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Legislative Update: Healthcare Costs, HR 1, and the Federal Government Shutdown
 Dear friends and neighbors,
We’re on day 23 of the federal government being shut down. This is the second-longest funding lapse in modern history, and I have heard from many of you with concerns. Whether it’s being asked to work without pay, threats of mass firings, health care premiums spiking, or the 900,000 Washingtonians abruptly losing access to food assistance on November 1, we’re feeling the consequences of the dysfunction in the other Washington. While we are wrestling with the uncertainty that comes with this shutdown, what federal programs will continue to function, and for how long, we’re also dealing with the devastating impacts from the Republican Budget Spending Bill (HR 1), passed earlier this year. HR 1 is, simply put, devastating. In Washington, many low-and moderate-income families, children, people with disabilities, and elderly individuals rely on Medicaid. Many of these individuals will lose coverage directly because of HR 1. Some of these people will lose coverage because of increased administrative burdens, making the health care system costlier and less efficient. Some of these people will lose coverage because of a lapse in ACA subsidies, which will drive up the cost of plans in Washington state significantly (if this sounds familiar, it’s because Democrats in Congress are fighting to protect it right now for the 286,000 Washingtonians who rely on that subsidy). I want to be clear about the severity of these impacts. Right now, we are predicting that:
Our health care system cannot absorb these changes. The ripple effects of this many people losing coverage will hit all of us. It will overwhelm emergency rooms and community health centers when people cannot access preventative care. It will shutter facilities in rural communities that cannot bear the increased costs, driving more people to seek care in increasingly limited facilities. |
Republicans across the state and across the country are trying to deflect blame for these cuts. There is a reason they delayed implementation so significantly, because these are deeply unpopular policies. Rather than defend the devastating impact of HR 1, Republicans here in Washington are pointing to cuts made at the state level this year as the cause for all concern. I want to be incredibly clear here as well.
- This year, to help address a $15 billion budget shortfall, we made cuts equivalent to 1.5% of our total Medicaid spending. These cuts were targeted to administrative expenses that wouldn’t reduce service. In two specific cases, we delayed the expansion of new coverage, deferring to a time when we can more readily afford the increases. When you look at our total Medicaid spending at the state level, even including these cuts, we still increased Medicaid spending by $909 million this year.
- We’re currently estimating that HR 1 will cut $3 billion in Medicaid spending each year, that’s a cut of more than 10% to Medicaid funding. This cut in funding comes with increased administrative burdens, giving us less money to do more.
If you’ve seen drastic increases in your health care premiums for next year, HR 1, and the end of the ACA subsidies, are the cause. Here in Washington, we will do our best to mitigate the impact of these cuts. We have a strong history of fighting to expand access to healthcare. In 2019 we passed SB 5526, which increased the availability of quality, affordable healthcare coverage in our state. We passed HB 1087 to establish a long-term care benefit and fill a need the private market couldn’t, we did both without a single Republican voting yes. In 2024, you upheld the Long Term Care Act at the ballot box, affirming that Washingtonians care about expanding, not restricting, coverage. Since 2019, Democrats have passed $14 billion in healthcare and public health increases to maintain service and improve access. These too have been almost universally opposed by Republicans.
In the other Washington, Republicans control the House, the Senate, and the Presidency. HR 1, and the devastating impacts it will have on health care in Washington state, falls squarely on their shoulders.
I often talk about the importance of bipartisanship, and how working together for our constituents is one of the most important things we can do as state legislators. Much of the work we do in Olympia is bipartisan. I wish more of our work could be. I hope that my Republican colleagues at the state level will join me in pushing back on this impending disaster.
Legislative Update: Protecting our Environment, Community Conversations, New Asia Pacific Cultural Center Building
Dear friends and neighbors,
As we enter fall, 2025 is still on track to be one of the hottest years on record. Washington is facing drought conditions that thankfully, Tacoma was able to mitigate with advance planning. Climate change is real, it is here, and if we want to protect the natural environment in our state for future generations, we must act now.
