OLYMPIA -- In Washington state, you've got more consumer-protection rights when you buy a $25 toaster than you do when buying a $500,000 home, says a former high-stakes trial lawyer who now heads the Senate consumer protection committee.

Sen. Brian Weinstein, D-Mercer Island, wants to change that, but his "Homeowner Bill of Rights" proposals are facing tough opposition from builders as well as fellow Democrats.

"These bills are at the top of our agenda right now -- we want them dead," said Erin Shannon, spokeswoman for the Building Industry Association of Washington.

The builders deride the plan as a bonanza for lawyers, not protection for home buyers -- one that will put legitimate contractors out of business or send them out of state.

Weinstein said some contractors should be shut down. He said he has been inundated with stories from such homeowners as Sue Hayes of Magnolia, who have found out the hard way that contractors don't always have to stand behind their workmanship.

Like many Seattleites, Hayes made the largest single investment in her life when she bought her $325,000 home.

That was 4 1/2 years ago.

Today she's in the final stages of selling the house, which is so water-damaged that the buyer plans to level it.

"I'm basically selling a piece of land," Hayes said.

The damage was caused by faulty construction and inappropriate materials -- the builder forgot to put flashing around the windows and used siding that soaked up moisture. She hired two home inspectors, who failed to spot the problem.

But Hayes has little chance to recover the $185,000 it would have cost to repair the rot or the money she won't make in appreciation despite buying and selling in one of the nation's hottest housing markets.

In Washington, courts have ruled that you can't sue for negligent home construction, Weinstein said.

"Unlike many other states, there is no legally recognized claim in Washington for a consumer of a home to get compensated for negligent, improper or defective construction," he said.

Weinstein's bill (Senate Bill 5550) would provide a statutory warranty from the builder for new homes.

It would require that:

 

• For two years, the home is free from defects in materials and workmanship.

   

   

• For three years, the home is free from defects in electrical, plumbing, heating, cooling and ventilating systems.

   

   

• For five years, the home is free from defects resulting from water penetration.

   

   

• For 10 years, the home is free from structural defects.

   

Builders say the measure would drive up the cost of housing and increase the number of frivolous lawsuits.

Shannon, the spokeswoman for the building industry association, said the legislation would undo work the Legislature did four years ago to bring liability insurance carriers back into Washington.

She said the state came up with common-sense solutions that help keep builders in business and provide protections for consumers, such as requiring a home buyer to ask the contractor to fix a problem before pursuing litigation.

"We've actually been working with (the state Department of Labor and Industries) to come down harder on unregistered contractors," she said. "We are not opposed to consumer protection, but the solution is not to put every builder out of business, it's to punish the bad ones."

Weinstein said the explanation doesn't hold up.

"It's not just a few bad apples," he said. "House inspectors testified in my committee that there are billions of dollars in Washington lost to negligent construction.

Private building inspector Mark Jobe told Weinstein's committee that his firm has looked at $2 billion worth of property in Washington that had systemic problems with rot.

The Consumer Protection and Housing Committee hearings have been contentious.

After builders said they would be forced out of the state, Sen. Ken Jacobsen, D-Seattle, said he was tired of hearing so much rhetoric.

"I don't believe that BS. They haven't left California, and they've got stricter standards than we do," he said. "All I'm thinking is there are a lot of problems out there. There ought to be some redress for shoddy construction."

Though the BIAW is not an ally of the Democratic Party and often spends millions opposing Democratic candidates, the lobbying group seems to have considerable sway on the issue.

In the Senate, Weinstein is having trouble moving the bill out of his own committee. And if he does, it will face serious resistance in the House.

Rep. Judy Clibborn, D-Mercer Island, chairwoman of the Transportation Committee, has vowed to stop the bill in its current form.

"In its present configuration I think it is dangerous to the building industry, and if you start shutting down the building industry, you start shutting down revenue that provides for health care, education and human services," she said. "We just want to be careful."

Though Clibborn's husband is a developer, she says the bill would not affect him. His occupation is not her reason for opposing the bill, she said.

Likewise, Weinstein said he is no longer a practicing trial lawyer and is proposing the bill purely to help homeowners, not attorneys.