Rodney 'Star' Thornley

Why I’m Running

I’m running because I want to help change that culture in the Washington legislature, and I want that change to start with me.

Too many people feel ignored by their elected officials. From national representatives to local leaders, communication is often slow or incomplete. Constituents deserve timely responses and basic respect from the people who represent them.

I’m running as an independent because too many elected officials fall in line with party leadership instead of focusing on the people they serve. A legislator’s first obligation should be to the constituents. An elected official should always ask themselves what’s best for the people and not what’s best for the party or for those who want to hold power.

Immigration     

Too much time is spent on regulations and legislation aimed at controlling ICE. I believe Washington needs a more practical state-level approach. My proposal is a Washington State Citizenship program or “Washingtonship” (WSC).

Current unregistered immigrants and asylum seekers in Washington would qualify for this standard if they can show they have lived in the state for more than one year. New immigrants and asylum seekers wouldn’t qualify for this program.

People who are here unlawfully but who register under the program would receive protection from the State of Washington. This would be a sanctuary-state model, but it wouldn’t be amnesty. Participants would receive a sealed misdemeanor and pay a fine that helps fund the state program. The fine would be a small amount taken from each paycheck until it equals the normal U.S. citizenship application fee, plus the cost of administering the state program.

If federal authorities later recognize or coordinate with the Washingtonship program, the hope is that the state process could transfer into the federal process for U.S. citizenship.

Washington should crack down on employers who hire undocumented workers outside the law. At the same time, the state should make it easier and less expensive for employers to use legal work visa programs, including H-1B, H-2A, and H-2B visas.

The state shouldn’t provide immigrants with services that current residents don’t receive.

Any honest discussion of immigration has to recognize how much our economy depends on immigrant labor. Gas stations, fast food restaurants, nail salons, convenience stores, construction sites, ground maintenance companies, rideshare services, and trucking operations all depend on immigrant workers. We need immigrants to help our country function. But we also need to know who’s here, who’s working, and who’s following the law.

Housing

Washington needs practical housing policies that encourage private participation without creating more unnecessary government administration.

Landlords with properties of ten or more units should receive incentives to set aside at least one rental unit for renters who pay 30 percent of their gross income toward rent. These incentives could include tax reductions, permit breaks, or other practical benefits.

If the government creates a moratorium that prevents property owners from collecting rent, the law should also create a matching moratorium on mortgage payments for those same owners during that period.

Corporations, LLCs, partnerships, and similar entities should be limited in how many single-family homes, duplexes, triplexes, and fourplexes they can own. I propose a limit of ten such properties.

The state should lower unnecessary fees and regulations and work more closely with cities and counties to streamline housing rules.

Washington should also encourage mixed-income housing. Some renters may pay market rates, but others pay reduced rates based on income. I support a working-income model that caps rent at 28 percent of income when appropriate. This is similar to an airplane seating model, where different people pay different rates within the same system.

 Campaign Reform

Campaigns have become too dependent on money. Politicians hire paid lobbyists because they provide a voice for specific interests. Elected officials obviously can’t accept money in exchange for a vote, but when a lobbyist donates money and then pushes for a vote on a specific issue, the public has every reason to question the system. It may not violate the law, but let’s be honest about how it looks.

Everyday citizens can lobby too, but they often get, at best, a form letter or a few minutes of a legislator’s time. A paid lobbyist usually gets a better audience.

Most citizens don’t enjoy political ads, yard signs, door knocking, phone calls, mailers, or campaign emails. With email, at least people can read the subject line, delete it, or mark it as spam. But the rest of it consumes time and money.

I would favor banning most of these campaign methods. Each candidate could receive a public website for campaign information and space in the voters’ guide. Candidates could also still speak publicly, appear on talk shows, attend forums, march in parades, and stand in their districts with personal banners.

Think about the possible benefits. Less waste material in landfills. Fewer phone calls during dinner. Fewer knocks at the door. Less campaign money wasted on advertising. More room for regular people to run for office, not just candidates who can raise large sums of money.

This would be a major shift, but it’s worth discussing. Let’s find out how far we can take the proposal.  

Connecticut has a good direct donation restriction to candidates but does not address advertising. 