Over the last few years, we have enacted landmark legislation to help reduce our emissions, clean up our air and water, and transition Washington to clean energy sources. Climate change is a systemic problem, and it requires systemic solutions. That’s why this year I’m particularly proud that we passed legislation to update our recycling system in Washington state. We’re making it easier for people across the state to access recycle services, easier to know what can/can’t be recycled, and easier to trust that what you put n the recycle bin won’t just go to a landfill, but will be re-used in some way. This new system will require large companies to reduce their packaging, will ensure everyone has access to curbside recycle pick-up, and will prevent recyclable material from entering landfills.
We also adjusted our clean fuels program, which helps to reduce transportation emissions over time, to ensure that our plan is aligned with neighboring states, strengthening our efforts to reduce pollution in our part of the world. We continued our work to remove superpollutants like hydrofluorocarbons, powerful greenhouse gasses used in refrigeration that can affect indoor air quality. We’re supporting the development of low-carbon thermal energy systems that will help cut both costs and emissions, making it easier to access affordable, sustainable heating options.
Climate change is real, by acting now we can ensure that Washington is a leader in developing the economy of the future. One where clean energy doesn’t just mean reducing emissions or cheaper energy, it means living-wage jobs for the next generation, clean air to breathe, clean water to drink, and beautiful places to live, work, and play.
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I also wanted to pass along a reminder for my last community conversation of this summer/fall stretch. Please join me on Monday, October 13th, from 10:30AM-12PM at Cutters Point Coffee Co. (2209 N Pearl St., Ste 104). These are intended to be smaller, community-based gatherings, so come with questions!
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Last week I was able to tour the new Asia Pacific Cultural Center. It’s a joy to see APCC in a space that matches their vibrancy and commitment to bringing together communities across our city. I was so grateful to support Lua Pritchard, Patsy Surh, and the entire APCC team with funding from our state’s Capital Budget to help with the construction, and walking through the building last week was a beautiful reminder of why this work is so important.
Just in the time I was there I saw the Tacoma-Pierce County Affordable Housing Consortium was holding a meeting, a knitting club gathered for their weekly session, and Philippine elders prepared for their lunch—all before 10 a.m. This space will be put to good use, and I’m already looking forward to celebrating Lunar New Year in this new space.
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I also wanted to pass along a reminder about the legislative internship. The priority deadline for applications is October 22nd, you can learn more about the program here.
This internship is an incredible opportunity for higher education students, who spend a session working in Olympia and learning about the legislative process. The 2026 internship begins January 6, 2026 and ends March 12, 2026. You receive academic credit for the program as well as a monthly stipend of $2,400.
Legislative Update: Lowering Costs and Increasing Economic Security, Community Conversation Today
Dear friends and neighbors,
I want to kick off this newsletter with a reminder that today’s Community Conversation will be from 10:30AM-12PM at Franklin Park in Tacoma. These are intended to be smaller, community-based gatherings, so come with questions (and a lawn chair if you have one)! If you can’t make it today, we have one more on the schedule for this fall- Monday, October 13th, from 10:30AM-12PM at Cutters Point Coffee Co. (2209 N Pearl St., Ste 104).
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One of the concerns I hear about most when talking with constituents is day-to-day costs, and how that contributes to their overall economic security. Living expenses add up. It’s why this year I was focused on what we can do at the state level to reduce expenses for the people of our state.
Passing rent stabilization gives renters more predictability around their largest monthly expense. Maintaining food assistance funding, something we were able to do this year despite a significant drop in expected revenue, helps ensure that those costs aren’t passed on to families who can’t afford to cover them (and you can find your local food bank here). We were able to fight off tuition increases at our public colleges and universities, ensuring that students and families aren’t paying more. We also changed the law to allow striking workers to access unemployment insurance for up to six weeks, because you shouldn’t have to choose between putting food on the table tonight and fair wages or safe working conditions.
For our small businesses – we know that Washington’s paid family leave program is one of the best in the country. It helps make Washington a competitive place to work, but it can be hard to balance with a small workforce. This year we passed legislation that will both help more people take advantage of Paid Family Medical Leave, and help small businesses cover that time with grant funding.
