This is part of a series of Q&As with candidates for local office in the Nov. 4 general election.
This Q&A: State Sen. Jan Angel and Judy Arbogast, candidates for state Senate for the 26 Legislative District.
State Senate is the upper house of the Washington State Legislature. The body consists of 49 senators, each representing a district with a population of nearly 140,000. The State Senate meets at the Legislative Building in Olympia.
As with the lower House of Representatives, state senators serve without term limits, though senators serve four-year terms. Senators are elected from the same legislative districts as House members, with each district electing two representatives but only one senator.
Like other upper houses of state and territorial legislatures and the federal U.S. Senate, the state senate can confirm or reject gubernatorial appointments to the state cabinet, commissions and boards.
The district includes southeastern Kitsap Peninsula from Bremerton and Port Orchard in the north to Gig Harbor in the south.
The state representative’s annual salary is $42,106, plus per diem.
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JAN ANGEL
Residence: Port Orchard
Occupation: State Senator
Education: Southern Colorado State College and Colorado State University, University of Alaska-Anchorage, American Institute of Banking — Anchorage, Alaska
Relevant Experience: Retail business and former business owner, eight years as Kitsap County commissioner (2000-2008), five year as District 26 state representative (2009-2013) and one year (2014) as state senator.
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JUDY ARBOGAST
Residence: Olalla
Occupation: Educator (retired)
Education: University of Washington, Master of Education (M.Ed.), special education; Portland State University, B.A. in elementary education; Continuing Education, 96.5 hours at Lewis & Clark College, Portland State University, Seattle Pacific University, University of Washington and Western Washing University.
Relevant Experience: Special education teacher in the district for more than 30 years.
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Q. What are the top issues in this campaign?
Angel: This campaign has many “mega issues” to include education funding and reform, mental health and chemical dependency funding, fixing all the issues with the Healthcare Exchange (and there are many), transportation funding and reforms, just to name a few.
Arbogast: My top priority is fully funding education. We have a mandate from the Supreme Court to fully fund education and I would work to make sure we are upholding our duty, as legislators, to find this needed revenue. In addition to education, funding for transportation is vital to our community. We depend on ferries, roads and bridges to get to school and work. Last year, the legislature was unable to pass a critical transportation package that cost the state 85,000 jobs. We need to do better. We have students who have great difficult getting to Olympic College and Tacoma Community College, and workers who have difficulty getting to their jobs because of the cuts to transportation.
Q. What are your priorities if elected?
Angel: My priorities boil down to the one line on my campaign flier which states, “It’s about making a difference in people’s lives.” That’s why I ran the first time and why I am running again. All these “mega issues” affect our people one way or another and my top priority is to assure I make the very best decisions I can for our people. Work on reducing regulatory burden on our local businesses that are trying to create and retain jobs.
Arbogast: If elected, I will work with other legislators to map out a step-by-step plan to fully fund education in our state by 2018. We need to look closely at our budget and find revenue sources to meet the McCleary mandate. We need a fair system that does not put the burden on those who can least afford it. We must also pass a transportation package. Our district and State cannot afford to wait on this. We need to fund our transportation system now to ensure things are being properly maintained and our transportation systems are meeting the needs of the people of the district and the State.
Q. How would you accomplish those priorities?
Angel: In order to make good decisions I must read the bills, require fiscal notes on those bills to see where the funding is coming from, who’s affected and how then I must be assured I have good data to formulate good decisions. It is also critical to have the input on these issues from my constituents, as the final decisions will certainly affect them. My job is to represent them.
Arbogast: Throughout my career, I have solved tough problems. I have learned that to solve problems, big or small, we need to think creatively, collaborate, and communicate with one another. In order to accomplish these priorities, the legislature must work together, not against one another. There are solutions to be found, we just need to get past partisan bickering and think critically about the issues we face. Many solutions have already been proposed but did not even receive hearings in this last session. Our district and State depend on finding solutions that will work.
Q. Regarding bipartisanship: Provide some examples of how you’ve worked cooperatively with someone of another political party to reach consensus or accomplish a goal.
Angel: It is vital we have good communication and negotiating conversations with our counterparts across the aisle. I have done this since elected six years ago to get bills passed. The one example that comes to mind immediately is one amendment I had filed on a bill to create more funding for education. My leadership came to me and said it looked like the amendment was going to be brought forward. I knew, being in the Minority Party at that time, that I may not have the votes to get it through. I went across the aisle and asked another representative to run my amendment and I would pull my original, filed amendment. I did that, she stood and presented my amendment as hers’ and it passed. Her name was on that amendment but it did not matter — we got the job done. It’s all about getting the job done, not who does it.
Arbogast: In education we don’t ask or know what political party teachers and administrators subscribe to – it is immaterial to the work we need to do. I have worked with others many times collaborating to find what will best work for a student. One case in particular concerned a student in kindergarten who was consistently removed from class for being disruptive. It took collaboration with the parents, the classroom teacher, the special education director, principal, and other district personnel, including finally even a one on one para-educator to meet the needs of the student. Community members who were volunteers in the school also helped with this student’s individual plan so that he could control his own behavior appropriately before beginning to learn academics. Change does not happen overnight, but by the time this student was in sixth grade, he had worked with many different supportive people and could participate in all activities independently. While leading the teachers of South Kitsap, I also participated in the “Whole Child Initiative” and worked monthly with members of the community and district employees, to develop ideas for supporting students and programs. This group was invaluable to recruit community groups to assist with the summer lunch programs to add enrichment for participating students. There was never discussion as to which political party each belonged to. The whole focus was on meeting the needs of the students. One of the groups that is making a huge difference is the Backpacks for Kids program. They are faced with increased demands as more people in our community are struggling with poverty.
Q. What experience do you have that makes you most qualified for the position you seek?
Angel: I am the most qualified for this Senate position, as I am not a “one-issue” candidate. My work experience includes retail business, banking, financial construction work, insurance, owning my own business (two types), real estate and land use issues, eight years local county government experience and all the boards that includes plus five years experience in the House of Representatives and now completing my first full year as a Senator. I have a district office open five days a week working on our constituents problems so I sure know their issues. My personal life experiences added of being a wife, mom, widow, single mom, business woman and a legislator all come together to best give me the combined tools to deal with the challenges we certainly will be facing in the sessions ahead.
Arbogast: As a former educator, mostly with special needs students, I have learned to think creatively to find solutions and collaborate with many people in order to solve problems. These are unique skills that will help me reach across the aisle in Olympia. Our legislators must make many decisions this next session and in the coming years, and we need people in Olympia who are willing to put the people of the State in front of partisanship. I promise to work for and with the people of our district first and always listen to their issues. We must do better in Olympia and I am committed to seeing that progress will happen.