Education

Running Start, AP testing, and four-year degrees are expensive, and it’s time to rethink our college model.

Under WAC 250-61-100, many bachelor’s degrees require 180 credits for graduation, but many degree programs require only 40 to 90 credits within the major itself. Washington’s public colleges and universities should consider reducing the graduation requirement to 135 credits. That would allow students to complete a degree in three years, with three quarters per year and 45 credits per year. That would save students money and allow more students to move through each institution.

Washington should also subsidize specific degrees that serve major public needs, including homelessness, addiction, and mental health. For example, a social work degree could be free for students who commit to working in the field for five years.

High school education has changed dramatically. In the 1970s, an advanced student might take trigonometry, but today students take AP Calculus, AP Statistics, and other advanced courses. But AI has changed the nature of education, and it’s time to move in a new direction. Education should fit the needs of the student, not just mandates from Olympia.

School districts should have more authority to set seat-time requirements and graduation standards based on their local demographics and student needs. The state should reduce unnecessary academic requirements for the masses and expand internships, apprenticeships, private-sector partnerships, and on-the-job training. Aviation programs, trade programs, truck driving schools, and the state ferry system are examples of areas where stronger partnerships could help students move directly into real careers.

Central school district administration should be reduced. Too many positions exist without a clear enough purpose. Districts should reassign employees where possible and allow attrition to reduce administrative numbers over time.

Schools should be fully funded. That includes bus service, construction, the arts, heat, insurance, computers, special education, and other essential needs. Local levies should also be reduced.

Classrooms also need to be protected from chronic disruption. Students who repeatedly disrupt schools, skip class, or refuse to learn should be moved to late-afternoon or evening school at the same location. Full-time teachers who teach in these programs should receive a special stipend.

Teachers with large classes, lab courses, and heavy composition workloads should receive additional honorariums for that extra work.

Rather than creating a voucher-style program, districts should go one step beyond “choice schools” and create independent schools within the district. This approach would protect district funding and give families access to alternative educational options.

Insurance

Accidents where the driver isn’t at fault shouldn’t be used to raise that driver’s insurance rates.

The state should also prevent insurance companies from offering lower rates only when their competitors are kept off an approved vendor list. For example, a school district shouldn’t limit employee insurance options because one company offers discounted rates in exchange for reduced competition. Public employees and other consumers should have access to a fair and open marketplace.

Washington State Emergency Clause

Washington’s emergency clause should be reserved for genuine emergencies. It shouldn’t be used as a tool to block voter referendums or prevent public review of controversial legislation.

Tax Holidays

Washington should consider targeted tax holidays to help residents with major recurring expenses. These could include back-to-school tax holidays, gas tax holidays, or one larger annual tax holiday designed to give families direct relief.

Modernizing State Systems

Private companies provide fast, efficient service. A bank can notify a customer on a phone before an ATM even dispenses cash. Replacement debit cards can arrive within a couple of days. Costco can issue a membership card on the spot. State systems need to bring its state systems into the 21st century so they can operate with the same level of efficiency.

Real estate agents must renew their licenses every two years, but the state system still requires unnecessary password resets and outdated steps. When residents renew a driver’s license, they often receive a temporary paper license and must wait for the permanent license to arrive by mail. Washington should modernize these systems so residents and professionals can complete routine state transactions securely and without unnecessary delays.

Climate Commitment Act

The Climate Commitment Act should be repealed. Climate change is real, but Washington’s current approach is hurting residents without meeting the goals that were promised. Washington is only one part of a much larger global issue. The state can’t solve climate change on its own by making life more expensive for its residents.

A better approach would focus on incentives, innovation, and practical transportation reform. Washington should encourage individuals, private transportation companies, and municipal fleets to adopt cleaner technology. The state should also stay open to emerging technologies and new ideas that could have a much larger impact in the coming decades.

Water and Ecology

Washington should study whether it’s practical to move water from areas with too much water, including flood-prone areas, to areas suffering from drought. This could involve an intrastate water pipeline system with storage basins throughout the state. The concept would be similar to the interstate highway system. This idea needs review from engineers, environmental experts, tribal leaders, farmers, cities, and counties to determine whether such a system is affordable and environmentally responsible.