Another way we’re trying to reduce costs is with Right to Repair. It’s cheaper and better for the environment to repair what we have instead of buying something new. When your phone screen breaks, you should be able to take it to a local business for repair without voiding your warranty. Thanks to legislation we passed this year, that will be an option for more of your technology than ever.
As the most trade dependent State in the nation, I’m particularly concerned about the effect the Trump Tariffs will have on costs and employment here in Washington. There’s a lot that’s out of our control at the state level, but we’re hard at work doing what we can to make things more affordable for the people of our state.
Legislative Update: Back to School, Legislative Internship, and Community Conversations
Dear friends and neighbors,
Last week was the first day of school for Tacoma Public Schools, and I thought I’d take this chance to update you on our work in K-12 education last session.
Over the last few e-newsletters, I’ve talked about the hard budget decisions we had to make this year, but knowing that K-12 education is our paramount duty in the state constitution, it’s one of the places I’m glad we were able to make new investments for our kids.
One of the biggest new investments this year was in Special Education, removing the special education funding enrollment cap and increasing the amount per student enrolled in special education. This means school districts are getting more funding to serve some of our most vulnerable students. We’ve also ensured that students enrolled in special education programs can stay enrolled until the end of the school year after turning 22, ensuring they have the support these programs provide for a little longer. Additionally, we allocated more funding towards materials, supplies, and operating costs, which help pay for non-employee costs in our schools, like keeping the lights on.
While Tacoma Public Schools is receiving more than $11 million in additional state funding for special education, and more than $1.5 million in additional funding for materials, supplies, and operating costs, there is still more work to do. School districts including Tacoma are continuing to struggle with increasing costs due to inflation, which is still a concern under the current federal administration. This is an ongoing conversation I’m having with the district this interim, to better understand the budgetary challenges they face. But I’m glad we were able to make some additional investments in these important areas even in a challenging budget year.
I mentioned in an earlier newsletter that we were also able to protect funding for school meals and summer EBT, something I’m particularly proud of. Hungry kids can’t learn, but more importantly, everyone should have access to food (if you family needs help you can find local food bank information here).
In addition to the investments we were able to make in K-12, we also expanded access to dual credit programs so that our students can get the college credit they’ve earned, we’ve established a teacher residency and apprenticeship program to help address our teacher shortage, and ensured that our students with adrenal insufficiency can get the care they need to actively participate in K-12 education.
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Applications are open now for the Washington State Legislative Intern Program! This program is an incredible opportunity for higher education students – you’re matched with legislators in the House or Senate based on your interest areas and political ideology, and you spend a session working in Olympia and learning about the legislative process. The 2026 internship begins January 6, 2026 and ends March 12, 2026.
The priority deadline for applications is October 22nd, and you receive academic credit for the program as well as a monthly stipend of $2,400. I love meeting interns who are from or attend school in the 27th District, so if you or someone you know is accepted to the program for 2026, please reach out to my office so I can make time to say hello this coming session.
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Our community conversations are still happening! These are intended to be small, informal group discussions, so please stop by to ask questions or talk about issues that are important to you.
- Thursday, September 25: 10:30AM-12PM, Franklin Park, Tacoma
- Monday, October 13: 10:30AM-12PM, Cutters Point Coffee Co.. 2209 N Pearl St., Ste 104
Legislative Update: Protecting our neighbors, Fighting for Washington Values
Dear friends and neighbors,
July is Pride Month in Tacoma and as we celebrate I’m thinking about how these events have always been an act of resistance. It was about being visible in our communities before it was safe, and how that continues to be true for too many of our neighbors.
This session we worked hard to advance policies that protect all Washingtonians. We were able to push back on and prevent many bills that directly targeted members of our community or attempted to dismantle necessary services like we’ve seen happen at the federal level.
