Candidates vying for the 30th Legislative District’s state House seats discussed how they would fully fund education, shared thoughts on the $54 billion Sound Transit 3 ballot measure, and suggested ideas on how they would bring jobs to Federal Way during a Greater Federal Way Chamber of Commerce luncheon on Wednesday.

Rep. Linda Kochmar and Mike Pellicciotti are running for Position 1. Rep. Teri Hickel and Kristine Reeves are running for Position 2.

Sound Transit 3 ballot measure

• Hickel said she had “great concerns” about ST3, beginning with its $54 billion cost. She said Sound Transit has done a poor job entrusting the public and putting forth respectable practices.

• Reeves said she’s a Federal Way citizen who relies on public transportation every day and knows many working families who also rely on it. Reeves said she’s watched routes get cut at a tremendous rate but is glad it is a vote left to the people. She said her family, without a doubt, will vote in full support of ST3. She added that, given her experience in economic development, she knows mass transit options are going to be a necessity in the coming years.

• Kochmar reminded the community that it’s “probably going to cost” between $750 and $2,500 a year for the average homeowner and said she believes the package is too expensive. She also noted she doesn’t trust Sound Transit, which never delivered on the promise to construct light rail to South 272nd Street that was part of the voter-approved Sound Transit 2 ballot measure.

“Do I trust them? No,” Kochmar said. “Do I think $54 billion is way too much? I think they should go back to the drawing board and look at it again.”

• Pellicciotti: Pelliciotti said he “guess[es]” he’ll vote for ST3 in the hope that construction is complete by 2023. But he pointed out that he and the community are concerned about high property tax rates. To combat this, he supports putting a state cap on property taxes that would limit the amount of taxes people pay. Pellicciotti acknowledged that the idea was controversial but said it was something worth noting. However, he ultimately recognizes the region needs to be developed in a way that the “Millennials and other young professionals want to move here.”

“They’re not going to be driving two hours to Seattle for jobs,” he said.

Education revenue

• Hickel said the current funding system doesn’t work, noting that education funding for teachers is “stuck in 1981.” She said the system for that year is still in place, creating “major problems.” She said Federal Way teachers are paid $10,000 less per year than teachers in the Auburn school district due to the 1981 funding system. The solution to the gap is to “shift the system.” Hickel said she wants school districts to be as equal as possible by having a levy swap – taking money from local levies and putting them into a statewide education fund. Hickel said it’s the only way the Federal Way district “will have a chance.”

• Reeves said education needs to be adequately funded, but said there cannot be a sole focus on education because other family-based programs like Medicaid and W.I.C. suffer. All areas of need should be funded equally but should start with education. She said funds must drive education and the economy simultaneously. As Reeves put it, “There’s no one-size-fits-all solution.”

• Kochmar: She believes fully funding education will not be solved with one type of funding, however, she does support the levy swap.

“The levy swap will bring more money for the Federal Way school district so that our … property taxes will go down and we will have more money for our schools and more money for our teachers and salaries,” Kochmar said after noting Gov. Jay Inslee’s budget for the last four years has included $5.4 billion in education funding, which comes out to $13,000 per student.

• Pellicciotti: Pointing out the fact that both he and Kochmar are both willing to consider capital gains and don’t support income tax, Pellicciotti said he differs from her in that he believes a levy swap will take money from local schools and send them to Olympia “to pay for the state’s burden to pay for education.”

“I’m concerned with that,” he said. “That’s the kind of thing that would lead to increased property taxes here because once that money’s moved to Olympia, then it really creates a need for, or at least a desire, for the increase of property taxes here which I think would cause a lot of concerns.”

Economic development

• Hickel drew on her 12 years’ experience working with the Federal Way Chamber and said it’s important to attract diverse jobs to the city. She said the only way that gets accomplished is with all major players in the city working together to support the business community. Once that goal is achieved, Hickel said it’s important to formulate a plan to keep businesses in the city for the long term.

• Reeves started by citing her experience helping guide 1,900 businesses, saying it’s important to focus on elements that matter to business. She said what businesses want is to build in a place that is going to yield rewards for development. For a state representative, it shouldn’t always be about the big corporations like Microsoft or Amazon; small local business deserves the same amount of attention and the same opportunity.

