiring Republican state Sen. Lynda Wilson in the 17th District.

Stuebe said he wants to “bring people together, focus on what’s important and solve problems.”

“I have a lot of passion and concern about local politics, but also national politics … so I just want to do more,” Stuebe said. “I’ve got time. I’m retired. I’ve been in service my whole life, so I want to keep going with that and try to help out our neighbors. I care about unity, community and bringing people together.”

Niles, who worked for nearly three decades as an intensive care unit (ICU) nurse, said that, as a single parent and healthcare professional, she understands the challenges facing many residents in the 17th District.

“Rising costs of education, housing and basic necessities make success seem out of reach for too many people. I believe we must make these opportunities achievable for everyone, particularly our youth,” Niles said. “My vision for our state is clear. I envision a Washington where prosperity is inclusive, opportunities are accessible to all and our economy fosters success for every individual not just a select few. I envision safe, livable cities, which means affordable housing, quality education with fully funded schools, high-paying jobs, affordable and accessible childcare, roads in good repair and critical infrastructure, including broadband.”

The candidates offered their views on everything from funding for public schools and the Interstate 5 bridge replacement to protecting water rights and election integrity during the candidate forum. Following are a few of their responses to the League of Women Voters’ questions:

Water issues

Niles said state leaders are “constantly grappling with water supply issues” thanks to a burgeoning population and growing agricultural demands.

“Sustainable water management practices are going to be essential to ensure a reliable water supply for the future,” Niles said. “These practices include protecting water sources from pollution, investing in water infrastructure and promoting water-conservation measures. Recent events, exacerbated by climate change, especially flooding and landslides, have also intensified the need for investment in a robust infrastructure to manage and protect water.”

Stuebe said he believes access to affordable water is “a huge issue out there.”

“Even as a city, I’m dealing with that,” Stuebe said. “It’s crazy (that) we’re in Washington where it rains nine months out of the year, and we have some of the highest water rates out here.”

Stuebe added that water rates in the city of Washougal are high.

“We have all these mandates coming from, not only the state, but from the federal government, with our wastewater treatment, clean drinking water … and it’s just really hard.”

Stuebe said he wants to make sure that water supplies are clean but also affordable.

“We have all these wells out there and need to make sure that, one, we have clean drinking water. That we trust the water,” Stuebe said. “But I think it’s really important to make sure that it’s affordable. Water is life.”

I-5 Bridge replacement and thoughts on building a ‘third bridge’

Johnson asked Niles and Stuebe to share their thoughts on the I-5 bridge replacement and about whether they thought the county needed a third bridge across the Columbia River to connect Southwest Washington with Oregon.

Stuebe said he believes the Interstate 5 (I-5) Bridge must be replaced sooner rather than later, and that he also would like to look into building a third bridge — or possibly a tunnel — to connect Southwest Washington with Northwest Oregon.

“It just kills me that we need this,” Stuebe said of the I-5 Bridge replacement. “It is so dilapidated and should have been fixed a long time ago.”

Stuebe, who sits on the Southwest Washington Regional Transportation Council as Washougal’s mayor, said talks to replace the I-5 Bridge have been going on “for a long time” and costs have ramped up during those years.

“It was a $3 billion project, now it’s a $9 (billion), $10 (billion), $11 billion project,” Stuebe said. “There’s still a lot of debate — will you have mass transit, people coming from Portland with homeless coming up. They’ve already got plans and the funds, so we need to (move forward with the bridge replacement). … And we definitely need an alternative (crossing), too, whether it’s a bridge or a tunnel.”

Niles said the I-5 Bridge replacement is a safety and an economic issue.

“The bridge is a really contentious subject and has been for years,” Niles said. “We’ve ended up slowing the process. It’s something that should have been started years ago, which would have saved us money, (so we need) to make that happen. I’m focused on getting the I-5 Bridge replaced. It’s an economic driver of this county and it’s essential that it gets replaced. It’s also dangerous.”

As for the possibility of building a third bridge, Niles said she would like to see the I-5 Bridge get replaced before officials begin talking about a third bridge.

Shortfall in public education funding

Asked how they would address a shortfall in public education funding, Stuebe said the “issue hits close to home.”

“We had our school bonds, and I wired really close with our superintendent for our schools. But it’s a challenge out there because people want to take their kids out of public schools and put them in private schools — and they have their reasons for that,” Stuebe said, adding that he grew up attending public schools and believes in public schools.

“We as a country need to take care of our future generations, and so I really think that’s where we need to invest. I’ve been around the world … and am really impressed with their education system. We need to make sure that we provide for our kids, that they’re on the cutting edge, that we’re not bringing in foreign jobs and all that, so we can grow with our kids. And that’s very important to me.”

Niles said she believes the state of Washington needs to fully fund its public schools.

“Quality public education is vital, and this is truly a bipartisan issue,” Niles said. “Our state constitution requires that we fund our public schools and that is our paramount duty. We need to look at revenue sources because we are now in the overreliance on property taxes … working families are funding our schools and carrying that burden.”