I was thinking about this work last week when I joined City Council Members Olgy Diaz, Kristina Walker, John Hines, Jamika Scott, Sarah Rumbaugh, Sandesh Sadalge, and Joe Bushnell, Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards, and Pierce County Executive Ryan Mello in opening a new Pride-themed crosswalk near the farmers market in downtown Tacoma (on Broadway, between South 9th and 11th). This was a great celebration, and it raised a lot of feelings for me. In my lifetime I have seen Tacoma go from rejecting initiatives to provide LGBTQ+ people civil protections at work or in housing, to proudly having LGBTQ+ people serving in all levels of government. That I now get to help ensure that we expand protections instead of moving backwards is an extraordinary privilege.
Read on for more about how we’re protecting our neighbors – communities of color, immigrants, LGBTQ+ people, and others who have historically been left out or left behind.
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When we talk about protecting our neighbors, I think what we didn’t do is just as important as what we did. This year Republicans in the House and Senate proposed legislation that would have rolled back LGBTQ+ protections, would have privatized our K-12 education system, would have required our local law enforcement officers to work with ICE, would have restricted access to reproductive health care, would have ended vote-by-mail, would have brought back the death penalty, would have frozen the minimum wage, and would have gutted necessary state agencies like the Superintendent of Public Instruction or the Office of Financial Management.
It matters who sets the agenda. None of these bills moved forward, and they won’t as long as I am Speaker.
So, what did we do to help keep our neighbors safe?
- With HB 1052 we clarified the definition of a hate crime to strengthen accountability and ensure justice for victims.
- HB 1232 strengthens oversight at the Northwest ICE Processing Center and is our latest step in attempting to regulate the conditions in these facilities. As a federally-run facility our options are limited, but we are trying to ensure that the people detained there are treated humanely.
- We’re promoting a safe and supportive public education system by ensuring parents have access to translated materials, that school district employees have anti-retaliation protections when they follow the law, and that parents’ and students’ rights are clear and easy to understand. Students deserve to learn in an environment free from discrimination, and parents should have the support they need to be active in their child’s academic success (HB 1296).
- We passed the Keep Washington Working Act with bipartisan support in 2019, which limits how much our local law enforcement officers can work with ICE or enforce federal immigration law. This year we expanded those protections to ensure that bail bond agents aren’t working with federal immigration authorities (SB 5714 – sponsored by my seatmate Sen. Yasmin Trudeau).
- HB 1875 allows people to use paid sick leave to participate in certain immigration proceedings, protecting people’s jobs and paycheck as they navigate our complex immigration system.
- People should be able to access the healthcare they need, when they need it. This year we ensured you can access a 12-month supply for all contraceptive drugs, not just refills (SB 5498). We also ensured you can access a 12-month prescription of hormone replacement therapy, or six months for testosterone-based HRT, which is classified as a controlled substance so subject to stricter laws (HB 1971). As the federal government attempts to make these medications harder to access, we’re protecting your health care here in Washington state.
- We’re recognizing Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha as holidays in Washington state. These are two of the most significant holidays in Islam, and this recognition officially sends a powerful message that Muslim Washingtonians are valued and respected. These are legislative holidays for now, not paid state holidays, but I’m excited that we will get to formally celebrate them for the first time next year (SB 5106 – also by Sen. Trudeau!).
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Our community conversations kick off this month! These are intended to be small group discussions so please stop by to ask questions or talk about issues that are important to you.
- Monday, July 21: 2:30-4PM, Fife Public Library, 6622 20th St. E.
- Tuesday, August 12: 5:30-7PM, Tacoma Public Library Main Branch, 1102 Tacoma Ave S.
- Thursday, September 25: 10:30AM-12PM, Franklin Park, Tacoma
- Monday, October 13: 10:30AM-12PM, Cutters Point Coffee Co.. 2209 N Pearl St., Ste 104
Legislative Update: Community Projects and Local Transportation Projects
Dear friends and neighbors,
I begin this newsletter on a somber note, in the wake of rising political violence in our nation. Earlier this month, Minnesota House Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, were killed in a targeted assassination at their home. Additionally, Minnesota State Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, were shot and wounded in an attempted assassination at their home by the same gunman. This horrific act of violence hit me especially hard: I knew Melissa personally. We had attended legislative conferences together with lawmakers from around the nation from both sides of the aisle. My heart hurts for the Hortman and Hoffman families, and for the entire state of Minnesota.
