First Term, 1933-1936
Governor Martin’s first term was wrought with controversy stemming from both his political appointments and his relief programs. Martin alienated hard-core Democrats of the state with the appointment of a number of Republicans to high state offices, many of whom were holdovers from the previous administration of Governor Roland Hartley. In justifying his appointment policy, Martin remarked: "I did not get all of my majority from Democrats and I think both parties should be represented." (Spokesman Review, April 19, 1933 p. 3) Martin recognized the need to set aside partisan politics to effectively combat the depression.
When Martin took office in January, 1933, the Great Depression was at its height. In his first inaugural message, Governor Martin acknowledged the severity of the economic crisis. But he went on to foreshadow Roosevelt’s message of "nothing to fear but fear itself." Martin recounted the natural and human resources of the state and concluded that "surely, with such resources at hand, we need only the spirit to seek, the determination to build, the genius to create, and the readiness to cooperate toward a common development." He believed it was the primary duty of government to promote to common good; state government must promote constructive, although perhaps unpopular programs, and the people must accept the necessary sacrifices. Martin advocated abandonment of traditional approaches to problem-solving when those approaches proved inadequate. His call for state government action anticipated a similar call on the national level by President Roosevelt.
Those first few months in office were a time of intense activity. Martin proposed increased economy of government through the elimination of waste and the reduction of state employees’ salaries; Martin later proposed and the Legislature endorsed a salary reduction of from 10 to 25 percent of all state employees. Martin planned to shift the relief burden from the nearly bankrupt county and local agencies to the state government. He recommended a $10,000,000 bond issue which was to be used to fund employment on minor public works projects. The Legislature approved this bond issue and relief measures were soon forthcoming. He then proposed a complete restructuring of the tax system. In the November 1932 election, the people of the state had affirmed a 40-mill limit on property taxes. This ceiling on the property tax made new sources on tax revenue necessary. Martin proposed a sales tax as a short term, stop-gap measure; he believed that this sales tax would ultimately be replaced by a form of business and occupation tax. The business and occupation tax was enacted during the twenty-third legislative session, but was declared unconstitutional by the State Supreme Court in September, 1933, after a long and bitter struggle. Washington was one forward a contributory system of old-age insurance. Washington was one of the firsts of the northwestern states to enter the field of old-age insurance when the Legislature passed the social security measure in February, 1933. Although the 1933 Legislature failed to provide adequate funding for the pension program, it did establish a needed precedent. In 1935, the Legislature provided additional funds for the program.
Governor Martin advocated a number of urgent projects in his first inaugural address. He proposed restructuring of the state banking laws to prevent future closures. Education was a particularly important part of the Governor’s program. He proposed that the state assume 50 percent of the funding burden of the public school system to insure the continued quality and equality of education. He recommended an "open door" policy at the university level for all Washington high school graduates to promote equality of opportunity for higher education. With respect to mortgage debts, Martin believed that some modification of the foreclosure procedure should be enacted to provide a "breathing spell" for those farmers and homeowners threatened with the loss of their property. (Martin, Clarence D. First Inaugural Message, 1933. Olympia, Washington: Jay Tomas Printer, 1933)
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