Dear Neighbors,

The 2014 Legislative Session started last week, and included a rare first-day vote, Governor Inslee’s first State of the State address, and several public rallies. It looks like it’s going to be a jam-packed 60 days!

Our state’s legislative cycle is two years long. In an odd-numbered year, the regular session is 105 days; in an even-numbered year, such as this year, it is 60 days.  The short session focus is on the supplemental budget and a smaller number of policy bills.  Education funding remains in the forefront.

Issues I will be focusing on for our district

 

My bills this session include:

• HB 2171 – Strengthening economic protections for veterans and military personnel.
• HB 2315 – Concerning suicide prevention.
• HB 2164 – Requires most juveniles adjudicated of unlawful possession of a firearm to participate in certain evidence-based or research-based programs, unless no qualifying program is available.
• HB 2285 – Requires the Washington Student Achievement Counsel (WSAC) to review institution policies related to providing students dual credit (International Baccalaureate or IB Programme).
• HB 2396 – Addresses barriers for students to participate in the Running Start program.
• HB 2468 – Clarifies the retention of biological material (DNA) collected during criminal investigation.
• HB 1292 – Vacating records of conviction for victims of the sex trade.
• HB 1290 – Requires county auditors to place at least one ballot drop box at each public college, university, community college, and technical college, and at certain branch campuses.

I’ll provide more information and keep you informed on the bills’ progress throughout the session.

There are several Capital budget project requests within the district that I am advocating for, as well.

First bill of the year passes on first day of session

 

The state DREAM Act, which passed the House with strong bipartisan support, allows Washington children of undocumented parents — children who had no say in the decision to come to America– to at least compete for State Need Grants to attend college.  They have to have been in the state for a time, they have to have graduated from Washington high schools, and most important, they have to have already excelled enough academically to be admitted to a public college or university. Once they’ve cleared those hurdles, the state DREAM Act would let them compete for State Need Grants, (student loans), something currently denied to them.

If you talk to these students, you hear the same thing, over and over: America is the only home they’ve ever known. They graduated from our high schools and received high grades and test scores and earned their way into our colleges and universities.   They want to give back to their community and country. I was proud to vote for a bill that will help them achieve that goal. It’s the right thing to do for those kids and the right thing to do for our economy.

Last week I was pleased to visit with students here in Olympia for the Latino/a Educational Achievement Project (LEAP) legislative day and had the pleasure of speaking with a LEAP student ambassador, Cristina Martinez-Montano, about what the DREAM Act means to her.  Click below to hear her story:

We are a nation of immigrants, and I support the notion that every child in Washington State, regardless of race, religion or circumstance, should have a great education and a fair shot at the American Dream.

This legislation, though, only has a fair shot if the Senate will allow it to come to the floor. We’ll see what happens in the next few weeks.

Washington’s Health Care Exchange is working well

 

It’s been just over three months since our state’s online health insurance marketplace officially got up-and-running. While hiccups at the national level have grabbed the majority of headlines, Washington Healthplanfinder is quietly helping thousands of Washingtonians access affordable, quality health care for the very first time.

The Washington Health Benefit Exchange (WHBE) just released new enrollment figures that show 248,270 Washington residents have signed up for coverage – through either private providers or Washington Apple Health – since October 1.

From the launch date of October 1st – January 2nd, the Healthplanfinder website has had 1,079,663 unique hits and the call center has serviced 16,953 calls. The average wait time at those call centers is down to just five minutes.

From the beginning, Washington State has led the nation in the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. We created our own online marketplace, Healthplanfinder, rather than depending on the federal exchange. We also led efforts to expand the Medicaid program – closing the gap for Washington families that could not otherwise afford private insurance.  Recently, PBS News Hour ranked us the fifth best state in the country for Affordable Care Act enrollment.

To learn more about your health care options or to see if you are eligible for a subsidy, visit www.wahealthplanfinder.org or call 1-877-WAFINDER. The call center is open Monday-Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

I look forward to hearing from you on bills or issues of concern to you!