WASHINGTON EQUITY NOW! FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

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WENA is the statewide coalition of business, labor, civil rights, religious, LGBTQIA +, BIPOC seniors, veterans, disabled leaders and community based organizations collectively representing over 1 million citizens who are advocating for the elimination of systemic racism and sexism in Washington state’s laws and public policies. 

WENA’S mission and purpose is to mobilize public education and support for Governor Inslee to immediately sign an Executive Order rescinding Governor’s Directive 98-01 and replacing it with Affirmative Equity policies consistent with Initiative 200 (I-200) as passed by the voters in 1998 and interpreted by the Washington State Supreme Court and the Washington State Attorney General. 

I-200 (now codified as RCW 49.60.400) is the statewide initiative passed by Washington voters in 1998 which prohibits Affirmative Action programs that allow…” a lesser qualified candidate to be selected over a more qualified candidate for a public job, public contract or a seat in a public college or university, based on race or gender.”  

NO. The EQUITY NOW! campaign is NOT seeking a repeal of I-200. The EQUITY NOW! campaign is asking Governor Inslee to sign an Executive Order to simply rescind Governor’s Directive 98-01 and restore all Diversity, Equity & Inclusion and Affirmative Action policies which do not allow a lesser qualified candidate to be selected over a more qualified candidate for a public job, public contract or a seat in a public college or university, solely based on race or gender. 

A Governor’s Executive Order is a formal written public order issued by the Governor to the public and cabinet agencies statewide requiring certain actions which may have the force and effect of a law.

A Governor’s Directive is an internal document Governors use to give written instructions  directly to their cabinet and sub-cabinet state officials, which communicate specific administrative actions the Governor wants the agencies to execute.

Governor’s Directive 98-01 (GD 98-01) was an internal memorandum issued December 3, 1998 containing detailed written instructions on how Initiative 200 was to be interpreted and implemented throughout state government, which consists of nearly 200 state agencies, boards, commissions, colleges and universities.

NO. GD 98-01’s language drastically differed from I-200. Instead of staying within I-200’s stated intent of simply prohibiting “lesser qualified candidates from being selected over more qualified candidates based on race or gender for a public job, contract or a seat in a public college”, GD 98-01 directed all Washington state agencies to immediately cease all Affirmative Action programs which used race or gender as factors for selecting candidates for public employment, public contracting and public college admissions, unless the programs were limited to outreach and recruitment. 

YES. In 2003, the Washington State Supreme Court in Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District No.1, ruled that I-200 (RCW 49.60.400) only prohibited the state’s use of race or gender to select a less qualified applicant over a more qualified applicant. Furthermore in 2017, Washington Attorney General (AG) Robert Ferguson issued Attorney General Opinion 2017, No. 2 which concluded that I-200 allows Affirmative Action programs as long as neither race nor gender are used to select a less qualified contractor over a more qualified contractor.  

YES. In 2003, the Washington State Supreme Court in Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District No.1, ruled that I-200 (RCW 49.60.400) only prohibited the state’s use of race or gender to select a less qualified applicant over a more qualified applicant. Furthermore in 2017, Washington Attorney General (AG) Robert Ferguson issued Attorney General Opinion 2017, No. 2 which concluded that I-200 allows Affirmative Action programs as long as neither race nor gender are used to select a less qualified contractor over a more qualified contractor.  

Most of the state’s Affirmative Action programs were dismantled causing 1) a nearly $4 billion dollar loss in job-generating public contracting opportunities for small, minority and women owned businesses; 2) a reduction of BIPOC citizens in public jobs; 3)a dramatic decline in BIPOC students enrolled in our state colleges and universities. 

The Governor is the head of the Executive Branch, which is the only branch of government authorized to rescind a Governor’s Directive. An Executive Order goes into effect IMMEDIATELY when the Governor signs the Order. No Debate…No Detours…No Delays!