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Page 1

2024 Washington Conservation Action Endorsement Questionnaire

ABOUT US

The vision of Washington Conservation Action is that through equitable structures and systems created by statewide, collaborative efforts, everyone in Washington lives in a healthy and just environment, community, and economy. Our mission is to advocate for environmental progress and justice through actions that mobilize the public, elect champions for the environment, and hold our leaders accountable. To achieve our vision and mission, Washington Conservation Action is committed to dismantling systemic racism and advancing racial equity and environmental justice in all that we do. We work with the understanding that the same beliefs, practices, and systems that create and perpetuate interpersonal and institutional racism, are also those that create and perpetuate environmental destruction. Solving one cannot be done without solving the other. There is no environmental justice without racial justice and economic justice.

2024 ENDORSEMENT PROCESS

Washington Conservation Action is committed to equal opportunity and to maintaining an accessible and equitable endorsement process. Accommodations for the endorsement process are available and will be made upon request.

All candidates must complete our questionnaire to be considered for endorsement.
No one answer determines an endorsement. All answers will be weighed in our decision-making process and all candidates will be considered.
Our process includes this questionnaire, an interview for selected positions, background research on your candidacy, as well as outreach and collaboration with community partners.
Washington Conservation Action is a non-partisan organization committed to the principals of conservation and environmental justice no matter the political party.
Once you submit all the required items, we’ll review your submission. We may follow up to ask for your availability for a video interview.

Currently WCA is only engaging the following races: Lieutenant Governor, Commissioner of Public Lands, Attorney General, Public Superintendent of Instruction, Supreme Court Justice, State Senator, Senator Representative, County Executive, County Councilmember, County Commissioner, and Public Utility District Commissioner.

If you are running for another position, please contact tony@waconservationaction.org before filling out a questionnaire.

INSTRUCTIONS

Please complete all 3 pages.
If you are unsure about a question, please feel welcome to consult others in your local community or contact the WCA team directly.
When you complete your application, please press the "submit " button at the bottom of the page. You should immediately receive an email acknowledging the submission of your application.

PLEASE NOTE: Emailed questionnaires will not be considered. PRESS SUBMIT WHEN FINISHED. Questionnaires cannot be processed if you do not complete this step. If you do not receive a confirmation email upon submission contact tony@waconservationaction.com

CANDIDATE INFORMATION

First Name

Last name

Pronouns

Email- Campaign

E-mail - Personal (or best point of contact after campaign

Phone

Campaign Information

Political Party (if running for a partisan position)

Campaign Website

Consultant

Campaign Manager

Campaign Manager E-mail

Campaign Manager Phone

Treasurer

Treasurer Phone

Upload a resume

Demographics and Identity

The following questions are used internally at WCA and for accurate reporting to our National Affiliate LCV on candidates we endorse. No candidate is given or denied an endorsement based on any answer in this section.

Do you identify as BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, or person of color?

YesNo

Do you identify as LGBTQ+?

YesNo

Which of the following best describes your gender?

Are you a U.S. veteran?

YesNo

Please proceed to page 2

Page 2

INITIATIVE 2117

Spearheaded by a hedge fund millionaire from California, Initiative 2117 to repeal the Climate Commitment Act (CCA) will be on the November 2024 ballot. The Climate Commitment Act is the strongest policy in the country to reduce dangerous carbon pollution and protect our air, water quality, and community health. Passage of this initiative threatens the health of all Washingtonians as it not only repeals the CCA but prevents any carbon-pricing model in Washington.

Do you support the CCA and endorse No on I-2117, and if not why? (Judicial candidates can respond n/a)

Please proceed to page 3

Page 3

OFFICE

Please read the following questions carefully and answer as appropriate. The answers to these questions load the correct questionnaire for your race. If you have questions, contact us.

Are you running for re-election to the same position and have been previously endorsed by Washington Conservation Action / Washington Conservation Voters?
(Examples: You are a County Councilmember who was endorsed by WCA in 2020, running for re-election; you are a State Senator who was endorsed by WCA in 2020, running for re-election; you are a State Representative who was endorsed by WCA in 2022 running for State Senate.)

YesNo

What office are you running for in 2024?