There is no place for violence in our civil and political discourse. While spirited debates and peaceful protest belong in a healthy democracy, violence and murder do not. That’s why together with the leaders of the four legislative caucuses, Democratic and Republican, we released a statement condemning what happened in Minnesota and calling for us to stand united against such acts.
Our district is a vibrant community filled with people from all walks of life who hold a diversity of opinions on any topic. We may not always agree, but we must respect each other’s rights to do so and protect the safety of all Washingtonians. Our democracy relies on it.
In more upbeat news, I’m happy to share some updates about our transportation and capital budgets, including projects in our community receiving funding from these budgets.
Our transportation budget does exactly what it sounds like: it pays for our roads, bridges, public transit like buses, multi-modal transportation like bike paths, and more. The capital budget is our state’s construction budget, and it funds things like K-12 buildings, childcare centers, mental health treatment centers, affordable housing, and more.
More details about projects in the 27th district are below.
Lastly, I want to share one example of the kind of site visits I love getting to do outside of the legislative session. I always enjoy being able to see the places and organizations that receive state funding and talk with them about their work. Earlier this month, I got to visit a Science on Wheels event at Rose Hill Elementary School in Kirkland. Science on Wheels helps to provide free or deeply discounted STEM programming for over 100,000 students across our state. This program helps to fill educational gaps and creates opportunities for students to learn more about science, technology, engineering, and math. (Btw, that’s me in the blue wig in the photo!)
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The capital budget this year, unlike the operating and transportation budgets, didn’t have a deficit to address. Because of that, we were able to make some increased investments in housing and other areas, and were able to fund important projects all over the state. In the 27th district we have a lot to be excited about:
- $5 million for the Willard Early Learning Center, a 24-hour affordable childcare option for union employees, helping more people with kids enter and stay in the workforce with family-wage union jobs.
- $485,000 for continuing work at the Cora Whitley Family Center. I was proud to attend a groundbreaking for this earlier in the year, which when complete will help drastically expand their early learning and daycare spaces and create over 100 jobs.
- $1 million for the Integrated Care Clinic to help provide more behavioral health care in our community.
- $2 million towards affordable housing for seniors on S. Yakima St. and $309,000 to help with the conversion of the Mason United Methodist Church into affordable housing.
- $5 million for Maritime 253: South Puget Sound Maritime Skills Center, which will help train the next generation of maritime workers located right in the Port of Tacoma.
- $1 million for the new Asia Pacific Cultural Center building at the current APCC space in coordination with Metro Parks.
- $1.6 million for the Tacoma Urban Performing Arts Center, $878,000 for Phase 1 of the Museum of Glass renovation, and $618,000 for the Grand Cinema to help support the arts in our community.
- $1 million for the Peck Community Sports Park Expansion to help meet our communities’ recreational needs, and $1 million to improve the Sheffield Trail in Fife and make it more accessible.
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While the capital budget didn’t face shortfalls this year, our transportation budget did. I’m proud of the work we did, led by my seatmate Rep. Jake Fey, to protect investments and create a forward-thinking final transportation budget. Some of the projects in our district include:
- Improvements to Puyallup Avenue corridor including improved intersections, pedestrian access, bike lanes, and increased functionality for parking and other street amenities.
- Improving Pierce Transit’s High-Capacity Transit Service through system expansion, speed and reliability improvements, station access improvements, and increased accessibility to make public transit more accessible.
- Funding for improvements on the Stream Community Line (SR 7 Express Service) to help speed up the trip between Tacoma and Parkland/Spanaway.
- Improving the HOV lanes on I-5 from S. 38th St to JBLM and from S. 48th St to the King County line.
- Upgrading the interchange between I-5 and Port of Tacoma Road to improve traffic conditions on both roads.
- The Puget Sound Gateway Program (SR 167/SR 509) is two projects in one – SR 509 connects SeaTac to the Kent Valley and SR 167 connects the Port of Tacoma to Sumner and Puyallup.
