During an election year, there are certain restrictions on my communications to prevent the use of state resources for election purposes. One of these restrictions is a freeze on this website, meaning no new content can be added beginning May 6, 2024 until after the general election in November. If you have questions or comments about legislative issues, please feel free to continue to contact me.
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Goodbye . . . for now | May 2, 2024
Dear friends and neighbors, I’m reaching out with a final update about our work this session. Folks who have received these emails from me for a while will remember that…
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2024 Session Victories: Funding for Local Projects | April 18, 2024
Dear friends and neighbors, We talk a lot about the different budgets in our newsletters, but we wanted to update you all on what those investments will mean in our…
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2024 Session Victories: Let’s talk housing | April 4, 2024
Dear friends and neighbors, I’m back with another update on our work this session, this time with a focus on housing. First, though, I wanted to pass along a quick…
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You’re invited! Join me for this Thursday for a telephone town hall | April 1, 2024
Dear friends and neighbors, This Thursday, April 4th, Sen. Yasmin Trudeau, Rep. Jake Fey and I will be hosting a telephone town hall for 27th District constituents from 5:30 –…
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MEDIA ADVISORY: Upcoming 27th Legislative District Telephone Town Hall | April 1, 2024
Who: Speaker Laurie Jinkins, Rep. Jake Fey, and Sen. Yasmin Trudeau What: Telephone town hall for constituents of the 27th Legislative District When: Thursday, April 4, 2024, 5:30 – 6:30…
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2024 Session Victories: Community Safety, Behavioral Health, and Responding to the Opioid/Fentanyl Crisis | March 22, 2024
Dear friends and neighbors, In my final e-newsletter of 2024 session, I mentioned that I’d be doing a deeper dive in subsequent newsletters into some of the great work we…
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Legislative Update: Sine Die – The Last Day of Session | March 7, 2024
Dear friends and neighbors, Today is Sine Die (pronounced sigh-knee die), the last day of the 2024 Legislative Session! It’s called that because when we adjourned for the last time tonight,…
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Legislative Update: Budget Rollouts and Town Hall Thank-Yous | February 23, 2024
Dear friends and neighbors, I wanted to kick things off this week by thanking the people who attended our town hall last weekend. We had some good conversations about housing,…
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Sen. Billig, Speaker Jinkins: Three initiatives will have hearings, three will not | February 16, 2024
OLYMPIA – Senate Majority Leader Andy Billig and Speaker of the House Laurie Jinkins announced Friday that public hearings will be held on Initiative 2113 (police pursuits), I-2111 (state income…
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Legislative Update: Floor action and a Town Hall | February 8, 2024
Dear friends and neighbors, We’re wrapping up the fifth week of this year’s legislative session, and we’re coming up on a big deadline – the House of Origin cutoff –…
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Legislative Update: Floor Action, Congrats to Tacoma Public Schools, and Protecting Reproductive Health | January 26, 2024
Dear friends and neighbors, Hello from Olympia, where we’re wrapping up our third week of this year’s legislative session. This year is a short session and it’s going by quickly,…
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Legislative Update: Kicking off the 2024 legislative session | January 12, 2024
Dear friends and neighbors, Earlier this week we kicked off the 2024 Legislative Session! Our legislature works on a biennial/two-year calendar, and we alternate between short sessions (60 days) and…
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Speaker Jinkins: “Optimistic and determined” about 2024 Legislative Session | January 8, 2024
Ver más abajo para la traducción al español OLYMPIA – The 2024 Legislative Session convened today with opening ceremonies in the state House and Senate. House Speaker Laurie Jinkins (D-Tacoma)…
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Statement from Speaker Laurie Jinkins on not guilty verdict for officers charged with the death of Manuel Ellis | December 21, 2023
OLYMPIA, Wash. – Today, Speaker Laurie Jinkins (D-Tacoma) issued the following statement after the three Tacoma Police Department (TPD) officers were found not guilty of the murder and manslaughter of…
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Happy holidays, and FAFSA applications open soon | December 15, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, This will be my last e-newsletter of 2023! I hope that you are all able to spend time with family and friends as we celebrate this…
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Committee Assembly Days and Survey Results | December 8, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, As we start to wrap up 2023, next year’s legislative session is right around the corner. Earlier this week the House had its Committee Assembly Days,…
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Food Assistance Availability | November 22, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, As we head into the holidays I wanted to take some time to talk about the resources available (below) for anyone facing food insecurity. We know…
