Page 139 - PGM Compendium

ended in January 1973, Governor Evans appointed him to the Utilities and Transportation Commission.
After decades of maintaining their farm in Eastern Washington, Huntley and his wife moved west of the
Cascades to Olympia -- a move he said he later regretted. But he diligently focused on his new job, which
involved setting rates and regulating the services and practices of privately-owned utility and
transportation companies in the state. Governor Dixy Lee Ray kept him on as Commissioner for about
four months after his term expired in January 1979, but declined to appoint him to another full term.

Huntley also served on the state Toll Bridge Authority in the mid-1960s, and on the National Highway
Transportation Safety Advisory Commission and the National Association of Regulatory Utility
Commissioners in the 1970s.

Most Worshipful Brother Elmer Carl “Bud” Huntley died in his home in Olympia on May 13, 1994. Glenn
Terrell, President Emeritus of Washington State University shared these words in tribute to our Most
Worshipful Brother ~

“If all lawmakers in the United States were as good as Senator Elmer Huntley, our country would be a
much better place for everyone.

There would be no laws passed out of anger or revenge; no heated, angry, nonproductive argument, no
posturing or grandstanding. All legislators would have voted for those things they thought were in the best
interest of the state. No blind partisanship would have prevailed. There would have been superb
cooperation between the two parties throughout the legislative session, especially when legislation was
being decided in conference. Legislative sessions would have ended on time. Confidence in legislative
bodies would have soared instead of diminished. The initiative process would have been used as our
forefathers intended: only in times of strong dissatisfaction with the performance of our elected officials.

Yes, if all lawmakers had Elmer Huntley’s temperament, dedication, integrity and patience, our state and
nation would be free of many of the problems we have today.”

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