Currently WCA is only engaging the following races: Lieutenant Governor, Commissioner of Public Lands, Attorney General, Public Instruction Superintendent, Supreme Court Justice, State Legislator, County Executive, County Councilmember, County Commissioner, and Public Utility District Commissioner.

If you are running for a different position, please contact tony@waconservationaction.org prior to filling out a questionnaire.

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POSITION DETAIL

Please list the full and exact position you are running for (Ex. State Representative, 22nd LD, Position 1)

SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION

Campaign

1. What has motivated you to run for and serve in public office? What issues, individuals, or circumstances have inspired you?

2. List or describe any campaign training or experience you have had that will help you run an effective campaign.

3. Running for a statewide office takes substantial resources and diverse support. What is your strategy for winning in a crowded primary, and for winning in the general?

4. What are your top priorities you are running on?

Values

5. What is your personal connection to the environment and what needs and opportunities do you see in your community around environmental health?

6. There have increasingly been attacks on programs and initiatives designed to promote inclusivity and support for all children in schools. How do you plan to support LGBTQ, and BIPOC students and teachers?

Policy Issues

Washingtonians take enormous pride in our state and the land, air and water that sustain us all. Protecting the place we all share is deeply embedded in our roots. Today, there are growing threats that we have never seen in our state. Our salmon runs are down to only 10% of the fish that once returned to Washington’s rivers and streams. We lose 800 acres of vital habitat and forest around Puget Sound every single year and more throughout the state. And the climate crisis continues to threaten families across the state with drought conditions, deadlier wildfires, and pollution that harms our health. Whether you are black, white, indigenous, Asian, or Latino, we all face the impacts of this crisis together. However, these challenges also give us incredible opportunities to make our state equitable, just, and healthy for all. As an elected official, you are in the position to step up to that challenge and if elected, we look forward to working with you to make that happen.

7. What role do you believe the OSPI plays in protecting the environment and contributing to environmental justice?

8. Considering the SPI’s role on the Board of Natural Resources, how can the Board of Natural Resources and DNR improve their process for planning and approving timber sales, balancing both revenue for trust beneficiaries and public benefit?

9. If elected to this role, what specific steps will you take to engage young people under 18 in your campaign and the work that you do?

10. Since Washington’s statehood, logging on state trust lands has been focused on generating revenue, including for the K-12 school construction fund. This “Common School Trust” is the most significant beneficiary, comprising the majority of the 3 million acres of state trust lands managed by DNR. Today, logging revenue is less than 1% of the K-12 school construction budget. How do you envision evolving this arrangement, and advancing management of these lands for benefits beyond revenue?

ATTORNEY GENERAL

Campaign

1. Please tell us why you want to be Attorney General. What has motivated you to take on this unique role and what relevant experience do you have to be successful in this position?

2. What are top priority issues you are campaigning on?

3. We believe issues of racial equity and social justice have a direct correlation to issues of environmental protection. Please describe how you would pursue policies and promote issues that help the interests of impacted communities, including tribal nations and communities of color, while also protecting our environment.

4. Under the US Constitution, treaties with native nations are the supreme law of the land. How will you support meeting legal obligations to treaty tribes?

5. How will you utilize Washington’s legal system to protect the health and welfare of Washington citizens regarding their exposure to toxic chemicals from both foreign and domestic products? In your response, please specify the resources you will need to accomplish this goal, and how you will obtain them.

6. Salmon runs have declined by 90%, due to a combination of loss of habitat and pollution. How will you use the office of the Attorney General to help the salmon population recover?

7. How will you improve and prioritize enforcement of our state’s environmental laws? In addition to discussing how you will manage the Attorney General’s various divisions of AAG’s, please specify how you intend to work with the Legislative budgeting process to incentivize other state agencies and local governments in enforcement of environmental laws.

8. How do you propose to use the Office of the Attorney General to address and enhance local and regional efforts to battle climate change?

9. Washington is a model for other states in developing a robust clean energy economy that provides workers with sustainable jobs, uplifts the communities most impacted by pollution and the climate crisis, and protects our unique environment. How will you use the office of the Attorney General to hold our state’s polluters accountable to transitioning to a clean energy economy across the state by 2040 or sooner?

