State Investment Trust forum set for Sept. 27 in Seattle

SEATTLE — Would the proposal for a State Investment Trust (state bank) be beneficial to the people of Washington?

That’s the question that will be discussed at a special forum on Thursday, Sept. 27 from 1:30 to 3 p.m. at the Filipino Community Center, 5740 Martin Luther King Jr. Way S. in Seattle. Open to the public, this free event is sponsored by Puget Sound Advocates for Retirement Action and co-sponsored by the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO and Machinists District Lodge 751. (Download the event flier.)

This forum will feature State Treasurer Jim McIntire, state Rep. Bob Hasegawa (D-Seattle), and community banker Darel Grothaus discussing the potential benefits and risks of creating a State Investment Trust.

In the last two legislative sessions, hearings have been held on legislation sponsored by Rep. Hasegawa to create a Washington State Investment Trust. Modeled after a successful state-run institution in North Dakota, the idea is for the state’s money to be at its own disposal, instead of parked at Bank of America or some other commercial bank.

The Center for State Innovation, a nonpartisan think tank, has estimated that this State Investment Trust would increase small-business lending in our state by up to 8.2%, and create up to 10,700 jobs as a result.

“Why don’t we create our own institution, keep that money in our state and we make money off our money that we can then reinvest back into our community?” Hasegawa asked.

Please join the discussion on that very question Sept. 27. For more information, visit www.psara.org or call 206-448-9646.