Successful “mobile office” in Hillyard
Together with Rep. Timm Ormsby and Sen. Andy Billig, I hosted an informal mobile office event last week at Give It A Shot Espresso & Cafe in Hillyard. A big thank you to all who dropped by for some one-on-one dialogue with us. Some of the issues constituents wanted to talk about include the need for more low-income senior housing in our community, the opioid crisis, health care as a right, and concern about the legislature not passing a capital budget, something which is hurting projects slated for our community.
If you couldn’t make the event, we plan to hold a traditional town hall-style meeting early next year in Spokane, as well as a live telephone town hall shortly after the 2018 legislative session begins. I’ll keep you posted on dates, times and location for those events.
Tragedy at Freeman High School
Our entire community continues to reel from the tragic shooting at Freeman High School last week. A horrific event like this touches every one of us in some way. It is a parent’s worst nightmare. My seatmates and I released a joint statement shortly after we heard the terrible news, and reached out to Freeman Superintendent Randy Russell with our deepest condolences and offers of support.
It has been heartening to see how people here and across the state and nation have rallied behind the victims, their families, and the entire school community. Together, we are #Freemanstrong.
KREM-TV highlights film tax incentive’s economic boost
This session, I pushed hard for an extension of the Motion Picture Competitiveness Program, also known as the film tax incentive. This program supports hundreds of direct and indirect jobs right here in Spokane, like those tied to the TV series Z-Nation. During final budget negotiations, the program was extended for another ten years – a big win for Spokane. KREM-TV recently did a story on the extension of the film tax incentive and why it’s critical for Z-Nation. You might recognize one of the zombies pictured in the accompanying article.
Did you receive my print newsletter?
My joint 2017 newsletter with Rep. Ormsby and Sen. Billig was mailed to district households earlier this month. If you haven’t received it, click here for an electronic copy (PDF).
Best Regards,