NIles said she also believes “the push by some people to encourage people to pull their kids out of public schools” has led to underfunding of Washington’s public schools.

“We need significant reforms that focus on equitable distribution, which is particularly important in the 17th … to improve outcomes for all students,” Niles said, adding that, if elected, she would investigate ideas such as looking into more equitable funding distribution, continuing to look at state dollars and seeking more federal support to better fund the state’s public schools.

Highway maintenance vs. new projects

“The challenge here is that the state’s primary source for highway projects is the gas tax, and that has been declining due to increased use of fuel-efficient vehicles, which has led to a significant shortfall in the budget required for road maintenance and improvement,” Niles said. “To address this, we have to … consider funding changes for road maintenance. We could charge a road-use (fee) and prioritize maintenance over new projects. I know that’s not ideal, but a ‘fix it first’ strategy might work. I look forward to digging into this to see how we can fully fund our infrastructure.”

Stuebe said the state is growing “so we need to make sure we have the money to do the new stuff, but need to make sure basic maintenance is funded.”

As a member of the RTC board, Stuebe said he has been privy to conversations about the gas tax’s limitations.

“We’ve been talking about that,” Stuebe said, referring to Niles’ mention of declines in gas tax revenues. “With electric vehicles, alternative things. The fuel tax is a basic source to fund maintenance. It’s embarrassing — we spend a lot of money at the gas pump, and our roads have potholes. Yes, we have seasonality with the issues of winter, hot summer, but our roads are not acceptable. We do need to find an alternative, but there’s more to that, too. The gas tax used to be 100 percent for maintenance, now it’s going into the general fund and being siphoned out to other uses. We need to make sure if we collect (a gas tax that we) spend it on roads.”

Election integrity

Johnson asked Stuebe and Niles if the candidates believe our elections are free and fair — and if they will abide by the decision of voters in their race.

Stuebe gave a short and sweet answer to these questions, saying just “I do.”

Niles, on the other hand, said she “absolutely” believes Washington state has free and fair elections, and would abide by voters’ will in her race.

“Our secretary of state has implemented some new measures to protect against cyber threats, especially from Russia and China,” Niles added. “They have installed monitoring equipment in all of our election offices.”

Niles said voters “need to trust that our elections are fair, that results are accurate and that voting equipment has not been tampered with.”

“I believe it is sound now, and that we’re on a good path to keeping it (that way),” Niles said.

Industrial zoning near railroad

Johnson asked the candidates if they believed the state legislature should repeal a law that enables industrial zoning of land adjacent to the county-owned railroad near Brush Prairie.

“In 2017, the Washington State Legislature passed Senate Bill 5517, allowing development adjacent to shortline railroads in Clark and Okanogan counties,” Niles explained. “The legislation was heavily lobbied by Eric Temple, the owner of the Portland Vancouver Junction Railroad in Clark County, which opened the door for extensive development on either side of the entire 33-mile railroad line.”

Niles added that the area is now an overlay, which means it is set aside for special uses and deviates from its original zoning.

“The overlay became known as the freight-rail dependent use, meaning for use by businesses that need freight rail,” Niles explained. “In March, the Battle Ground City Council unanimously approved an ordinance against expanding the rail-zone overlay. Among the city council’s concerns were possible impacts on the City’s growth management plan; how increased train traffic would affect property values and property tax revenues; and whether millions of dollars in federal funding to upgrade the rail line would be put to better use.”

In light of those types of concerns, Niles said she would “definitely say we need to look at that legislation because we’ve seen it being abused.”

Stuebe said he was not familiar with the issue, but said he believes in “smart growth.”

“It’s all about the planning,” Stuebe said. “We’re growing. And seeing a lot of people coming up from Portland into Southwest Washington. We need a plan for that, but it has got to be smart growth. What we do with that property is going to be crucial for our future.”

Candidates make final pitch

Stuebe, 63, has said that, if elected to the state legislature, he also plans to continue in his role as Washougal’s mayor and member of the Washougal City Council. Stuebe, a retired colonel in the U.S. Marine Corp. who also worked in the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries for more than 20 years, was appointed to the Washougal City Council in March 2021, then elected and named mayor pro tem in November 2021. He was appointed mayor by the Council in September 2022.

In his closing arguments during the candidate forum, Stuebe said he believes in local politics “but we have bigger issues going on right now.”

“I’m all about bringing people together and looking at the mission,” Stuebe said. “What is important (is) solving problems.” Niles said she believes the values her parents — a surgical nurse and a rocket scientist for NASA — instilled in her will serve her well as a state representative.

“I learned really early on the value of embracing new ideas and striving for excellence,” Niles said. “I will bring these values with me to Olympia. If my father can put a man on the moon, we can fix the complex problems we have today.”

Ballots for the Aug. 6 election will be mailed to Clark County voters July 19. Ballots must be postmarked by Aug. 6, or placed into an official ballot drop box by 8 p.m. Aug. 6.

For more information, visit clark.wa.gov/elections/august-6-2024-primary-special-election-0. The June 26, 2024, candidate forum can be viewed on cvtv.com by searching for “League of Women Voters.”