Updates below! 

Signed into law with emergency clause.

Which means if you are a teacher in this state, you have no rights and that includes your right to referendum that Gregoire supposedly defended. G*d help this state.

May the US Supremes do what labor law attorney and University of Washington lecturer Dmitri Iglitzin projected and recognize that, "the union has no underlying constitutional right to compel any employee to contribute any money to it."

Updates will be posted throughout the weekend.

Update 01: Evergreen Freedom Foundation comments on HB 2079 and the Washington Education Association's "accounting gimmick". Below is what they said, once EFF got past the history lesson:

“Today, Governor Gregoire has signed a bill that ignores the First Amendment rights of workers in order to expand union power. The bill is premature, because the U.S. Supreme Court could rule on the constitutionality of the law at any time. Signing this bill virtually guarantees continued litigation.”

“House Bill 2079 uses an accounting gimmick to gut the I-134 of its effect—all but eliminating the requirement on unions to get permission before spending nonmember dues on politics. “By signing this bill, Governor Gregoire blatantly ignored concerns from constituents, teachers and the attorney general. If the governor and legislators were truly concerned about clarifying the law, they would have taken input from all stakeholders—not just unions.

“In another slap at the Constitutional rights of Washington citizens, Governor Gregoire also approved HB 2079’s emergency clause, which allows the bill to take effect immediately, while denying the people their constitutional right of referendum, due to the purported emergency.

“Today, Governor Gregoire has shown that she believes that denying the people their constitutional rights in order to bail out her union friends and contributors from legal penalties is an emergency.”

Well said.

Please donate to EFF today! I just gave $20.79 for the EFF Legal Fund - I encourage you to do the same thing!! PLEASE!!!  I also called (360) 902-4111 to tell Mrs. Gregoire the same information… with civility.  Already several calls have came in.

Update 02: Sick. Just totally SICK that I have put into PDF as well to shame from the recent WEA newsletter. I think some of the Washington Education Association members may think this is cute some kid thought the flag should be lowered at half staff for the WASL and not Virginia Tech.  Considering the deaths and threats resulting from that atrocity - not "incident" - I am sickened.

We need to fight back against the Washington Education Assocation, period.

Update 03: EFF responds via video to the situation. HERE is the original MOV file and HERE is the YouTube… and just-in-case YouTube goes bad, HERE is the Brightcove.  (Sadly, this website doesn't allow embedded videos.)

Associated Press Story HERE.

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