- Upgrading track and doing track maintenance on Tacoma Rail’s Alexander Wye & Storage Tracks near the Port of Tacoma
- Improving the Schuster Parkway Trail by creating a shared use promenade along Schuster Parkway from South 4th to N 30th and McCarver.
- Tacoma Dome Link Light Rail Access (Fife to Tacoma) improvements to support multi-modal passenger access to the planned Fife and Portland Avenue Stations.
Senate Majority Leader Pedersen, Speaker Jinkins: “Washingtonians stick by their neighbors”
Senate Majority Leader Jamie Pedersen (D-Seattle) and Speaker of the House Laurie Jinkins (D-Tacoma) issued the statement below Friday:
“President Trump’s assertion that he can federalize the National Guard without gubernatorial approval is deeply disturbing, and as we saw in court yesterday, completely incorrect. This militarization appears to be an attempt to provoke violence as Washingtonians stand up for their friends and neighbors who are currently being targeted at home, at school, and at work. We knew this was coming, and last session took action to help limit unauthorized National Guard deployments to the extent we’re able.
“We join people across our state in supporting the immigrants who live and work here, and who have made Washington home. We passed the Keep Washington Working Act to ensure that the private information of people in our state is protected so that all people living here can go about their daily lives without fear.
“We unequivocally support people’s constitutional right to protest and express their fundamental First Amendment freedom to do so. We look forward to seeing that right expressed throughout our state and nation this weekend. We also strongly encourage people to continue to keep their demonstrations peaceful and not feed into the narrative of the president and the propaganda of his enablers that there is violence and unrest in our cities. When we unite in peaceful protest, it makes our message and collective voice much more powerful.
“Washingtonians stick by their neighbors. We won’t let President Trump change our way of life.”
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Legislative Update: The Economy, Jobs, and Free Summer Meals for Kids
Dear friends and neighbors,
This week’s e-newsletter is focused on jobs and the economy, but first I wanted to spread the word about free summer meals at the playgrounds.
Every Monday-Friday from June 23rd to August 29th (except the 4th of July) free meals will be available for all youth under 18. While we had to make many hard choices in our budget this year, I am glad we were able to protect this funding. Because of this program, kids will have access to healthy meals throughout the summer.
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Last week I was able to attend the groundbreaking for the Bates Technical College Fire Service Training Center. This new facility, supported by a $42 million investment from our capital budget, will help give students hands-on training in a high-tech, real world environment. This is a big deal for the entire region and adds to Bates Technical College’s 85-year legacy of workforce training and education.
That’s just one investment from one budget, and there are other investments like this supporting local school construction, childcare facility construction, and more.
On childcare construction, we also passed a bill this year (HB 1314) to make it easier to build early learning facilities. The demand for early learning facilities is one of the things I hear about consistently in our district. I know that too many families are waiting too long for an opening in a location that’s accessible and affordable for them. This bill will help us ramp up construction to address that shortage – which is good for working families and employers.
We also passed legislation to create a new on-the-job training pathway to becoming a teacher in Washington state. We recognize apprenticeship programs as an excellent way to learn many different jobs in our state, and expanding that to teaching will help address our teacher shortage and open up the profession for more people. (HB 1651)
We also passed HB 1167 to expand and strengthen opportunities for maritime career development in our high schools, helping meet our workforce needs and setting people up for good, family-wage jobs. With HB 1556 we removed the age restrictions that prevented younger students (age 16-18) from receiving financial support as they pursue alternative high school completion pathways, including General Educational Development (GED) programs.
In post-secondary education we also passed legislation to encourage more cities and counties to participate in the Promise Scholarship program that helps provide scholarships for students looking to complete a degree, certificate, or apprenticeship. (HB 1587)
This session, we worked hard to make sure the people of our state remain well-positioned for the jobs of the future, and the sectors that have built our state will continue to meet their workforce needs and grow our economy. If you have questions about these or any other bills that focus on creating good jobs and strengthening our economy, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me.
