By DAVID AMMONS
The Associated Press

5/3/01 5:19 PM

OLYMPIA (AP) -- Maverick Democrat Tim Sheldon, backed by 24 minority Republicans, seized temporary control of the state Senate on Thursday, forcing votes on legislation championed by conservatives.

The coalition pushed through measures to exempt most counties from tough new shoreline regulations and to delay ergonomics programs in the work place. It also lined up later votes on bills dealing with striking teachers, a so-called "Cajun Primary," free day-use of state parks, and full repeal of the car-tab tax. Sheldon, a conservative from the Hood Canal town of Potlatch, toyed with switching to the Republican Party earlier this year, but decided to stick with the Democrats, giving the party a 25-24 majority.

But he told reporters Thursday he owes more allegiance to his voters back home than to his party. "I made a vote at the beginning of the session to elect (Long Beach Democrat) Sid Snyder as majority leader," he said. "That's the only vote I think I owe my party. The rest of the votes I owe to my constituents."

With the Senate so closely divided, any senator can put together coalitions, he said. Indeed, that has happened on a few occasions this session, but Sheldon's decision to package eight bills together and force them onto the Senate calendar was the boldest move so far.

By a vote of 25-23, Sheldon plus all 24 minority Republicans seized control, pulling bills from committee to the floor. They were mostly Sheldon's bills that Republicans happen to agree with. The practical effect Thursday wasn't terribly dramatic, since the two bills the coalition forced through -- on shorelines and ergonomics -- already had been approved by the Senate during the regular session.

In both cases, negotiators are working on compromise language with the evenly divided House, drawing in representatives of Gov. Gary Locke to come up with something the governor can sign. Snyder, who voted for the shorelines bill, groused that the coalition could prolong the 30-day special session, in its ninth day Thursday. Everyone has pet issues, but lawmakers now must focus on the handful of "go-home" bills, he said.

"If we open the chute, bar the door, Nellie," he told the Senate. The two bills that cleared the Senate were:

--Senate Bill 5378, approved 25-23, would exempt most counties from stringent new regulations handed down by the Department of Ecology last November.

"These shoreline rules are choking us to death in the rural areas," Snyder said. Regulators "go to the extreme," rather than help preserve the local economy, he said.

Sen. Dow Constantine, D-Seattle, said Locke would veto the bill in its current form, but that a compromise is in the works.

--SB5882, approved 28-20, would authorize a two-year delay in implementing work place rules handed down by the Department of Labor and Industries.

The rules require employers to protect employees from disorders such as back strain, tendinitis and carpal tunnel syndrome that can develop from repetitive motions. The program initially focuses on employers with the highest risk of injuries, including sawmills, nursing homes and building trades.

Congress recently repealed similar regulations handed down by the Clinton administration. The government has estimated the rules would cost businesses nationwide $4.5 billion to implement, but save them $9 billion a year by reducing work place injuries.

Washington businesses have complained that it could cost them $750 million to implement the state rules, beginning next year. The regulations were to be enforced starting in 2003. The bill would extend the enforcement deadline to 2005.

Still to come are votes on six other bills backed by the coalition:

--A Louisiana-style primary where the two highest vote-getters advance to the general election, regardless of party.

--A law that says if teachers go out on strike, they lose a day's pay and cannot use sick leave instead.

--Full repeal of the car-tab tax. When lawmakers voted last year to repeal the tax and replace it with a flat tax of $30 a year per vehicle, they neglected to repeal the tax bite for local transit. Some Democrats want to leave the tax in place to help ailing transit systems. Other lawmakers say it should be repealed as intended.

--A requirement that Sound Transit pay for moving utility lines.

--A sales tax exemption for machinery, equipment and construction of "call centers" in rural counties. These are businesses of 50 or more employees that provide phone service for financial transactions, technical support and customer services.

--A ban on charging day-use parking fees at state parks, as the state intends to do.

On the Net: Legislature: http://www.leg.wa.gov

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