Serious problems require bold, creative solutions! The Olympia Fellowship of Reconciliation’s January 2011 TV interview explores a creative solution to help our state’s economy.
Even during hard financial times, a lot of money flows through the state government. Property tax payments, sales tax revenue, payroll taxes, fees for licenses, and other revenues arrive at various times. From time to time the state pays out this money for salaries, equipment, supplies, rent, payments to local governments, and so forth.
What happens to the money while the state has it? The state deposits most of it with the big Wall Street banks and other out-of-state businesses.
Why doesn’t the state government create a publicly owned bank that would use the money to serve the public interest within Washington state? North Dakota has successfully operated the publicly owned Bank of North Dakota for about 90 years – and North Dakota is the only state that is not facing a financial crisis now.
Our state legislature could create a publicly owned bank and deposit all tax revenue there. The money could be loaned to small local banks, businesses, farmers and individuals to serve the public interest in Washington. We’ll explore this creative opportunity during this hour.
This interview features three guests – Dan Leahy, Cindy Cole and John Repp – who are well informed and are working hard to create a Washington State Bank.
