WALLA WALLA — Perry Dozier said inflation and the cost of housing, goods and services are imposing increasing burdens on Washington residents, and the Washington Legislature should do what it can to address that. Dozier is running for the Washington Senate from the 16th District, which includes a small slice of Grant County. 

Dozier, a Republican and the incumbent, is being challenged for the seat by Democrat Kari Isaacson.  

Dozier said increasing costs affect not only the 16th District but the entire state. 

“Living in Washington state, we had such a huge increase in our costs over the last few years, really not much relief for those people living here, especially in those rural communities,” he said. “We’re going to see increases in the cost of electricity. We've seen it in the cost of fuel. Those are huge issues.” 

Increased costs have an impact on all residents, but especially people with lower incomes, he said. 

“One of the things the Republican Senate (Caucus) had proposed was a property tax exemption for the first $250,000 of your home valuation. And if you think about that, a lot of these lower-income families, they may have a home that does exceed that, yet they are paying taxes on it, which takes out of their disposable income for the family to live on,” Dozier said. 

He cited increases in the cost of fuel, and how that affects workers in general and farmworkers in particular.  

“(Workers) are having to take a lot more of their paychecks just to pay for the cost of getting to work,” he said. “These are things that we have to take the burden off our individuals.” 

State spending contributes to rising costs, he said, since the taxes to pay for it come from Washington residents. 

“This is a pretty interesting figure — 12 years ago, when Gov. (Jay) Inslee was elected, the operating budget in Washington state was $31 billion. This last Legislative session, it’s $72 billion. We have increased by $40 billion,” Dozier said.  

“Where does that revenue come from?” he said. “The majority comes from taxes.” 

That places an increasing burden on taxpayers at a time of substantial inflation, Dozier said, and state officials should find ways to reduce that burden. 

“Affordability of living is huge,” he said.  

Dozier lives close to the Oregon border and said he could save up to $1 to $1.20 per gallon by buying gas in Oregon. In part that’s the result of the Climate Commitment Act, he said. The agriculture sector was supposed to be exempt from some provisions of the law, but that didn’t happen, he said, and a bill he co-sponsored to address that issue didn’t get a hearing.  

“We’re not getting cooperation from the other side of the aisle,” he said.  

Agriculture overtime rules also have had an impact on farmers and farmworkers alike, he said, cutting into the ability of farmworkers to make money while forcing farmers to spend more for labor.  

Many state residents and legislators don’t understand the importance of agriculture in Washington, he said, and as a result, don’t understand the issues. 

High costs, he said, could drive major employers out of the state.  

“We have to be a business-friendly state,” he said.  

Dozier said he’s also concerned about drug use and funding for law enforcement drug interdiction, and state laws that reduced the penalties for selling controlled substances. 

“We got lax with our drug laws,” he said.  

“This is what’s really disheartening, where some states have dropped in the amount of overdose deaths that they have, Washington state continues to climb, per capita. That is something we cannot continue to see,” he said. 

Dozier said state officials need to think about the consequences of both legislative and regulatory actions.  

“I just hate to see our residents keep having the burden of some the decisions that we make in Olympia,” he said. “If we are short budget-wise someplace, I’m not going to try and get it from the people as much as I’m going to try to make cuts first. I try to look at ways that we don’t have to put this on the backs of people because they’re already struggling.”