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News from and about Toby Nixon
News Archives
Toby Nixon for King County Fire Protection District 41 Commissioner, Position 3
Some of you may be surprised to learn that on Friday, June 5, I filed as a candidate for
King County Fire Protection District 41 Commissioner. District 41 works in close cooperation
with the City of Kirkland to provide fire and EMS service to most of the unincorporated area
north of Kirkland, now proposed for annexation.
I’ve actually had a life-long interest in fire service. Like most boys, I went through the
phase of wanting to be a fireman, but it's more than that. In 5th grade, I was Battalion
Chief for the Los Angeles Junior Fire Department for Camellia Avenue School in North Hollywood,
a title earned for scoring the highest in the school on the assessment test we took at the end
of a week-long class segment on fire safety. As a Boy Scout, one of the first merit badges I
earned was Fire Safety, and as Senior Patrol Leader I made sure all our scouts learned the subject
well. In junior high school, I held a summer job as assistant cook (which was the closest a young
teenager could get to firefighters!) for the California Division of Forestry station in Redding,
CA, making sure all the firefighters were well-fed between brush fires. I ended up pursuing a
career in computers instead of public safety, but my interest has never really abated. In the
legislature, I worked hard to ensure that public safety was a priority, and earned the endorsement
of the Washington State Council of Fire Fighters on multiple occasions. More recently, I’ve enjoyed
teaching the Washington State Emergency Management Division’s
Map Your Neighborhood program to people in the Kirkland area.
Seeing that there was an open seat on the District 41 Commission, and not being otherwise occupied
in public office at the moment, I decided to pursue my interest once again and seek the office. I
believe I’ll be able to do a good job as fire commissioner for the people in District 41. Here are the
things I’d do as fire commissioner:
- Wisely use our property tax dollars and other district resources to ensure all areas of the
district are well served, consistent with or exceeding state and national standards;
- Ensure the integration of District 41 into the City of Kirkland after annexation goes as smoothly as possible;
- Improve community outreach, particularly public education and training programs, to be ready for
earthquakes and other major disasters;
- Work with the Kirkland City Council and city staff to ensure public safety is properly prioritized
among city services;
- Improve transparency and access to district information, including establishing a district web
site, so residents can be as aware of and involved in district business as they want to be; and,
- Use my experience in the legislature to ensure proposed legislation positively affects our
district and improves our fire and EMS services.
My top priority this summer is, of course, working on successful annexation of Kingsgate, North
Juanita, and Finn Hill into Kirkland. But once the annexation vote is complete, being on the
Fire District 41 Commission will enable me to be closely involved in smoothly transitioning
District 41 into Kirkland. Until that process is complete, however, there’s plenty of work to
do in making sure District 41 serves its residents effectively. If you live in District 41, I’d
very much appreciate your support and your vote this November!
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Toby Nixon Endorses Fred Jarrett for King County Executive
KIRKLAND, WA (June 4, 2009) -- Former state representative Toby Nixon today announced that he has
endorsed State Senator Fred Jarrett to be the next King County Executive.
“During my time in the state legislature, no member of either party earned my trust and respect more
than Fred Jarrett,” said Nixon, who served as state representative for the 45th District from 2002 through
2007. “Fred showed again and again that he is committed to working together in a non-partisan manner to
implement the best solutions to the problems that face us, regardless of whose idea it is or who gets the
credit. That’s exactly the mindset we need in a County Executive if we’re going to solve the serious problems
that face King County.”
“Fred Jarrett is a leader in promoting government efficiency and accountability, and strongly supports
comprehensive independent performance audits,” Nixon continued. “He has consistently advocated for setting
high performance standards for government, and measuring outcomes to ensure that those standards are met.
Implementing those principles in King County will help reduce waste and duplication and give us the high
performance that taxpayers expect and deserve.”
