VIDEO | Rep. Joshua Penner: Sound Transit is an unaccountable behemoth (Opposition to Senate Bill 6309)
Rep. Joshua Penner, R-Orting, delivers a sharp dissent on the House floor against Senate Bill 6309, which grants expanded municipal permitting tools to regional transit authorities. Penner argues the bill represents government for the government and by the government rather than serving the people. He highlights that the Sound Transit board is unelected and remains unresponsive to the taxpayers who fund the district.
Penner points out the significant financial burden on his constituents in the 31st District, who often pay more in property taxes, sales taxes, and car tabs to Sound Transit than they do to their own cities or school districts. Despite these high costs, he notes that promised rail expansions are not projected until 2045, a goal he believes the agency is unlikely to meet given its current financial state. He concludes by stating that an agency billions of dollars upside down should not be empowered to write its own rules.
 - https://joshuapenner.houserepublicans.wa.gov/2026/03/06/video-rep-joshua-penner-sound-transit-is-an-unaccountable-behemoth-opposition-to-senate-bill-6309/){kind=link}