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The Page Program, 2024 Legislative Priorities Survey, and a Working Families Tax Credit Update | November 9, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, Thank you so much to everyone who filled out the session priorities survey in my last e-newsletter! If you haven’t had a chance to fill it out, it’s…
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Survey on 2024 Session Priorities | October 26, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, This interim I’ve covered a lot of the work we did last session (you can see all my previous e-newsletters here). As we get closer to the…
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Statement from Speaker Laurie Jinkins (D-Tacoma) on Hate Crime Protections for Jewish, Muslim, Islamic, and Refugee Communities | October 24, 2023
“The last few weeks have been incredibly difficult for the Jewish and Palestinian members of our community and for those with connections to people living in Israel and Gaza. Devastating…
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2023 Legislative Victories: Consumer Protection, plus Legislative Internship Applications | October 12, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, Over the last couple months, we’ve covered nearly all the major issue areas from last session. This will be one of our last “legislative victories” e-newsletters…
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Pierce County high-profile trial begins today: Info and resources for the public | October 3, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, I’m reaching out with some information as our community prepares for the trial of the three Tacoma Police Department (TPD) officers charged with the murder and…
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2023 Legislative Victories: Environment & the Climate Crisis | September 28, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, This fall we’re wrapping up from another record-breaking hot summer and looking at the rest of what’s on track to be the hottest year in recorded…
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2023 Legislative Victories: K-12 Education and Early Learning, plus Legislative Internship Application Open | September 14, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, Last week was the first week of school for Tacoma Public Schools, and I thought I’d take this opportunity to share what we did last session…
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Leader Billig, Speaker Jinkins call for non-partisan process for VRA-compliant legislative district in Yakima Valley | September 13, 2023
Speaker of the House Laurie Jinkins (D-Tacoma) and Senate Majority Leader Andy Billig (D-Spokane) offered the following statement on their decision not to meet in special session to reconvene the…
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2023 Session Victories: Local Projects, plus Community Conversations and WA Cares | July 6, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, We’re here with an update on what local projects we funded during this year’s legislative session! The money for these local projects can come from a…
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2023 Session Victories: Reproductive Care and LGBTQ Rights | June 22, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, Over the last year I’ve found myself thinking about Washington’s role as a beacon of hope. June is Pride month for most of the nation (although…
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2023 Session Victories: Post-Secondary Education, Apprenticeships, and Workforce Development; plus Community Conversations | June 8, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, I’m back with another update on what we were able to accomplish this session! As many students are wrapping up the school year or preparing to…
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2023 Session Victories: Let’s talk housing, behavioral health, and community safety | May 25, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, In my last full e-newsletter I said it would take more than one email to cover all the work we did this session. Over the next…
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This Thursday: Join me for a telephone town hall! | May 8, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, Just a reminder that Sen. Yasmin Trudeau, Rep. Jake Fey and I will be hosting a telephone town hall for 27th District constituents THIS Thursday, May…
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House Speaker Laurie Jinkins: Washington state has consistently led nation on climate, civil rights and more under Gov. Inslee | May 1, 2023
House Speaker Laurie Jinkins (D-Tacoma), released the following statement today: “Under Governor Inslee’s tenure, Washington has consistently been a national leader in forward-thinking policies championing climate action and clean energy,…
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End of Session Update and a Telephone Town Hall | April 28, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, Earlier this week we wrapped up the 2023 legislative session. I’m proud of what we were able to accomplish in 105 days, and I’ve got a…
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Session Update: bills so far, presiding over the House, and more | April 14, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, Today is the 96th day of this year’s 105-day legislative session, and I have some updates! This week was the opposite chamber cutoff, which means we…
