Letter: Why judicial activism threatens Washington Democracy

🎧 Judicial Activism and Initiative 645 in Washington State

Jonathan Hines says whether you support or oppose the income tax, every Washington resident should be deeply troubled when judges dismiss procedural fairness to protect state revenue narratives

Editor’s note: Opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are those of the author alone and may not reflect the editorial position of ClarkCountyToday.com

In a healthy constitutional republic, the judiciary operates as a neutral referee. Judges exist to interpret statutes, enforce constitutional limits, and guarantee basic due process — not to tip the scales of public policy or insulate state government from voter accountability. Yet, recent legal developments in Thurston County Superior Court offer a stark reminder of what happens when judicial restraint gives way to judicial activism.

Jonathan Hines

The controversy revolves around Initiative 645, a landmark ballot measure designed to repeal Washington state’s newly enacted income tax on high earners. Under state law, the Attorney General’s office is tasked with writing a Public Investment Impact Disclosure (PIID) — a brief statement on the ballot intended to offer objective, politically neutral information about financial tradeoffs. Instead, critics argue that the AG’s office crafted politically charged framing, warning voters that repealing the tax would directly reduce funding for public K-12 education, higher education, and healthcare.

The situation grew far more concerning inside the courtroom. Rather than thoroughly scrutinizing whether the state met its statutory mandate of neutrality, a Thurston County judge upheld the Attorney General’s language during a separate individual’s legal challenge. In doing so, the court abruptly preempted and canceled a long-scheduled hearing set for later that same day, denying attorneys representing Let’s Go Washington — the primary campaign organization sponsoring the initiative — the opportunity to present their own distinct legal arguments.

Shutting out initiative sponsors and refusing to hear their case is a grave procedural misstep. Washington’s citizen initiative process was created more than a century ago as a vital constitutional valve, empowering everyday residents to bypass Olympia and enact reform directly. When state officials write biased ballot warnings and judges endorse that framing while denying petition leaders their day in court, the judiciary ceases to function as an independent umpire and instead acts as a barrier to self governance.

This issue transcends partisan politics. Whether you support or oppose the income tax, every Washington resident should be deeply troubled when judges dismiss procedural fairness to protect state revenue narratives. When courts allow executive agencies to put a finger on the scale and silence dissenting citizens, public trust in the rule of law is severely eroded. If judicial activism is left unchecked, the right of Washingtonians to govern themselves through the initiative process will remain under constant threat.

Jonathan Hines
Vancouver