Nixon, a well-known advocate for government transparency and accountability, also touted Jarrett’s
commitment to open government. “The previous county executive was no friend of open government, and cost
the taxpayers of King County hundreds of thousands of dollars because of his refusal to obey the law and
disclose requested public records. Sen. Jarrett has publicly committed to support key principles of open
government and to improve open government further, such as recording executive sessions, returning to the
interpretation of public agency attorney-client communications privilege as it existed prior to the Hangartner
decision, strengthening penalties for violations of the Public Records Act and the Open Public Meetings Act,
and requiring electronic records to be produced in electronic form. Jarrett will change the culture of King
County and bring a much-needed ray of sunshine.” Nixon emphasized that his endorsement of Jarrett was personal
and that the Washington Coalition for Open Government, which Nixon serves as president, does not endorse
candidates for public office.
“Although Fred and I do not agree on every issue, I am convinced that he, more than any other candidate
for county executive, has the experience, skills, vision, and leadership we need to restore fiscal
responsibility and efficiency to King County government, properly prioritize the functions of government
and ensure that essential services are provided, attract more family-wage jobs, and improve the quality of
life for all King County residents.”
Toby Nixon served as state representative for the 45th District from 2002-2007, and as ranking member
of the House committee on State Government Operations and Accountability. He currently serves as president
of the Washington Coalition for Open Government and on the boards of several other non-profit organizations.
He chaired Citizens for Accountable Elections, which sponsored the successful campaign to make the King
County Director of Elections a non-partisan elected office. Additional biographical information is available
at www.tobynixon.com/bio.htm.
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Remarks by Toby Nixon at the TEA Party in Bellevue, Washington, April 15, 2009
Article 1 Section 32 of our state constitution says:
“A frequent recurrence to fundamental principles is essential to the security of individual right and the
perpetuity of free government.”
I think we’d all agree that individual rights and free government are threatened today, and so I’m going to start by
talking about some fundamental principles.
None of us has a divine right to rule over the others. We all are created
with equal rights and powers as individuals. Our fundamental rights –- to life, to liberty, and to peaceful enjoyment
of our property -– are not given to us by the government or by the constitution; they are inherent, and predate the
existence of government. We created the government to help us defend those rights. The government has only the powers
that we delegate to it, and no more! Whenever any government becomes destructive of our rights, it is not only our right,
but our duty, to alter or abolish it!
And how do we go about that? It’s been said that there are four boxes that we use to defend our rights: the soap box,
the ballot box, the jury box, and the ammo box – preferably in that order!
When we think of the soap box, we think of our rights to free speech, and to assemble together, which we are
exercising today. But how do we know what to speak about? We must first know what the government is doing! Our 4th
president, James Madison, put it this way:
“A popular Government, without popular information, or the means of acquiring it, is but a Prologue to
a Farce or a Tragedy; or, perhaps both. Knowledge will forever govern ignorance: And a people who mean to be their
own Governors, must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives.”
(Letter to W.T. Barry, August 4, 1822)
Every government controls power by limiting information to the people. If we are to be the ones in charge of the government,
we must have at least as much information as it has. We cannot tolerate government conducted in secret!
In Washington State, we protect our right to access government information by two laws -– the
Public Records Act and the
Open Public Meetings Act. The
preamble to these laws says:
“The people of this state do not yield their sovereignty to the agencies which serve them. The people, in
delegating authority, do not give their public servants the right to decide what is good for the people to know and what
is not good for them to know. The people insist on remaining informed so that they may retain control over the instruments
they have created.”
It’s amazing that those words appear in our state laws, but our government so often ignores them. Every year, government
lobbyists are down in Olympia working hard to chip away at these laws and reduce our access to information. If we are to
preserve our control over the government, if we are to preserve our fundamental rights and not be enslaved, we must act to
defend our right to know what the government is doing!
The second box is the ballot box. We still have serious problems
with the way elections are conducted in this state. It’s still too easy for non-citizens to register to vote, because we
don’t require proof of identity or proof of citizenship to register. We still have convicted felons on the voter rolls,
because we’ve failed to do the hard work of finding and removing them. And requiring everyone to vote by mail is an outright
invitation to fraud, because we have no way of knowing who is casting each ballot. Nothing stops people from signing their
ballot envelope and handing it over to their spouse, or their boss, or their union leader, because they’re threatened or in
exchange for cash. If we can’t trust that our elections are secure, accurate, and honest, then we can’t trust that those in
office are there legitimately.
