Coal & Oil Train Town Hall in Mukilteo
Mukilteo Mayor Jennifer Gregerson and I are hosting a Public Safety Town Hall on Wednesday, May 27th with the Snohomish County Train Watch organization from 7:00 – 8:00 p.m. at the Mukilteo City Hall. This event is an opportunity for us to discuss what possible solutions can be taken to ensure that our communities are safe from the dangers of an oil or coal train spill. The Washington State Legislature passed House Bill 1449, Concerning Oil Transportation Safety, into law this session, but there is more work that needs to be done. These trains will only increase in number and the safety and environmental concerns will continue to grow. More crude oil was spilled in train accidents in 2013 than in the previous 37 years combined. And since just mid-February of this year, there has been a rash of oil train derailments, including one in West Virginia which forced hundreds of families out of their homes, sparked massive fires and leaked oil into a nearby river. We cannot let an incident like this happen in Puget Sound. I hope to see you at the town hall on the 27th so we can work towards a cleaner and safer Washington.
Home Care Workers Deserve to Retire
Here in the 21st District and across the state, our home health care workers play an integral role in the lives of our seniors and our families. The hardworking people who take care of many of the most vulnerable in our communities should be able to put something away for their retirement. I stand with Governor Inslee and the House budget that honors the negotiated contract with care workers that offers a modest retirement benefit to our state paid home care workers. Unfortunately, the Senate Republicans’ budget specifically removes the retirement provision. Taking away the ability to have a secure retirement from those who look after our elderly is a cruel irony. As our budget negotiations continue, I call on the Senate to treat care workers with the respect they deserve.
In the News
KING5 recently ran a story about gaps in septic tank inspections around Washington and the tragic consequences that can result from the neglect. In the last few months alone, a two-year-old boy lost his life and a 10-year-old girl was hurt due to accidents with unmonitored tanks. I was interviewed in the segment about House Bill 1715, which I sponsored, that sought to provide local health departments with adequate funding to ensure inspections. While it did not pass this session, I will continue working on it next session so we can prevent incidents like this from ever happening again. Check out the full story here.
Telephone Town Hall
While the regular 2015 Legislative Session wrapped up at the end of April, we are still in special session. What does this mean? The special session is focused on reaching a compromise between our House and Senate proposals for the 2015-2017 budgets. While both chambers have released our proposals, there are substantial differences between the two. Senate Republicans have relied on one-time transfers and gimmicks, and have either cut funding or underfunded critical safety net services like food aid for low-income families, as you can read in The Olympian here. Want to find out more about the bills that the legislature recently passed or do you have questions about what is in the operating budget? I will be having a telephone town hall with Representative Lillian Ortiz-Self on Tuesday, May 26th where we will be taking your questions. When: 6:00 – 7:00 PM, Tuesday, May 26th To call in, dial the toll-free line 877-229-8493, followed by the ID code 18646, any time from 6:00 – 7:00 p.m. on the 26th. If you have any questions about the event, please email me at strom.peterson@leg.wa.gov.