Seattle Archdiocese

Although the Washington State Catholic Conference did not take a position on initiatives that will confront voters in November, long-standing teaching of the Church on such issues can help Catholics make informed decisions at the polls, said WSCC Executive Director Sister Sharon Park.

“Regardless of the political debate, moral issues underly the questions presented by the initiatives on the ballot this year,” Sister Sharon said.

What does Catholic teaching inform us about making a decision on initiatives before voters this year – Initiatives 920, 933 and 937.

Estate Tax - Initiative 920
This initiative would repeal a graduated estate tax on property valued at more than $2 million. The revenues from the tax currently are deposited in the education legacy trust fund.

Proponents say the estate tax punishes Washington residents who have worked hard, paid taxes, saved and invested to pass their property on to their families. Opponents say the estate tax is the fairest way to raise revenue for the state’s public schools from those most able to pay.

Sister Sharon says a pastoral letter released by the bishops on Catholic social teaching and economic life in 1986, Economic Justice For All, can be helpful for voters considering a vote on I-920.

“Two questions help shape our perspective on economic life,” Sister Sharon said. “How would passage of this initiative affect the common good and not merely our own personal good? And, is passage of this initiative consistent with the obligation that society maintain a preferential option for the poor?”

Compensation for impact of regulation - Initiative 933
Supporters call I-933 a property rights initiative because it requires compensation when government regulations adopted since 1996 restrict the use of private property. Opponents say that paying property owners for the cost of environmental safeguards would be so expensive that government would be forced to waive many regulations.

Sister Sharon pointed to the writing of Pope John Paul II and Washington state bishops for guidance. In his encyclical On Social Concern the late pope said: “…the goods of this world are originally meant for all. The right to private property is valid and necessary, but it does not nullify the value of this principle. Private property, in fact, is under a ‘social mortgage’, which means that it has an intrinsically social function…”

Sister Sharon also quoted from the pastoral letter of the bishops of the Columbia River watershed dioceses - The Columbia River Watershed: Caring for Creation and the Common Good. “We neither worship creation nor are worshipped by creation; we relate to creation as its stewards, the unique responsibility that God has entrusted to us.” The complete document is available on the web at www.columbiariver.org.

Renewable Energy - Initiative 937
Initiative 937 would require the state’s largest utilities to meet certain conservation targets and provide 15 percent of their energy from renewable resources over the next 15 years. Although they did not take a position on the initiative, the bishops of Washington State did support the concept of I-937, and even opponents agree that the goal of increasing renewable energy resources is good for the state.

Opponents argue, however, that the goal is unrealistic and that the initiative is poorly written.

“While generating energy from wind, solar, and biomass sources is still in developmental stages,” Sister Sharon said, “Catholics can carefully evaluate I-937 to determine if it is a way to require policy makers and energy companies to research alternative energy technologies.”

Sister Sharon said ecological responsibility and Catholic teaching are closely linked in many Church documents. One example is the U.S. bishops’ 2001 document Global Climate Change: a plea for dialogue, prudence, and the common good,” which also is available at the USCCB website.

Initiative 920

Initiative 933

Initiative 937

What it would do:
Repeals a graduated tax on estates valued at more than $2 million dollars, a revenue source for the education legacy trust fund.

Proponents Say:
The estate tax punishes Washington residents for working hard, saving and investing so they could pass their property on to their families. Many of the wealthiest Washingtonians will likely never pay the estate tax because their money is in stock instead of land or property. The passage of initiative 920 will attract industry, jobs and wealth, and family-owned businesses can be kept in families.

Opponents Say:
The Estate Tax is the fairest way to raise revenue from those most able to pay. I-920 would wipe out millions of dollars in funding for the state’s public schools. Revenue from this tax pays for higher education enrollment, smaller class sizes, learning assistance programs and state needs-grants for students from middle class families. The estate tax is one way wealthy people pay back to society after they die for the benefits of the system that helped make them rich.

What it would do:
Requires compensation when regulations reduces the value of private property and forbids regulations that prohibit existing legal uses.

Proponents Say:
The government should not take private property or make rules and regulations that restrict it without fair compensation. Government should be required to say why it wants regulations, identify what properties it wants regulated, identify damage to the properties’ use and value and pay for it.

Opponents Say:
The initiative is an attack on protections for clean air, clean water and working farms. It requires state and local governments to exempt certain property owners from any land use, zoning or environmental law adopted or changed since the beginning of 1996 unless government pays the property owner for complying with the law. It creates a “pay or waive” system that will force taxpayers to pay millions of dollars or exempt certain landowners and corporations from the law.

What it would do:
This measure would require certain electric utilities to meet targets for energy conservation and use of renewable energy resources.

Proponents Say: Energy efficiency and electricity from renewable sources have little or no fuel costs and protect consumers from the price and supply volatility of fossil fuels. The initiative would create cleaner air and fewer global warming emissions. Maximizing conservation and adding new renewable resources is a practical alternative to the region’s expansion of coal-fired electricity.

Opponents Say: Biomass, wind and solar power will be unable to replace the need for coal, hydropower and crude oil. Requiring utilities to get 15 percent of their power from renewable resources is unrealistic. The initiative is poorly written and does not recognize hydropower as a renewable energy source. All ratepayers, businesses and individual households alike will have to pay more for energy consumption.