Former Washington State Treasurer Jim McIntire has died

James McIntire, who served two terms as Washington state treasurer, died in August. He was 71.

The cause was an aggressive and rare form of prostate cancer, his wife, Christina Koons, told the Seattle Times.

An economics student and later professor at the University of Washington, McIntire’s first step into government service was as a fiscal policy advisor to Gov. Booth Gardner.

He was elected to the state legislature in 1998, where he began building his reputation as a fiscally sensible Democrat, focusing, according to the Times, on fiscal reforms and sponsoring bills to reinstate an estate tax, increase tobacco and alcohol taxes, and tax internet sales. 

He also championed a constitutional “rainy-day” fund.

McIntire was elected treasurer in 2008, stepping into a statewide banking crisis stemming from the global financial crisis, and leading an effort to rewrite Washington’s public banking statutes to protect public funds.

In 2009, his office sold the state government’s first negotiated bond deal in more than a decade: a taxable Build America Bond sale. Under McIntire, the treasurer’s office also structured a tax-exempt bond deal to include a negotiated component designed to attract retail investors, though most of the bond deals his office sold during his two terms remained competitive auctions.

As treasurer, McIntire spearheaded efforts that led to a constitutional amendment that will bring the state’s debt limit to 8% from 9% over time.

“I absolutely love politics,” McIntire said in an interview earlier this year with the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, which honored him with the Neil Staebler Distinguished Service Award.

“Running for office got my juices up like nothing else. I enjoyed getting out there and engaging with people. And once I was in office, I really loved making things work, and being part of the here’s-how-you-do-it side of things.”

McIntire served as president of the National Association of State Treasurers, where he led initiatives to expand financial literacy and adopted a nationwide code of ethics, the current state treasurer, Mike Pellicciotti, said in a statement commemorating McIntire’s passing.

“Jim was a public servant in every measure of the word and an example for all those aspiring to lead when the times we live in demand integrity, determination, and humility,” Pellicciotti said. “He will be sorely missed.”

McInitire died at his home in Seattle on Aug. 16. In addition to his wife, McIntire is survived by two brothers, a sister, children Sarah, Seth and Matt, stepsons Nick and Carson and six grandchildren.

“In his memory, Jim urges you to support candidates for public office who will uphold democracy and seek the common good,” his obituary concluded.