• Kochmar said she understands what it takes for businesses to succeed and has brought money into the 30th District for prevailing-wage jobs through the passage of the transportation revenue package. The package, she says, will bring 16 years’ worth of good-paying jobs to the community.

“The flagger on the side of the road doesn’t make minimum wage, doesn’t make a living wage, he makes prevailing wage,” she said. “That is $38 an hour after five years of experience. A carpenter makes $55 an hour.”

• Pellicciotti said there needs to be a discussion on how the community is going to get professionals to move to the area, which is facing public safety and economic challenges. He said they have to be smart over the next five, 10 and 15 years during this transition.

“I really am optimistic that if we maintain, commit on the issues of fully funding education… as well as making sure we’re doing what we need to do to develop our transportation improvements and other mechanisms, we can really bring about that change and forward vision,” he said.

Lightning round

Candidates finished the debate by responding yes or no to “lighting round” questions. All of the candidates agreed on every questions except one, which asked if they support the fines and fees the state Supreme Court imposed on the Legislature in the McCleary contempt ruling – Hickel and Kochmar said no while Pellicciotti and Reeves said yes. Other questions asked if they agreed on taxes for climate change, supporting an increase to minimum wage, and if women deserved equal pay.

Opening/Closing statements

• Reeves said growing up as a daughter of a single mother who suffered from addiction problems, she learned early about the “social safety net.” She credited going through the foster care system and relying on welfare with helping her gain the opportunity to put herself through college before coming to Federal Way. Reeves, who has kids of her own, said she felt education wasn’t being properly funded: With her children about to begin school, she wants them to have as many opportunities to succeed as possible. She said she got into the race to help figure out how to fully fund education for her kids and for every child in the school district. But she said other areas of concern, like transportation and business retention, are important. Reeves said she’s also passionate about helping military veterans transition from service to civilian life.

“Ultimately, family is the center of our community, and that’s what I’m committed to making sure we fight for as your state-elected official.”

• Hickel said she and her husband, Tim, moved to Federal Way 27 years ago and opened a small law practice. They started a family, and Hickel spent 20 years involved in the school district. She said she worked to bring back the levies and bonds the district previously lost, including working to pass the bond that helped build Todd Beamer High School. She went on to serve as the Executive Director of Advancing Leadership for 15 years and said a strong business community cannot work without a strong school system. Hickel said the state representative position requires action and someone that understands the community. She said education is important and it’s the voters who have to fight for it. All of the other issues discussed, she said, can’t happen without a strong education.

Hickel said what sets her apart is that she’s taken action toward her beliefs by volunteering for the school district. She said the levy swap will help make education better, and through that, transportation will improve and the city will get and keep more business.

“I’m down there in Olympia, I know what we need. I’m going to fight for us, and if you know me, you know that actions speak louder than words. We’re complex here, we’re easily overlooked. We need people who have been here a long time who will stand up for us. I will do that for you for as long as I can.”

• Kochmar’s last four years in Olympia come after spending 18 years on the Federal Way City Council, she said, and noted she helped build Federal Way City Hall, which is paid for, as well as the Federal Way Community Center. Having “risen up” since she was widowed with three children while working a minimum wage job, Kochmar said her goal is to bring money back from Olympia to the community, which she’s already done to the tune of $10 million. She also wants to bring a teen homeless center to the Federal Way area.

“Our children are couch-surfing,” she said. “Our children can’t get jobs because the minimum wage initiative and the wage initiative… didn’t have a starter wage. Our children are selling drugs, they’re selling guns. It’s terrible.

“I want to make our community a place that we can be proud of and a place we can be proud to call our home.”

• Pellicciotti said he’s worked for the last 10 years as a prosecutor for the King County Prosecutor’s Office, addressing violent and economic crimes in the community, and he thinks there needs to be more done. He applauded local government for working on public safety issues but said he thinks more can be done at the state level. Pellicciotti said he’s also worked for the Attorney General on issues related to fraud and Medicaid, leading prosecution that led to the first criminal mistreatment conviction. Pellicciotti was also a U.S. Fulbright Scholar who worked on economic development issues, which he says is ultimately one of the bigger challenges.

Reporters Raechel Dawson and Jerod Young contributed to this report.