Rep. Goodman’s 2018 Session Wrap-Up

Here in Washington state, we’ve helped lead the nation in expanding democracy.

Registered voters are given two and half weeks to fill out mail-in ballots and return them. This year we expanded the number of ballot drop boxes around the state in an effort to make returning a ballot easier.

However, voter turnout is still too low. In fact, 2014 saw our lowest mid-term election turnout in more than 50 years.

In order to maximize the voice of the people, we passed a package of bills to improve access to the ballot and strengthen our democracy:

• The DISCLOSE Act exposes hidden money in elections;
• Same-day voter registration removes a significant barrier for eligible voters;
• Automatic voter registration makes the process simpler and easier;
• Youth voter pre-registration allows high school students to exercise their right to vote the day they turn 18; and
• The Washington Voting Rights Act ensures fair and accurate representation.

Opioid use disorder is an epidemic across the nation. Washington state isn’t immune — family members and friends are getting hooked on pills after surgeries, accidents, or other injuries. Thousands of lives are damaged, destroyed, or even lost because opioids are easily abused, sometimes before you even realize it’s happening.

This session, we took steps to address the opioid epidemic by significantly increasing funding for opioid use disorder treatment, new data tracking to improve supply distribution, increased staffing for the Prescription Monitoring Program, and increased access to the overdose-reversal drug Naloxone. We also passed a first-in-the-nation drug take back program, which will be paid for and maintained by drug manufacturers. Getting opioids and other drugs out of our medicine cabinets and away from our communities when they are no longer needed is another step on the long road toward ending the opioid crisis.

Net Neutrality

Washington also became the first state in the nation to pass a net neutrality law to protect against internet providers slowing or reducing internet service in the wake of the Federal Communications Commission rescinding the protections at the national level.

Under the legislation, Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are prohibited from:

• Blocking customers’ access to lawful content;
• “Throttling,” or slowing down lawful content; and
• Favoring certain content over others due to “paid prioritization.”

In addition, I secured $7.5 million to rebuild the facility at the State Fire Training Academy, to make sure that all firefighters have regular, live fire training so that all of our communities know that their firefighters will be adequately prepared to protect them.

I also worked with colleagues in the Senate to pass legislation giving the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit the law enforcement authority to investigate and criminally prosecute fraud, abuse and neglect perpetrated by Medicaid providers.

The update to our law will help improve the relationship between law enforcement and communities by increasing training and accountability, requiring law enforcement to render first aid at the earliest opportunity, ensuring independent investigations for deadly force incidents, and including standards for family and community notification. The new policy establishes an objective good faith standard by which prosecutors can more clearly evaluate incidents when police use deadly force and whether or not to bring criminal charges.

We will now be able to provide the necessary tools for law enforcement to carry out their difficult jobs while creating accountability for aggrieved communities. By building this bridge, we can build trust between police and the community and reduce the needless use of deadly force.