Week 6 | Phase 2, Vaccine Updates, and Progressive Tax Reform

Happy Fantastic Friday!

As of last weekend, the entire state has moved to Phase 2 of the Healthy Washington reopening plan. This is great news for families and businesses across the state! Learn more about what Phase 2 means for you and your family. Even as we progress through the phases and more Washingtonians are vaccinated against COVID-19, please continue taking steps to protect yourself and others, such as wearing your mask, washing your hands, and physical distancing. As the pandemic response continues around the state, the Legislature is continuing to move through the remote legislative process. Monday was policy committee cutoff, meaning any bills not necessary to implement the budget must have been voted out of policy committees to continue moving this year. The next deadline is fiscal committee cutoff on February 22 by which bills with fiscal impacts must be voted out of fiscal committees, such as the Appropriations Committee on which I serve. That means the next two weeks of session will be spent on the virtual floor of the People’s House, debating and passing bills. Below is a quick update on where my bills are in the legislative process. House Bill 1072, which eliminates a provision in current law that denies equity and access to justice for undocumented immigrants by restricting them from accessing to state-funded civil legal aid, was passed by the House last Friday! House Bill 1117, which would integrate salmon recovery into the Growth Management Act (GMA), which guides land management and planning in our state, is under consideration in the House Appropriations Committee. House Bill 1356, which bans the inappropriate use of Native American symbols, names, and images as public school mascots, logos, or team names, is ready to be voted on by the full House. House Bill 1372, which authorizes putting a statue of Billy Frank Jr. — who was a dedicated advocate for equality, justice, and environmental protections — in the National Statuary Hall collection in Washington D.C., was voted out of the House Appropriations Committee on Wednesday. Finally, the Washington Green Amendment, which  got a public hearing in the House Environment & Energy Committee on Monday, but will not be continuing forward this session. I am committed to continuing to work on this policy, and am glad to have gotten this conversation started here in Washington state. Find regular updates on my bills, as well as the vital legislation brought forward by the Policing Policy Leadership Team, on the Bill Tracker page on my website.

Vaccine Updates

Whatcom County

Yesterday, the Whatcom County Department of Health, in collaboration with community healthcare providers, announced plans to open a large-scale community COVID-19 vaccination clinic to be located at Bellingham Technical College (BTC). The clinic is anticipated to open in March, depending on vaccine availability. The group’s goal is to vaccinate up to 5,000 people at the site per week, depending on the reliability of weekly vaccine shipments from the state. In addition to hosting the vaccination site, students in BTC’s nursing program will help staff the site. Nursing students from Whatcom Community College’s nursing program will also lend their expertise and help staff the vaccination site.

Learn more about vaccine distribution in Whatcom County.

Skagit County

Vaccine availability depends on adequate supply provided by the federal and state government. Vaccine roll-out will take time. We appreciate your patience.

Learn more about vaccine distribution in Skagit County.

San Juan County  

Step One for Washington’s Community and Economic Recovery to be signed by the governor

This afternoon, Governor Inslee will sign into law the early action COVID-19 relief bills that allocate $2.2 billion in federal funds to provide assistance to Washington families and businesses who have been most impacted by the pandemic. These investments will ease the financial hardship of struggling renters and landlords, small restaurants and other neighborhood businesses, school districts, uninsured and underinsured individuals, and Black and Brown communities, which have been disproportionately hurt during the pandemic.

These measures are the first step in making sure we support those most impacted by the pandemic so that we can recover, together. As session continues, we will continue considering bills, a supplemental budget, and an operating budget for the next biennium that continue to invest in public health, equitably address needs across the state in struggling communities, and help families and small businesses.

Learn more about how the early-action COVID-19 relief bills will help our communities.

Pathways to Recovery Act—rethinking punitive approaches to substance use disorder

House Bill 1499, the Pathways to Recovery Act, proposes a new approach to improving public safety by eliminating ineffective and destructive criminal penalties for personal drug use and expanding proven treatment and support services for substance use disorder. The legislation recognizes that substance use disorder is a treatable brain disease from which people can recover if they are given care and support including pre-treatment outreach, treatment, and recovery support services. I support the Pathways to Recovery Act because it will get person-centered care and resources like peer supports into every community.

No one has fallen too far into active addiction to recover, but the current system of consequences like arrest and incarceration is not working to end addiction. Instead, they lead to pain, shame, and even more substance use. A clear pathway to recovery for individuals is required. This includes focusing on the unique needs of individuals, providing professional and experienced support, and a community that will invest in this recovery. It requires hope.

Two Progressive Tax Reform Proposals

Washington has always been a great place to live and work, but that is going to change if we don’t address the fundamental and systemic problem of our inequitable tax structure. Washington state has the most regressive tax code in the nation. People like you and me pay for schools, public health, housing and homelessness programs, public safety, and other vital government functions while the wealthiest households pay far less than they should. Middle-class Washington families pay four times more in taxes than the highest-income households in our state, as a share of their income, and that matters because it means we – rather than the wealthiest among us – are the ones expected to pay for schools, safety programs, homelessness services, etc. For the lowest-income households – those making $24,000 or less per year, it is even worse, as they pay six times more in taxes as a share of their income.

Credit: Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy

Below are two proposals that have been introduced this session that would help reform our state’s regressive tax code, while also ensuring we can fund the vital programs, services, and supports that our communities need.

