Initiative 1029: Just say nay to union-driven caregiver issue

Initiative 1029 is a classic example of the Achilles' heel of the initiative process. That would be: Legislation that is this complex and rife with unknowns should not be drafted by a special interest group and then presented to the voting public for an up-or-down vote.

Rather, it belongs in the legislative arena where it can be subjected to debate, compromise and public hearings.

We recommend voters reject it.

At first blush, the measure sounds attractive. It would require that long-term workers caring for state-supported patients be certified by the state. It would more than double the amount of their training to 75 hours, with a few exceptions. It would also mandate FBI background checks, which the state Office of Financial Management found would duplicate those done by the state Department of Social and Health Services. Current state and federal laws prohibit agencies from sharing background check information.

Opponents of the measure say that much training is a one-size-fits-all approach and is not needed in situations that can vary widely in the types of skills and training needed by caregivers.

They also see the measure as a thinly disguised union-building tool.

I-1029 is, in fact, almost exclusively backed by the Service Employees International Union, which says union enhancement is not the intent. But thinking people might want to question why out of a campaign war chest of $800,500 in cash contributions, all but $500 (as of Monday) has come from the SEIU. The union has also kicked in about $48,000 worth of in-kind support.

If that's not trying to buy an election, it certainly appears to be a special-interest takeover of a ballot issue. And one has to wonder whether such interest goes beyond just concern for the quality of care provided by caregivers.

An unknown factor with this proposal is long-range costs. The state Office of Financial Management predicts the measure would cost $29.7 million in the 2009-11 budget period for training whose workers who care for Medicaid patients. Many of the workers are SEIU members.

Beyond that, according to a Seattle Times report: "Home-care agencies and the operators of boarding homes, adult family homes or assisted-living facilities would pay to train the rest, and those costs may be passed along to their elderly or disabled clients."

This long-term care issue has been the subject of a special task force looking into any needed changes in training and certification. That led to proposed legislation in this year's session of the Legislature that called for 35 hours of required classroom training, with an optional 50 hours for certification. The bill actually passed both the House of Representatives and state Senate, but stalled when it came time for compromise between chambers.

One school of thought at the time was that the powerful SEIU lobby dug in its heels in opposition because the union felt it could get a better deal with an initiative. And hence we have I-1029 on the ballot, thanks in no small part to that well-stuffed campaign war chest of the union.

There's a rule of thumb that can come in handy with ballot issues: If one is too complicated, with too many unknowns, than it's best to vote no.

That sums up our recommendation on I-1029.

* Members of the Yakima Herald-Republic editorial board are Michael Shepard, Sarah Jenkins, Bill Lee and Karen Troianello.

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