Senate committee OKs arena proposal

OLYMPIA — Legislation that would authorize taxpayer funding of a proposed $500 million Sonics arena in Renton cleared a key legislative committee Friday.

But it's unclear whether the proposal will advance any further before the Legislature's scheduled adjournment April 22.

Senate Bill 5986, which would allow King County to devote $300 million in local taxes to pay for the arena, passed the Senate Ways and Means Committee after a brief debate Friday morning.

Gov. Christine Gregoire said she is willing to convene closed-door negotiations to move the arena bill forward if top House or Senate leaders request it. As of Friday afternoon, no meeting with team officials and lawmakers had been scheduled, and Gregoire said House leaders were telling her "they're not getting any significant push" to pass the Sonics plan.

Sen. Margarita Prentice, D-Renton, who chairs the Ways and Means Committee, pressed for Friday's vote despite uncertainty over the legislation's prospects. After the vote, Prentice gave the arena plan a "78 percent" chance of passing the Legislature.

"I think the votes are there if we could have a vote," said Alex Pietsch, economic-development director for Renton.

But the bill faces significant opposition in the state House, where Speaker Frank Chopp, D-Seattle, has repeatedly criticized the arena proposal.

Friday's Ways and Means vote, while a positive step for the Sonics arena, was not a resounding endorsement.

Some legislators who voted for the proposal were not particularly enthusiastic. Some said they were voting "yes" because they trusted Prentice to amend the bill later.

Sen. Pam Roach, R-Auburn, said she wasn't sure she'd back the arena plan if it comes up for a full Senate vote. But she voted in favor of passing it out of the committee because she liked the notion of a major project outside of Seattle.

"Everything is so Seattle-centric," Roach said. "If you're Auburn, particularly, you just get a little tired of that ... all the benefits going to the city of Seattle all the time."

The most vehement opposition Friday came from Sen. Rodney Tom, D-Medina, who called the arena bill an "insane" giveaway to wealthy team owners and players.

"I cannot see how we as a Legislature can subsidize Ray Allen for $16 million a year when we cannot pay a starting wage for a teacher of $31,000," Tom said.

He also began to veer into an attack on the conservative political leanings of Clay Bennett and several other Oklahoma City businessmen who purchased the Sonics and Storm last summer.

"Whenever you're in a partnership, you better know who you're playing with," Tom said.

But Prentice cut Tom off. "I really think we should avoid that kind of rhetoric," she said.

After the committee vote, Tom said he was upset that lawmakers were considering a deal with owners who have fiercely opposed gay rights and union causes in Oklahoma.

He pointed in particular to Bennett's in-laws, the Gaylord family, who own the state's biggest paper, The Oklahoman, and have used it to support conservative Republican causes.

Two of Bennett's partners in the ownership group, Aubrey McClendon and Tom Ward, were among the top donors to a national group opposing gay marriage.

Sonics spokesman Jim Kneeland called such criticisms "character assassination." He noted that Bennett has agreed to use union labor on the Sonics arena. And he said the Sonics and Storm offer domestic-partnership benefits to their employees.

"Oklahoma is different than Washington, and Clay Bennett is sensitive to that," Kneeland said.

The Washington State Labor Council has endorsed the Sonics arena proposal. But one politically active union, Service Employees International Union (SEIU), has campaigned against it.

Although the arena legislation has been tweaked in recent days in an effort to make it more palatable to lawmakers, it still leaves some major questions unanswered.

The bill does not spell out how much money Bennett's ownership group would contribute to the arena. That's a marked contrast with bills that funded the Mariners and Seahawks stadiums. The Mariners bill required owners to contribute $45 million, and the Seahawks bill required a $100 million owner contribution.

Both teams also had to pay for cost overruns. Bennett has said his ownership group does not want to be responsible for overruns on the Renton arena.

The Sonics bill does not require a public vote. However, a majority of the Metropolitan King County Council, which also would have to approve the arena, has said it will insist on a public vote.

The public money for the Sonics arena would come from taxes on hotels, restaurants and car rentals in King County. Those taxes would raise an estimated $278 million for the arena, but the bill would allow that to go as high as $300 million if tax collections come in higher than expected. The money would come from bonds that would be paid back over 25 years.

In addition, the arena legislation would tap a portion of state sales taxes in King County for arts organizations and future maintenance or upgrades to Safeco and Qwest fields. The sales tax would raise an estimated $227 million for those purposes.

None of the taxes is new. All are currently being used to pay off the debt from Safeco and Qwest fields and the demolished Kingdome.

The city of Renton also is being asked to make a contribution, which Bennett has suggested could be as much as $100 million. But city officials say they have not made any commitments.

Arena backers say many of the missing details in the financing plan would be worked out in lease negotiations with King County.

Kneeland said Friday's vote "gets us in position" to start serious talks. He said the team is willing to negotiate further changes to the funding package to win approval.

"It's not going to pass as written," he said.

Jim Brunner: 206-515-5628 or jbrunner@seattletimes.com