Funding Child Care with a Capital Gains Tax The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the critical importance of child care for working families and the business community. It’s imperative we invest in child care for immediate and long-term economic recovery. That’s why I support House Bill 1496, which will bolster economic recovery and the economic well-being of working families by funding the expansion and affordability of child care through a capital gains tax. The proposal will also help address the systemic inequities in our state tax code. Passing a capital gains tax would help ensure the wealthiest Washingtonians share in the responsibility of funding key programs, such as the much-needed investment in child care. By enacting this tax, we can kickstart our economy, provide resources to invest back into our communities, help rebalance our upside-down tax code, and give kids across our state a fair start. Additional details, including tax rates and exemptions, are available in this recent press release. The Washington State Wealth Tax I support the Washington State Wealth Tax because it makes things a little better for Washington’s working families. Instead of continuing to rely on sales tax and tax on real property for the majority of our state’s revenue, the wealth tax could be a new tool in the tool box that taxes the financial assets billionaires use to make their fortunes. The proposal tax rate is one percent and exempts the first $1 billion of wealth, making the tax barely a blip on the radar for someone who makes billions or hundreds of millions in a single year. If your net worth doesn’t add up to more than a billion dollars, you won’t be paying this tax. I know I won’t ever in my lifetime. If we don’t pass progressive tax reforms our state will continue to over-rely on low- and middle-income families to pay for the vital government programs and functions we all need. Washington’s wealthiest residents can and should share more equitably in the responsibility of funding these key community programs alongside their neighbors. If we are ever going to invest in better schools, get struggling families into stable housing, and reduce our reliance on working families to pay for it all, we must start asking the wealthy to contribute like the rest of us do.

Why Washington needs the Working Families Tax Credit  In order to tackle the systemic inequities in our state’s tax system, it is not enough to ensure that Washington’s wealthiest households contribute proportionately to pay for vital programs and services. We must also consider pathways to better support our state’s working families, who are struggling under the weight of our regressive tax code and the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Reducing how much low-income families are paying in taxes is a key step in supporting their stability. House Bill 1297, introduced by my colleague, Rep. My-Linh Thai, would do just that by expanding and implementing the Working Families Tax Credit. This credit, which starts at $500, puts money into the pockets of families who are likely to immediately spend it in their local community to pay for life’s essentials, which also stimulates economic recovery.

Constituent Corner: Regional Health Care Districts

I’ve received emails from some of you about my co-sponsorship of House Bill 1152,  sponsored by Rep. Marcus Riccelli. The bill creates comprehensive health service districts (CHSD) that will provide equitable access to foundational public health services across the state. While some concerns about the proposal have been raised by our local counties, there are districts in our state that desperately need this support. As a co-sponsor of the bill, I am uniquely poised to help ensure the voices in the 40th District are heard in this policy discussion. I am actively engaged with our local and county governments on this issue and will continue to work with them to ensure our region is heard and that our health districts are not impeded by this statewide policy.

The COVID-19 pandemic has shown us the cracks in many parts of our society, but especially in public health and health care delivery. The state has chronically underfunded public health, and House Bill 1152 will ensure that the Legislature adequately funds public health districts all across the state. Implementing CHSDs will promote the systemic sharing of resources and functions among state and local public health entities, sovereign tribal nations, and Indian health programs to increase capacity and improve efficiency and effectiveness. In addition, local health districts would still exist but would have access to more funding and resources.

By working together, we can create a public health system that is state supported, regionally coordinated, and locally implemented.

Join me for my Constituent Coffees!  

Thank you to everyone who has participated in my Constituent Coffee events this session! These events are an opportunity for you to hear from me about what’s going on in the Legislature and to ask questions or make comments on current legislation. I’ll be hosting these events each week throughout session, so pre-register today and check back in for more details on future events. If you have any questions, please contact my Legislative Assistant, Kaylee, at kaylee.galloway@leg.wa.gov.

In the News

Honoring Billy Frank Jr. with state Statue

“‘During this time of equity, during this time of diversity, during this time of finding balance among our communities, there is no one better than Billy Frank Jr., who stood with all of you,’ Lekanoff told the State Government and Tribal Relations Committee.” – via a recent article by Northwest Public Broadcasting

“In other words, Frank is worthy of representing Washington in National Statuary Hall at the U.S. Capitol. That is the purpose of House Bill 1372 in the Legislature, seeking to replace a statue of Marcus Whitman with one of Frank, who died in 2014 at the age of 83.” – via a recent editorial in The Columbian

Banning Native American Mascots at Public Schools

“A bill that would ban the use of Native American mascots from most public schools in Washington was passed out of committee on Friday and sent to the full Washington state House of Representatives…Supporters of the bill contend such mascots do not honor individual tribes, but dehumanize Native Americans, erase the history of genocide and parody what Indigenous people look like…The bill was introduced by state Rep. Debra Lekanoff, D-Bow, an Alaska Native who is Tlingit and Aleut and the only Native American member of the Washington Legislature.” – via a recent article in the Seattle Times

“State Rep. Debra Lekanoff, D-Bow, has introduced a bill that would ban use of Native American mascots for school sports teams in Washington…’It is degrading that we are being portrayed as no different than a token,’ Lekanoff, the only Native American currently serving in the state legislature, said.” – via a recent article in the La Conner Weekly News

“If HB 1356 is signed into law, public schools would not be able to use Native American names, symbols or images as mascots, logos or team names. However, there would be an exception for schools that meet certain requirements, according to the bill’s text. One of the requirements is consultation with a tribe located in the school district…For a public school to use a name, symbol or image, the tribe would have to authorize it through an ‘appropriate enactment or resolution.'” – via a recent article in the Columbia Basin Herald

Thank you all for taking to the time to read this week’s Fantastic Friday, and for taking an interest in our progress at the House of Representatives. I will be sending out a Fantastic Friday letter each week throughout the legislative session.

Please feel free to reach out to me using the information below, with any questions, inquiries, or concerns you may have.

I am here for you!

All best wishes,

Rep. Debra Lekanoff