WASHINGTON STATE

Washington State House Democrats

HOUSE DEMOCRATS

“Lock them up, put them in a safe”

A very brave woman, Dana Widrig, inspired me to introduce my first bill last week. She was brutally attacked in her apartment when a maintenance worker gained access to the landlord’s open lockbox and substitute keys. Since this tragedy took place in 2009, Dana has fought to raise the legal standards for protection of substitute keys, and you can read more about her hard work and this legislation in our interviews with King 5.

This is both a public safety and a privacy issue, and since our 36th district contains thousands of apartments, we must advocate for safely securing these substitute keys. House Bill 1647 requires landlords to safely maintain their substitute keys and has received a great deal of bipartisan support. We are hopeful that we can make progress this session to prevent future tragedies from taking place and to ensure that our neighbors and families remain safe in their apartments.