And then we have the jury box. A trial by jury is one of the most important rights we have. It is a critical check on
the ability of government to create unjust laws. Thomas Jefferson said:
“I consider trial by jury [to be] the only anchor yet imagined by man by which a government can be held to the
principles of its constitution.”
And the first chief justice of the United States, John Jay, said:
“The jury has the right to judge both the law as well as the fact in controversy.”
The judge won’t tell you this, but if you are on a jury, and you believe that the law you are being asked to enforce is unjust,
you can decide to not convict the accused on that basis alone. Do not be intimidated into making a decision counter to your
conscience or principles; you cannot be punished for voting your conscience on a jury.
I am out of time, so I will leave it to others to talk about the importance of the ammo box. But I think all of us here today
are pretty familiar with the importance of that principle!
I will conclude with this thought. None of these measures -- these boxes, these tools -- that we have as citizens to defend
our rights mean anything at all unless we exercise them! Exercise your right to attend meetings of your city council, county
council, school board, fire district board, hospital board – whatever it might be. Speak your mind on the issues. Request to
see documents and records that show what they’re really doing. Let them know you’re paying attention. It will make a difference!
Exercise your right to vote, and speak up for election integrity. It will make a difference!
If you’re called to serve on a jury, don’t look for an excuse to get out of it – do it! Don’t let only the people who are
willing to be led by the nose by government attorneys decide your fate and that of your neighbors. Don’t hesitate to judge
both the law and the facts. It will make a difference!
We the people created the government. It is up to us to hold it accountable, and to keep it under control!
Thank you very much!
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Remarks by Toby Nixon Conceding the 2008 Election
When the results of the August 19 primary election were
so close, we were all very optimistic that victory was
achievable on November 4. We worked incredibly hard to
make it happen. It’s clear now, though, that, in the
words of one of the many friends who have written to me
over the past couple of days, I was “Baracked” (which I
guess is the new “Borked”). My opponent put it this way
in
Thursday’s
Seattle Times article: “I probably got
some coattails”. No kidding –- going from a 280
vote margin in the primary to almost 5,500 as of
Saturday morning are quite some coattails! I have called
Rep. Goodman and congratulated him on his re-election.
Those of you who know me well know that on such
occasions I tend to be philosophical. Two years ago, I
wrote about how much I enjoyed sitting on the
floor of the House, contemplating the grandeur of the
place and the sacrifices of the Founders and so many
others who had made it possible for me to be there. This
year, my thoughts go more toward the importance of the
debate, and of always giving voters a choice.
We started this campaign knowing that it would be
another tough year, and we were not surprised. While we
didn’t win, we succeeded in fulfilling the important
responsibility in our form of government of providing a
viable alternative path for the people of the district
to consider -– the path of individual liberty, personal
responsibility, limited government, and free enterprise.
This year, a majority apparently prefer a different path. But the pendulum swings, and will
eventually swing back, as it did in 1980 and 1994. We’ll
see what 2010 or 2012 hold in store.
In the meantime, there’s much we can and must do to
remind those now in control of the government of the
responsibility they have. We can call, write, email, and
visit them in Olympia and Washington DC. We can watch
carefully the legislation that is introduced, analyze it
for the impacts on our lives, liberty, and property, and
make our concerns known to our legislators, governor,
and president. We can praise them when they do the right
thing, and protest when they don’t. We can attend town
hall meetings and other gatherings and make our views
known. We can talk with our friends and neighbors, and
contribute our time and money to organizations that work
for our benefit, to magnify our voices along with those
of others. We can teach our children about the
principles of liberty, our Declaration of Independence,
our Constitution, and the Founders. And we can plan,
organize, and find those who will lead us in the next
campaigns in the ongoing battle of ideas that is our
republic.