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House rolls out “Resilient Washington Budget” | March 28, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, Yesterday, House Democrats rolled out our 2023-2025 state operating budget proposal, the Resilient Washington Budget. Over the last few years we’ve set a new standard for…
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Join me this Saturday for a Town Hall | March 17, 2023
Dear Friends and Neighbors, This is just a quick reminder about our town hall this Saturday, March 18th from 10AM-12PM. Come ask questions and get an update on our work…
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Session Update: Floor Action, an Upcoming Town Hall, the Page Program, & more | March 9, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, This week was the House of Origin Cutoff in Olympia, which means we’ve crossed the deadline for most bills to pass out of the House (or…
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Session Update: Children’s Day, Floor Action, and Meet My Staff | February 23, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, We’re wrapping up week seven of this year’s legislative session, which means we’re in cutoff season (more on that below), and earlier this week we celebrated…
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Celebrating Black History Month and a Legislative Update | February 9, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, February is Black History Month, a time to celebrate our Black and African American communities, and a time to reflect on how we can fight anti-Black…
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2023 Session Update, Accessing the Working Families Tax Credit, Reproductive Health, and more | January 26, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, Hello from Olympia, where we’re wrapping up the third week of this year’s legislative session! We’re in the thick of committee hearings right now but have…
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The People’s Work | January 12, 2023
Dear friends and neighbors, Hello from Olympia, where we’ve started the 2023 Legislative Session! For the first time since 2020, we’re gathering to do the people’s work in-person — a…
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Workforce shortages, housing priorities for Washington House Democrats | January 9, 2023
OLYMPIA – The 2023 legislative session got underway in Olympia today, the first time since 2020 that lawmakers gathered fully in person. Speaker of the House Laurie Jinkins (D-Tacoma) was…
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Speaker Jinkins on a decade of marriage equality in Washington state: “We will continue standing strong for LGBTQ+ rights and rejecting hate in our communities” | December 14, 2022
OLYMPIA – When President Biden signed the federal Respect for Marriage Act on Tuesday, House Speaker Laurie Jinkins (D-Tacoma) was at the White House to celebrate the historic moment. The…
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House Democrats elect leadership team, including new Majority Leader; Jinkins re-elected Speaker | November 21, 2022
OLYMPIA – House Democrats held their caucus reorganization meeting today, electing seven members of their leadership team while welcoming 12 new caucus members. Democrats retain their majority party status in…
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Statement from Speaker Laurie Jinkins (D-Tacoma) on today’s US Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade | June 24, 2022
“Today is an incredibly bleak day in our nation’s history. The Supreme Court of the United States has decided to take away rights from millions of people, undoing longstanding legal…
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2022 Session Victories: Bringing down costs for Washingtonians | May 12, 2022
Dear friends and neighbors, Rising costs due to inflation are impacting all of us right now, especially working families, people on fixed incomes, and those who were already struggling to…
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Statement from Speaker Laurie Jinkins on abortion rights in Washington state | May 3, 2022
Speaker of the House Laurie Jinkins (D-Tacoma), released the following statement today in response to the draft US Supreme Court opinion suggesting the Court may be poised to overturn Roe…
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2022 Session Victories: Keeping communities safe | April 21, 2022
Dear friends and neighbors, One of the topics I am getting a lot of constituent emails about is community safety. Many people are concerned about whether law enforcement has the…
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2022 Session Victories: Addressing Housing Affordability and Homelessness | April 7, 2022
Dear friends and neighbors, Our state faced a housing affordability and homelessness crisis even before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. The last two years have only made the situation more urgent….
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2022 Session Victories: Supporting Students and Educators | March 24, 2022
Dear friends and neighbors, The 2022 session was both historic and productive, and I’ll be providing highlights of the major accomplishments in my next several e-newsletters. This newsletter focuses on…
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A historic and productive session | March 11, 2022
Dear friends and neighbors, The 2022 legislative session adjourned sine die yesterday. (Sine die is latin for “without a day,” and basically means we adjourned without a date of…
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