Legislative Update: Housing and Community Safety Session Recap
Dear friends and neighbors,
Continuing with my updates from the 2025 session, I want to share more about the work we did in housing and community safety. These are consistently two of the top issues at town halls and constituent coffee chats. We all want to feel safe in our homes and in our neighborhoods, and I’m incredibly proud of the work we did this year to make that possible for more people.
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There’s no single answer to making housing more affordable, but we’re approaching this with a framework of supply, stabilization, and support. That means making it easier to build housing, making housing costs more predictable for everyone, and providing support to keep people housed or get people into housing.
Over the last few years we have made a lot of progress, cutting red tape to make it easier to build and investing significantly in affordable housing, but there was still work to be done. This year we hit the ground running (literally, with a hearing for the rent stabilization bill on the first day of session) and were able to get a lot done. Including:
- Rent stabilization gives renters the same level of predictability that homeowners have, knowing what their rent will be into the future and protecting against drastic increases in rent that we know directly contribute to homelessness. Now that HB 1217 has been signed into law, rent increases are limited to 7% plus inflation, but no more than 10% annually. There is an exemption for new construction (12 years or newer) to help ensure we’re building the new housing we need to meet current and future demand in our state.
- Transit oriented development (HB 1491) creates development targets around rail and rapid transit stops, making it easier to build housing in areas with direct access to services. Removing parking minimums makes it significantly cheaper to build new housing with parking options that meet the needs of the community. Constructing parking spots can cost $5,000-$20,000 each for surface lots, and as much as $60,000 per spot in a garage, in places that need less parking that means more money and space can go towards housing instead.
I mentioned in my last e-newsletter that we were able to make some new investments in housing in our operating budget, including $118 million to help local governments keep shelter beds online, $6 million in youth homelessness diversion, and $3 million in tenant right-to-counsel programs.
Our Capital Budget, the state’s construction budget, didn’t have the same shortfalls that our Operating and Transportation budgets faced, and we were able to make a historic $782 million investment in housing and homelessness programs. That includes a record $605 million for the Housing Trust Fund, which builds affordable housing across our state. In fact, just this month I was able to attend the opening of Patsy Surh Place in Tacoma’s Lincoln District, a project funded by the Housing Trust Fund that is now providing 78 affordable apartments to seniors in our community.
There’s not enough space to cover everything we did for housing this session, but there are a few more pieces I want to mention:
- We expanded the Covenant Homeownership Program, recognizing that racist covenants and other discriminatory housing policy prevented people from buying a home and growing generational wealth, the impacts of which are still felt directly.
- We made it easier to finance affordable housing developments.
- We made it easier to convert commercial buildings into housing.
- We made it easier to split up lots so that more housing can be built in existing areas.
- We also strengthened enforcement to ensure that our cities are counties are following the laws that will help us site, build, or convert the housing we need.
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Community safety was also a high priority for us this year. Ensuring that cities and counties have the resources they need to keep people safe is critical.
At the local level, we invested $100 million in one-time grants for law enforcement and $110 million for the Community Reinvestment Program to support economic development, reentry services, legal assistance, and violence prevention. I mentioned in my last newsletter that we also funded crime victim supports and public defense grants for local government.
We also passed a Permit to Purchase bill, HB 1163, which will require a permit to possess, transfer, or purchase firearms. Gun violence is preventable, and this legislation supports responsible gun ownership with training, background checks, and more.
HB 1052 helps make our hate crime laws more accurate and enforceable. The previous language caused confusion about when something becomes a hate crime, and this new language will help strengthen accountability and ensure justice for victims of these crimes.
Safer roads are also part of safer communities. This year we passed legislation to improve driver safety through increased driver education, and approved the use of speed limiting devices in vehicles for people with a history of excessive speeding or reckless driving.
Similar to the section on housing, there’s a lot more than I can fit into one newsletter. If you have any questions or ideas, please don’t hesitate to reach out to my office.
Legislative Update: The Operating Budget and a Telephone Town Hall
Dear friends and neighbors,
Now that session has ended, I’ll be going into more detail in each of my e-newsletters about some of the work we did in different areas. We’ll cover housing, jobs and the economy, public safety, K-12 education, environmental wins, and more. If there’s an issue I didn’t mention that you would like covered please, let me know!