I appreciate greatly those who devoted so much of their
money, time, talents, energy, and hard work to this
year’s campaign. I thank all those who knocked on doors,
made calls, wrote letters, stuffed envelopes, posted and
waved and picked up signs, and did all the other labor
that is the hand-to-hand combat of the campaign. I
appreciate the hard work by all the PCOs who knocked on
doors and delivered literature. Thanks to the over 625
individuals, families, and organizations who donated
nearly $200,000 to the campaign to help us get our
message out. Thanks to the hundreds who endorsed my
candidacy. And of course I could not have done anything
without the love and support of my wife Irene, who is so
tolerant of the thousands of hours I spend away from
home serving and campaigning, and who feels as strongly
as I do about the need for principled leadership in
government.
All the news wasn’t bad on election day. Many of you
know that over the past two years I worked hard, along
with a devoted group of volunteers, to gather the
signatures to qualify Initiative 25 for the ballot and
get it passed in 2007, and to pass King County Charter
Amendment No. 1 this year to create a separate
Department of Elections in King County headed by a
non-partisan elected Director of Elections. Many of you
have asked if I intend to seek that office. That
decision has not yet been made, but will be made soon.
I’ll be sure to let you know my decision.
I look forward to continuing to work with all of you to
improve the quality of life for everyone in our state
and country and to restore our government to the
principles that made this country great.
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Remarks by Toby Nixon at Campaign Breakfast
Bellevue (June 25, 2008) -- Toby delivered the
following remarks at his campaign fundraising breakfast in Bellevue on
Wednesday, June 25, 2008 (also available in PDF form by clicking
here):
Already this campaign season, we’ve heard a lot about “change” and about “hope”. What we’ve heard too little of, though, is exactly what’s proposed to be
changed, and what it’s proposed to change to. Today I’m going to tell you what I’d change in
this Washington, and what I hope for in the future.
The first thing I will change is traffic congestion. Our region has been paralyzed in traffic because our leaders have been paralyzed by indecision, unwilling or unable to act to meaningfully reduce traffic congestion for decades. Our current leaders’ plan to cut traffic congestion is apparently for every one of us to just cut out 50% of our driving! Our state is now governed by people who believe, with a nearly religious zealotry, that private vehicles are
evil. They believe we should all be riding on light rail, traveling only how and when the government gives us permission or makes it possible for us to travel. They’re going to ask us, maybe as soon as this fall, to spend
another four billion dollars on light rail – even though by their own estimation traffic congestion will only continue to get worse. I
wouldn’t do that. I would invest in building more lanes on our highways and arterials; use the capacity we already have more efficiently by making carpool lanes available to all traffic during off-peak periods; provide more Park and Ride space; and provide more bus service to the places where people actually want to go, frequently enough that they can rely on it.
I will change our energy policy. Currently, our policy is driven by near hysteria over “global warming” and fear of nuclear power. Yes, average global temperatures
are increasing – they have been for the past couple of centuries as we’ve emerged from a mini-ice age, and are only now approaching the average temperature of the past 10,000 years. Global average temperatures follow a consistent cycle that tracks solar activity and that is influenced
very little by human emissions of greenhouse gases. The times in our history when temperatures have been above average have
not been disasters, but have been the most prosperous times in human history –- and it is likely to be that way in the next warm phase as well. People around the world have been misled, manipulated by misrepresented statistics into giving up personal liberties and choices in the name of “saving the planet”. Legislative mandates have distorted markets, artificially driving up food and fuel prices. I would
undo the limitations the legislature has enacted on carbon-based fuels,
undo the mandates to use renewable energy and biofuels, and undo the artificial constraints we’ve placed on the use of clean and safe nuclear energy. We do, in fact, need to reduce our dependence on petroleum imported from countries controlled by dictators who mean us harm. We can best accomplish that by maximizing the use of known domestic supplies of oil and coal, by eliminating needless restrictions on the construction of new refineries, by encouraging research and investment in new forms of energy, and by letting market forces work –- with common-sense environmental protections.
I will change our education system, by putting more resources in the classroom, by focusing on basics and teaching them in proven ways, by ensuring that highly-capable students are challenged and that special education is fully funded at the state level, by insuring that education decisions are made by parents, teachers, and local elected school boards rather than by bureaucrats in Olympia or Washington DC or by teacher unions.
