Olympia, Washington — January 31, 2023 —Today, the Citizen Action Defense Fund (CADF) announced that it filed a lawsuit on behalf of taxpayers against the state of Washington to challenge key legislation that makes up the 2022 Transportation Package. If successful, the lawsuit would have the effect of lowering the cost of gas and driver’s license fees.
CADF sued in Thurston County Superior Court on behalf of a contractor and a trucking company, arguing that the court should strike down ESSB 5974 because it violates the single subject requirement of the state constitution. If CADF wins and the law is overturned, half a billion dollars would be kept in taxpayer pockets during a period of record inflation and uncertain economic times. According to recent media reports, the 2022 Transportation Package has already caused the cost of gas to go up at least 20 cents since January 1, 2023 when some parts of the legislation went into effect at the pump.
“The state’s constitution requires that all legislation have a single subject that is reflected in the title of the bill. Unfortunately, ESSB 5974, the primary bill for the state transportation package, had multiple unrelated provisions that had nothing to do with transportation resources, “said Jackson Maynard, Executive Director of CADF. “It appears that lawmakers were playing word games with taxpayer pocketbooks. However, the legislature can’t use semantic sleight of hand to get around constitutional requirements. Hopefully the court will strike down this law and let the people of the state keep a half billion of their hard-earned dollars.”
CADF is an independent, nonprofit organization based in Washington state that supports and pursues strategic, high-impact litigation in cases to advance free markets, restrain government overreach or defend constitutional rights. The government watchdog nonprofit files lawsuits, represents affected parties and intervenes in cases when the state enacts laws that violate the state or federal constitutions, when government officials take actions that infringe upon the First Amendment or other constitutional rights, or when agencies promulgate rules in violation of state law.