10. Washington is a model for other states in developing a robust clean energy economy that provides workers with sustainable jobs, uplifts the communities most impacted by pollution and the climate crisis, and protects our unique environment. How will you use the office of the Attorney General to hold our state’s polluters accountable to transitioning to a clean energy economy across the state by 2040 or sooner?

PREVIOUSLY ENDORSED ELECTEDS

1. What specific environmental achievements have you made in the last 2 years? (EXAMPLE: Passing an environmental community policy, securing funding for habitat, environmental justice, or climate action, etc.)

2. Environmental justice is critical for environmental progress. How do you seek to improve the lives of BIPOC people, uphold tribal sovereignty, and protect heavily impacted communities from environmental harm?

3. What bold environmental actions are you planning to work on in the next term? Please be specific to the extent you are able. (Examples may include policies related to clean energy, climate action, salmon recovery, forest conservation, toxics, housing, transportation, etc.)

4. What distinguishes you from your opponent(s) – particularly if you have any of the same party – and what’s your strategy to win?

LEGISLATIVE & LOCAL

Campaign

1. Please describe what has motivated you to run for and serve in public office. What issues, individuals, or circumstances have inspired you?

2. Describe any campaign training or experience you have had that will help you run an effective campaign:

Community

3. What is your win number (number of votes you need to win your race) in the primary election and general election? Please include the total number of voters expected to turnout.

4. What communities, groups or population segments make up your base of support? Why do you consider them your base?

Values & Policy

Washingtonians take enormous pride in our state and the land, air and water that sustain us all. Protecting the place we all share is deeply embedded in our roots. Today, there are growing threats that we have never seen in our state. Our salmon runs are down to only 10% of the fish that once returned to Washington’s rivers and streams. We lose 800 acres of vital habitat and forest around Puget Sound every single year and more throughout the state. And the climate crisis continues to threaten families across the state with drought conditions, deadlier wildfires, and pollution that harms our health. Whether you are black, white, indigenous, Asian, or Latino, we all face the impacts of this crisis together.

However, these challenges also give us incredible opportunities to make our state equitable, just, and healthy for all. As an elected official, you are in the position to step up to that challenge and if elected, we look forward to working with you to make that happen.

5. We look to endorse candidates who demonstrate a strong connection to environmental justice. What are the challenges to pursuing environmental justice in your community? What are some of the policy positions that you support to address these challenges?

6. What are your lived experiences and values concerning racial, economic, gender, and social justice? How will your election to this position advance a more just and equitable society?

7. Describe the top three issues you are focusing your campaign on. Have you taken any proactive steps to help move those issues forward?

8. Local jurisdictions are on the front line of climate impacts and climate action. What are your plans to accelerate climate action in your community?

9. Elected officials have a critical role in providing clean water and healthy habitat for people, salmon and wildlife, by championing infrastructure like sewage treatment and reducing toxic stormwater pollution that harms people and wildlife. What will you do to increase your community’s leadership on these topics?

10. Our state legislature updated our state’s climate goals in 2020 to reflect current science and recognized the importance of our working and natural lands for capturing carbon and being part of the solution to the climate crisis. What will you do to support making our natural and working lands more climate smart, and investing in longer term resiliency?

11. Supporting Tribal Treaty Rights can mean taking hard stances to protect habitat and salmon populations that have sustained people for millennia. How will you use your position as an elected official to support and prioritize Tribal Treaty Rights?

COMMISSIONER OF PUBLIC LANDS

Campaign

1. Please tell us why you want to be Commissioner of Public Lands. What has motivated you to take on this unique role?

2. What are the top priority issues you are campaigning on?

3. Running for a statewide office takes substantial resources and diverse support. What is your strategy for winning in a crowded primary, and for winning in the general?

4. What is your position on accepting financial contributions from industries and corporations you will be in charge of regulating? Please clearly state whether you have accepted donations from these regulated industries in this campaign, and whether you will do so in the future if you should choose to run for reelection.

Policy Issues

5. DNR is a critical agency for environmental progress that benefits people's lives. The scope of work is massive -- across the landscape and including aquatic habitats. The work cannot be done by one person alone. How do you envision your relationship with the environmental community if you are elected as CPL?