I will change our tax system. People are being driven out of their homes by property taxes that are higher than their mortgage payments ever were. We must stop shifting an ever-increasing portion of property taxes onto residential property. Our tax system is too complex, and too hard to understand. We need a tax system that is simple, broad-based, stable, and economically neutral, designed to raise revenue, not control people’s behavior. I will repeal the state death tax, and I will
not create a state income tax.
I will change our health care system –- not by turning control of it over to the government, but by
reducing government intervention and restoring a free market. We need less regulation of health care, not more. We need more choice and competition in health care, not less. Only then will we have the quality, affordability, choice, and innovation that ought to be the hallmark of the world’s best health care system.
I could go on, but I think you get the idea. As Thomas Jefferson said, “That government is best which governs least.” Our Declaration of Independence made it clear that the purpose of government
-– the reason “governments are instituted among men” –- is to help us protect our lives, liberty, and property. And when government becomes destructive of our rights, it is not just our
right but our duty to alter or abolish it. It needs some alteration.
I disagree with Barack Obama on almost everything, but he’s right on one thing –- it is time for change. And in Washington state, change means replacing those currently in charge, like Christine Gregoire and Roger Goodman –- replacing them with leaders who believe in individual liberty, limited government, and free markets.
What do I hope for in the future? Well, today is my daughter Sarah’s birthday. She’s 22. (We seem to be in a pattern of celebrating major family events with hundreds of our closest friends. Last year Irene and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary at the Eastside Republican Club meeting, and now this!)
Sarah starts this fall at Digipen Institute in Redmond, to pursue her dream of becoming an artist working in the computer game industry. So I guess the first thing I hope for is to find the money to pay the tuition at Digipen –- it’s not cheap! Seriously, though…
I hope that Sarah and her future husband –- yet to be identified –- will be able to afford to buy a home, right here in Western Washington, to raise her family, enjoy our natural environment, and take care of her aging parents.
I hope that Sarah’s children –- see Sarah, we have your life all planned out for you! –- that Sarah’s children will receive an education that prepares them to be successful in an economy driven by innovation and instant communication and international collaboration, and to be fully informed and participating citizens of a free country.
I hope that Sarah will be able to keep more of what she earns than I’ve been able to, and to be able to save and invest for the future rather than having so much of her income going to a government that is simply too large.
I hope that Sarah will be able to get where she needs to go in a predictable time in the comfort, safety, convenience, privacy, and independence of her own personal vehicle.
I hope that Sarah will live in a world where global terrorism has been vanquished, where we live in harmony with nature and with our neighbors around the world, where peace reigns because people respect and defend one another’s rights.
These hopes and dreams are no different from what our parents had for us. They are no different from what the Founders envisioned when they sought to “secure the blessings of liberty to [themselves] and [their] posterity”. All it will take to realize these hopes is to renew our confidence in the principles upon which this nation was founded and that made it great, and to commit to restoring government based on those principles. I commit to you to do everything in my power to make that a reality.
Thank you very much.
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Statement by Former State Representative Toby Nixon Regarding Today’s Decision by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on Initiative 297
Kirkland (May 21, 2008) --
Former State Representative Toby Nixon, a co-sponsor of Initiative 297 and defendant-intervenor in the federal government’s lawsuit to overturn the initiative, made the following comments after hearing today of the Ninth Circuit’s affirmation that I-297 is pre-empted by federal law:
“I am disappointed that the Ninth Circuit upheld the flawed lower court decision overturning the will of the voters of the state of Washington, who, in passing Initiative 297 by an overwhelming 69% vote in 2004, said we want Hanford to be cleaned up before more radioactive waste is dumped there. The court is simply wrong in asserting that no federal law gives states the power to regulate mixed waste, since Congress specifically granted that power in 1992 in the Federal Facilities Compliance Act.
