Dear friends and neighbors,
Across the nation, we are seeing countless examples of citizens, legal residents and immigrants of all statuses forcefully taken away in unmarked vehicles by masked men. There are numerous cruel stories of residents who have been following the required process to obtain legal status, often for years with great expense, and were detained as they came out of immigration hearings.
This is frightening, and it’s having a real ripple effect here in Washington. Our neighbors are scared to drive to work, take their kids to school, or show up for a doctor’s appointment because they don’t know what might happen on an ordinary day. Is the danger real? Yes, we have all seen the videos of people being assaulted and pepper sprayed just for witnessing or recording ICE activity on their phones. And in Minneapolis, just this month, two U.S. citizens were shot and killed by federal immigration agents.
With the escalating violence and unnecessary inhumane treatment perpetrated by ICE agents across the nation and in our state, I am very concerned about the safety and well-being of our own communities. What we are seeing is not OK, and not normal. Separating families without notice or follow-up, indiscriminately injuring people, and shooting people to death is not Ok. None of this upholds our constitutional rights nor does it follow due process. Click here or on the image below for my comments on this issue.
 |
ICE is a federal agency, so there are limits to what the state Legislature can do. However, we are doing everything we can to protect people’s rights, keep families connected to services, and prevent local systems from being used as an extension of federal immigration enforcement. This year we have introduced numerous bills to address the abuse and protect our immigrant and refugee communities.
HB 2105 / SB 5852: The Immigrant Worker Protection Act requires businesses to inform workers when ICE inspections are taking place.
HB 2332 / SB 6002: Regulates license plate reader or ‘Flock’ cameras to prevent use by immigration enforcement.
HB 2409 / SB 6045: Extends public collective-bargaining rights to farmworkers, including improving workplace protections for immigrant farmworkers.
HB 2464: Establishes reporting requirements and law enforcement responses for incidents at private detention facilities.
HB 2597: Allows victims of violence by federal immigration officers to sue for state claims.
HB 2602 / SB 5906: Protects schools, health care, and other sensitive places by limiting immigration enforcement without a judicial warrant and safeguarding personal information.
HB 2641: Prohibits certain law enforcement agencies from hiring former ICE federal employees.
HB 2648: Ensures law enforcement reports and keeps records of interactions with federal immigration agents.
HB 2651: Requires preserving digital evidence when there is a complaint of misconduct by federal agents, including ICE and DHS.
SB 5974: Ensures civil immigration enforcement cannot be carried out by untrained or volunteer law enforcement personnel.
While I am a cosponsor on most of these bills, I am proud to be the prime sponsor of HB 2648 and HB 2651. You’ll read brief descriptions of these measures in the next section.
 |
|
|
UPDATE ON MY BILLS
I am happy to let you know that my bill, 1069, allowing public employees and their unions to collectively bargain over contributions to supplemental retirement benefits, including medical and other retirement-related plans passed the House January 22. (click HERE to watch my floor remarks.)
I introduced HB 1069 last year and I hope the other chamber passes it this time. If enacted, my bill will make a significant difference in the lives of some workers, like corrections officers, who are currently unable to retire at a safe age because they can’t afford medical coverage. This bill will help assure they won’t have to work into their 60s and 70s and can enjoy the rewards of their years of service. HB 2478 gives Labor & Industries more flexibility to investigate wage theft and hold employers that are not in compliance accountable. It strengthens enforcement against wage theft and ensures workers actually get the pay they earned. HB 2479 helps workers get the pay they’re owed by strengthening how the state investigates wage theft and creating a new wage recovery program, so workers aren’t left waiting months or years for relief. Together, these bills modernize and strengthen Washington’s response to wage theft by moving cases faster and ensuring workers are still able to keep a roof over their heads, and their families fed while waiting to recover the pay they’ve earned. Watch my testimony before the House Labor & Workplace Standards Committee on January 23 HERE. HB 2481 – Fair Pricing and Transparency Act This bill protects consumers from unfair pricing by banning “surveillance-based” price setting — these are practices that use data like a person’s location, shopping history, or online behavior to quietly charge different people different prices for the same groceries. The bill also strengthens price transparency so customers can clearly see what they’re being charged at the shelf and at checkout. Watch my testimony before the House Technology, Economic Development & Veterans Committee on January 21 HERE. And you can also watch the press conference held on January 23 HERE. The event presented a package of bills, including this one, to strengthen statewide food security programs amid federal actions. HB 2630 – Job Classification Bargaining My bill strengthens collective bargaining for Washington’s state workforce by making sure they have a real voice in decisions about their jobs. It requires the state to work with employees and unions on shaping pay, benefits, and job descriptions. It also clarifies that people who are legally allowed to work in the U.S., including DACA recipients, can work in state jobs. HB 2648 – Immigration Enforcement Interaction This legislation helps make interactions between local police and federal immigration agents more transparent and accountable. It requires local officers who encounter someone they reasonably believe is an ICE agent doing enforcement work to turn on body and dash cameras, report the encounter to their agency, and document what happened — and it ensures the Attorney General and the state will protect officers acting in good faith. My bill was heard by the House Committee on Community Safety this morning. HB 2651 – Federal Misconduct Evidence This measure helps ensure accountability when federal agents are accused of misconduct by giving Washington authorities the ability to gather and securely preserve digital data (license plate, GPS, cellphone, location data) that can help identify the agent involved. That information can then be accessed in court during civil or criminal proceedings related to alleged misconduct. |
|
|
That’s all for now. I hope you found my newsletter informative. Don’t forget to fill out my priorities survey!
If you have feedback, questions or concerns about legislative issues, or about immigration enforcement, please don’t hesitate to contact my office.
In solidarity,
 |
|
|
 |