Dear friends and neighbors,
Last week marked the end of this year’s 60-day legislative session. It went by quickly, but I’m extremely proud of the work we were able to get done. We passed 268 bills this session, and over 60% of those received strong bipartisan support. I’ll be talking more about what we were able to do over the next few weeks, particularly what we did to make Washington more affordable and to protect Washingtonians from federal overreach.
For now – we were able to pass an operating budget that protected investments in our most vulnerable communities. I also wanted to give an update on some of the bills I’ve mentioned over the last 60 days that have passed the legislature and are either waiting to be signed by the governor or have already been signed into law!
- HB 2228, which will make it cheaper to build more housing and expand the amount of housing that can fit on a lot by allowing different stair types
- HB 1155, which will ban non-compete agreements, giving people flexibility to make the decisions that are best for them and their family instead of being governed by a previous employer
- HB 2338, which will make it easier for our state’s weatherization program to serve community-scaled projects. This will bring down costs for the state, helping us serve more people by reducing energy costs for families and ensuring safe, healthy housing for more Washingtonians
- HB 2242 which will help preserve access to vaccines with no out-of-pocket costs
- HB 2294 would ensure that if a grocery store closes a new grocery store isn’t prohibited from opening in the same location, keeping food access for communities and encouraging competition
- HB 2296 would allow balcony solar panels, particularly helpful for renters, to give people more options for energy independence
Now that session is over, I’m glad to be spending my time back in district. More soon on the other work we were able to accomplish!
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One other incredibly big thing we were able to get done this session was passing the Millionaires Tax. I mentioned in my last e-newsletter that this is a tax of 9.9% on household incomes over $1 million, with the proceeds funding K-12 education, healthcare, and higher education. This legislation also drastically expands the Working Families Tax Credit, eliminates the Business and Occupation tax for nearly 60% of small businesses, pays for free school meals for all Washington students, and eliminates sales taxes on grocery items like diapers, hygiene products, and over-the-counter drugs.
Our current tax code asks low-income Washingtonians to pay nearly 4x more in taxes than the wealthiest among us, relative to income. This legislation will help make our tax code more fair and bring our state into the 21st century.
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The Washington State Office of Independent Investigations (OII) is holding two community meetings as they are preparing to expand their operations into Pierce County. Come meet OII staff and learn more about how the agency operates and upholds it’s mission to conduct fair, thorough, transparent, and competent investigations into law enforcement use of deadly force incidents.
In-person open house
- When: 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m., Thursday, April 02, 2026
- Where: Tacoma Mall Office Building, 4301 S. Pine St., Suite 200
Virtual community meeting
- When: 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m., Thursday, April 09, 2026
- Where: Register via Zoom here at Region 2 – Pierce, Community Meeting
- Note – Meeting link will be provided after registration.