Lottery Winner Privacy

Washington should change public information laws so lottery winners aren’t required to have their names released through public records requests. There’s no clear public benefit to releasing a lottery winner’s name. Public exposure can create serious problems for winners, including harassment, fraud attempts, unwanted attention, and personal safety concerns. Lottery winners should have the right to privacy.

Publication of Names of the Accused

Washington should reconsider the automatic publication of the names of people who have been charged but not convicted. The public has a right to know what crimes are being charged and whether a public official or person in a position of trust is involved, but in many cases, the public doesn’t need the name of the accused before guilt has been established. Publishing names too early can damage reputations, affect employment, and create problems for people who are later found not guilty or whose charges are dismissed. The state should better balance public safety and the rights of the accused.

Land Acknowledgments

Washington should formally support tribes that seek state or federal recognition and help them move through that process. The state should also consider transferring selected government properties located on historic tribal lands to the appropriate tribes. In some cases, the government could lease those properties back from the tribes. That would turn symbolic recognition into meaningful action.

Large Ocean Shipbuilding

Washington should make large-scale shipbuilding a higher economic priority. The Pacific Northwest already has major shipbuilding companies, including Nichols Brothers and Vigor. With renewed federal attention and potential foreign investment, Washington should move quickly to support this industry because shipbuilding creates high-quality jobs, strengthens the state’s manufacturing base, and creates more long-term revenue for Washington. I have written letters of interest to Nichols Brothers and Vigor, two shipbuilders in Washington State, and to Hanwha Shipbuilding in Philadelphia and Newport News, Virginia.

Consumer Online Auto-Renewals

Washington should strengthen consumer protections for online service signups and auto-renewals. Companies shouldn’t be allowed to lure customers into free trials that automatically convert into paid subscriptions unless the cancellation process is simple and fair. In many cases, consumers shouldn’t have to provide a credit card just to access a free trial. Too many companies rely on people forgetting to cancel within a short window. That’s a strategy designed to take advantage of consumers.

Prison Reform

Washington needs meaningful prison reform. Prisoners should have better access to communication with the outside world, including support networks and reentry resources. Maintaining outside connections can help reduce isolation and improve the chances of successful reentry after release.

Correctional officers also need better compensation. Prison reform should include both humane treatment for prisoners and fair pay for the people responsible for maintaining safety inside correctional facilities.

Graffiti Grants

Washington should create graffiti removal grants for cities and counties, especially along state and interstate roads. These grants could also create job-training opportunities for people in temporary housing, tiny home communities, or county-supported programs. With the right structure, graffiti removal could become a path into steady work and community improvement.

Masks

Washington doesn’t need a mask mandate for law enforcement officers or ICE agents. Instead, officers and agents should be required to wear large identification numbers in plain sight.

The state shouldn’t create one standard for law enforcement and another for demonstrators. If the state requires masks to be removed by law enforcement, the same logic should apply to demonstrators and protesters.

Posting photos, names, and home addresses of law enforcement officers with the intent to intimidate or endanger them should be treated as a serious crime. RCW 4.24.792 should be strictly enforced, and the law should be strengthened where necessary.

Special warrants should be required when detaining suspects.

Flock Cameras

Flock cameras and similar surveillance systems raise privacy concerns, especially if federal agencies use the data to locate people at random. Under my proposed Washingtonship program, there would be less need to use surveillance tools for immigration enforcement because the state would have a better system for identifying who is living and working here.

At the same time, we need to be honest about the world we live in. People are already recorded by doorbell cameras, business cameras, traffic cameras, and private security systems every day. Privacy inside the home must remain protected, but public spaces are different.

The state should create clear limits on how surveillance data can be used but should still allow law enforcement to identify criminal activity and remove dangerous offenders from the streets.

State Income Tax

I would consider a state income tax only if it came with firm constitutional limits on sales taxes and property taxes. Washington residents shouldn’t be asked to accept a new tax unless there are clear protections against tax increases. Any income tax proposal must include real limits and A VOTE BY THE POPULIST. 

Endorsed by:  Rodney 'Star' Thornley