Dear neighbors,
A key part of my job is keeping you informed–and hearing directly from you.
This newsletter is about what’s happening in Olympia as the first week of session began, with an update on legislation I’ve written, and information on how you can participate in your democracy.
While we hoped to have more in-person events during the 2022 session, the omicron variant has delayed those plans. As you can see from this photo, I’m equipped for emergencies like this and have set up a home office to do my duties remotely when needed.
Participating in your democracy
There are new ways that you can get informed and involved during the 2022 session of the Legislature.
- Learn—The whole legislative process, from start to finish, is explained at leg.wa.gov/legislature/Pages/Overview.aspx
- Watch—Go to TVW.org for broadcasts of debates, votes, committee meetings, and other events in the House and Senate. There’s also an extensive archive of past events, if you couldn’t watch it live.
- Research—To look up legislation by lawmaker or topic, visit app.leg.wa.gov/billinfo/
- Testify—The 2021 Legislative Session proved that remote testimony is a great way for everyone to have a chance to share their voice. The remote committee testimony system will continue to be in use for all testimony for all bills.
A more comprehensive guide is available from the non-partisan legislative website available here.
Reforms to move our state forward
Most bills don’t make it to the governor’s desk to get signed into law. In fact, four out of five bills typically die.
I worked hard last session to get five bills passed in the House and Senate and signed by the governor.
This session, I’ve written four bills to help make progress on jobs, education, and protecting our democracy.
- House Bill 1958 is about rural jobs, with grants to help create shovel-ready sites for projects;
- House Bill 1846 would create tax incentives for more data centers here in Washington state;
- House Bill 1833 improves how our schools handle electronic information regarding school lunches; and
- House Bill 1618 protects our democracy by making election offices weapon-free, just as our courtrooms and schools are safeguarded.
I’ll keep you updated about these bills and others important to all of our families here in the 44th District.
Keep in touch
I hope you found this quick update informative and useful.
If you have comments, questions, or ideas, please get in touch with my office. I hope to hear from you soon!