6. DNR’s mandate to manage our state’s natural resources has significant impacts on environmental justice and tribal sovereignty. What steps would you take to integrate environmental justice, racial equity, and tribal sovereignty across the agency’s work?

7. Natural climate solutions are proven ways of storing and reducing carbon emissions in the world's forests, grasslands, and wetlands. They can help reduce carbon emissions and store more carbon in the landscape. How do you see DNR leveraging its forest and aquatic lands roles to enhance our state’s ability to provide natural climate solutions in the fight against climate change?

8. Climate change is a key factor in increasing the risk and extent of wildfires in Washington State. Significant funding has been allocated for wildfire preparedness and resilience, though most spending to date has been on wildfire suppression. Community resilience is also a new area of work for DNR. How will you support ecological and community resilience to wildfire, including among our state’s most vulnerable populations?

9. In July 2022, the State Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision on Conservation Northwest v. Franz. The decision affirmed that DNR must manage federally granted trust lands in compliance with three legal duties: state and federal laws, revenue generation for beneficiaries, and public benefit to the people of Washington. The court also clarified that DNR is not required to maximize timber revenue and must balance to serve the three legal duties. How would you update governance, policies, and management on state lands to reflect this decision? How would you engage with local communities, counties, conservation organizations, and tribal governments to inform management of state lands that supports ecological, social, and livelihood needs?

10. Currently, the Board of Natural Resources (BNR) has no policy that guides the agency on how to incorporate climate and carbon into forest management plans and decisions for the more than 2 million acres of forested state trust lands. The BNR is beginning Eastside and Westside Sustainable Harvest Calculations, which establish timber harvest volume on state lands for the next ten years. How would you integrate climate and carbon into the Sustainable Harvest Calculations, and manage timber industry pressure to increase harvest volume?

11. In early 2018, the policy committee of the Adaptive Management Program received a commissioned study that found the forested buffers on roughly 30% of non-fish bearing, perennial/year-round streams in Western Washington do not maintain cool stream temperatures. These streams currently do not meet Washington State water quality standards. How do you plan to address this issue and create systems that protect salmon and other important aquatic species?

12. DNR manages more than 2.6 million acres of state-owned submerged, tidal and shoreline aquatic lands and has a unique role to play in the effort to protect and restore healthy waterways. In your new role as landlord and property manager will you enhance aquatic programs that remove toxic creosote pilings and derelict vessels, restore vital marine and freshwater habitat, and monitor nearshore environments and changing ocean conditions?

13. In an executive agency, personnel is policy. How will you decide who to hire as your senior advisors and leadership?

JUDICIAL

1. Please describe in detail your professional legal background, including your education, places of employment, specific clients, and specific areas of legal expertise. You may attach a resume or curriculum vitae if preferred.

2. Have you ever held public office other than a judicial office, or have you previously been a candidate for any public or judicial office? If so, please provide all relevant details (office, location, years held, etc...).

3. Please describe any work that you have performed for civic and charitable organizations, including but not limited to those activities specifically related to environmental and/or conservation issues as well as related to racial equity and/or social justice issues.

4. Please list all bar associations, professional organizations, clubs, societies, etc.., of which you have been or are currently an active member, both legal and non-legal. Please include any positions of leadership held in the organizations identified, as well as your membership on any notable committees or subcommittees.

5. Please list any and all ratings you have received from state or local bar associations or groups. If you are not seeking or requesting any ratings, or if you have received a rating that you disagree with, please explain why.

6. Have you ever been the subject of a complaint to any bar association, disciplinary committee, court, administrative agency or other professional group, or have you been disciplined or cited for breach of ethics or unprofessional conduct? If so, please provide the relevant details.

7. What was the most important case you have had as a lawyer? In responding, please describe the specific position that you argued in that case and why you pursued that position in that case. Please also describe how that case and the result affected your professional career as an attorney and your decision to be a candidate for judicial office.

8. Do you believe that all citizens in Washington have adequate access to the legal system? What do you perceive as the greatest obstacles to providing all citizens with equal access to justice? What can be done to provide wider and better access?

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