“I urge Attorney General McKenna to continue to defend I-297 and appeal this decision to the U.S. Supreme Court. Unless this appeal is pressed, every state that hosts disposal sites for radioactive waste is at risk of losing its ability to regulate those sites because of the precedent set by this decision.
“Congress must fully fund cleanup and restoration of the Hanford site. Both major political parties should adopt resolutions at their upcoming conventions calling on Congress to fully fund Hanford cleanup and on the timetable previously committed, seek to have similar resolutions passed at their national conventions or included in their national platforms, and insure that their presidential candidates are on the record supporting cleanup and restoration at Hanford.”
Toby Nixon represented the 45th legislative district in the state House of Representatives from 2002 to 2007. He serves on the board of directors of Heart of America Northwest, the lead sponsor of Initiative 297 and the leading advocate for cleanup and restoration of the Hanford Nuclear Site. Nixon also serves on the Washington state executive committee of Republicans for Environmental Protection.
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Toby Nixon to Seek Return to State House of Representatives
Kirkland (March 20, 2008) -- Former State Representative Toby Nixon announced today that he will seek election this year to return to the legislature as state representative for the 45th District. Nixon, who served in the state house for five years from 2002 through 2007, will challenge Roger Goodman, who was elected to the seat Nixon vacated when he ran for state senate in 2006.
Reversing an earlier statement that he would not run for office in 2008, Nixon said, “After watching the legislature’s failure once again to make any real progress toward solving the major problems in our state -- while continuing their relentless drive toward fiscal disaster -- I am disgusted along with the rest of the people of Washington. The incumbent had his chance and did nothing to change things. I am determined to win this election, return to Olympia, and take the lead implementing the new direction the people of the 45th District demand.”
Nixon said that he was urged to run again by many supporters at the recent 45th District Republican caucus and other gatherings, and that legislative leaders and lawmakers from both parties have told him that his leadership, common-sense approach to the issues, and attention to detail have been missed in Olympia.
“This legislature’s solution to every problem has been more government control, more regulation, and higher taxes and fees, rather than the free market solutions that would actually work,” Nixon said. “Our infrastructure continues to crumble, our schools are going broke, housing and health care are increasingly unaffordable, and even with huge majorities in both the House and the Senate, they accomplished little except to make the government bigger. They need to be replaced.”
Nixon has been a consistent defender of civil liberties, limited government, and free markets, and an opponent of bigger and more expensive government. He is known for his ability to work across the aisle to reach bipartisan consensus on issues; throughout his legislative career, he has sought to improve bills before the legislature regardless of who sponsored them or would get credit for the work.
Nixon served as State Representative for the 45th District from January, 2002, through January, 2007. As ranking member of the State Government Operations and Accountability committee during the 2005 and 2006 sessions, he guided through the legislature many significant election reforms in the wake of the 2004 election problems.
Nixon chaired Citizens for Accountable Elections, and led the
successful 2007 campaign to pass Initiative 25 to put an amendment to the King County charter on the ballot this year that will make the county Director of Elections an elected non-partisan office.
Nixon is president of the
Washington Coalition for Open Government, and an outspoken advocate for open public records and meetings and other measures to improve government accountability to the people. He received the
Washington Newspaper Publishers Association’s “Freedom’s Light Award” in 2006 for protecting and advancing First Amendment interests in Washington.
Nixon has been recognized as a leader on the environment, serving on the boards of
Republicans for Environmental Protection and of
Heart of America Northwest, one of the leading organizations advocating for cleanup of the Hanford nuclear site. He was one of the sponsors of I-297, requiring cleanup of Hanford before more waste is stored there.
Professionally, Nixon is a fifteen-year veteran of Microsoft, and currently works as Senior Standards Program Manager in the Windows Device and Storage Technologies Group, representing Microsoft in international organizations reaching agreement on technical standards for networked multimedia and smart home technology. He is a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and holds several patents in the area of computer communications.
The 45th District includes Woodinville, Duvall, Carnation, and parts of Kirkland, Redmond, and Sammamish. Nixon and his wife Irene have been married for 25 years; they and their five children reside in the Kingsgate neighborhood of Kirkland.
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