We’re kicking off with an overview of the operating budget. Before we get into that, though, I want to thank everyone who participated in last week’s telephone town hall! We had nearly 4,500 people join us on the call to ask questions, and we covered a lot of our work this session. If you missed it, you can listen to a recording of the event here.
Thanks so much to everyone who attended and asked questions.
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I’ve spent a lot of time over the last few months talking about the operating budget, in these e-newsletters, in my podcast, at the in-person town hall and telephone town hall, and in meetings with constituents. The operating budget is one of the most important things we do every year in the Legislature. This year’s work was made harder because we started the year with a significant budget deficit caused by slowing revenue growth, increased demand for services, inflation, and unpredictability at the federal level. With that in mind, our budget team spent months combing through the budget to find efficiencies and places we could cut without hurting people’s access to food, health, and shelter. However, we couldn’t fill the deficit with cuts alone. I talked about how devastating that would be in one of my February e-newsletters.
The final budget that passed the legislature relied on a balance of cuts and new revenue, including efforts to modernize and re-balance our tax code. Thanks to this we were able to protect programs that families rely on right now to put food on the table or keep a roof over their head. I’ve got more details about the budget by issue area below:
In K-12 education we made some of the only new investments in this year’s budget, expanding funding for Special Education by $775 million and Materials, Supplies, and Operating Costs (sometimes called MSOC) by $215 million. We’ve heard from schools across the state about funding challenges, and we’re hopeful that these new investments will help. We also maintained our school meals and summer EBT funding at current levels to help make sure that hungry kids can get the food they need.
In higher education we were able to avoid any tuition increases at our public two- and four-year colleges, and continue to fully fund the Washington College Grant – one of the best financial aid programs in the country.
In early learning we fully funded our bargaining agreements with childcare providers and were able to fund a rate increase for Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program providers. Ensuring that wages remain competitive for providers helps keep childcare open and accessible for more families.
Housing and homelessness is one of the only other areas we were able to increase new funding thanks to HB 1858, which closes a loophole in the document recording fee that benefitted big banks. We provide $118 million to help local governments keep shelter beds online, and invest $6 million in youth homelessness diversion and $3 million in tenant right-to-counsel programs.
In health care and public health we continued funding for the Apple Health for Immigrants program, ensuring everyone has access to health care and reducing the demand on emergency care systems. We also protected funding for Cascade Care to help make health care more affordable for Washingtonians across the state. In long term care we funded rate increases for nursing homes, community residential rates, and assisted living bridge rates to help maintain our workforce providing these incredibly necessary services.
For human services and poverty reduction we felt it was critical to maintain pandemic level food assistance. We saw how critical these programs were for keeping kids and families fed over the last few years and maintaining them was one of our highest priorities. In light of federal government attacks on immigrants and refugees we also maintained out Immigrant, Refugee, and New Arrival Supports programs.
In climate and natural resources, we were able to maintain investments in wildfire response and invasive species prevention, and thanks to the Climate Commitment Act we’re able to continue investments in clean energy, clean air, and clean water.
Thanks to HB 2015 we were able to make some new investments in public safety as well, including $110 million over the next four years in ongoing funding for the Community Reinvestment Program, and $100 million this year in grants for law enforcement. We also funded crime victim supports and public defense grants for local government.
In state government we fully funded the collective bargaining agreements for state and higher education employees, with no furloughs and no health care premium changes.
These are a lot of the budget highlights, but I want to be clear that in order to keep these programs funded and make the limited new investments we made, we had to make some pretty painful cuts. That includes delaying valuable new programs that would have helped people across the state, including the Fair Start for Kids Act, which would have expanded childcare programs and a number of other important priorities. These delays are hard, but at the end of the day we decided to prioritize the programs families are already relying on over cutting those programs to fund new ones. I’m grateful that these are just delays and I’m hopeful that these good policies will still go into effect, just a little later than we hoped.