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Politics Northwest

The Seattle Times political team explores national, state and local politics.

May 19, 2009 at 12:36 PM

Gregoire vetoes local-only public art requirement

Gov. Chris Gregoire didn't like the section of the state construction budget which would have limited the state's public art spending to Washington artists. (I wrote about the controversial provision here.)

She vetoed the local-only provision when signing the construction budget bill on Friday, citing the possibility that other states would retaliate, cutting off opportunities for Washington artists.

"This restriction could have negative impacts on Washington artists who may be performing work on public works projects in other states," Gregoire wrote in her veto message.

Sen. Steve Hobbs, D-Lake Stevens, who sponsored the art requirement, said the veto goes against fiscal common sense in the current budget crisis.

"This veto establishes the public arts program as a sacred cow at a time when vital state services are being slashed and people are losing their jobs," Hobbs said in a statement on his Web site.

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Politics Northwest

Gregoire vetoes local-only public art requirement

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