Friends and neighbors,
Going into the 2023 legislative session, I worked with communities and experts to craft important legislation to meet the needs of residents in our district and across the state. Those priorities spanned from education and open government to climate change and environmental justice. The legislative session also saw a focus on affordable housing, abortion rights, and keeping local journalism alive. Here are some of the highlights of legislation and funding which were enacted and work remaining.
Education Funding
Despite our constitutional obligation, our state fails to fund every child’s education with regard to special education services needed by students with disabilities. The state further caps how many children with disabilities will receive funding in each school district. I view this cap as unconscionable and unconstitutional. This session, I passed House Bill 1436, adding $417 million in new support for special education during this biennium and nearly a billion dollars over the next four years.
I worked with the Seattle delegation to secure $14 million for the Seattle Public Schools Skills Centers to provide space to learn critical skills for high-demand vocations such as the building trades, and dental and maritime industries. Looking ahead, I am hopeful we can completely remove funding caps and provide all students with a high-quality public education.
Protecting Students from Sexual Harassment on College Campuses
Administrators, sports coaches and faculty found to have committed sexual misconduct have been able to quietly leave an institution without having to disclose the offense to their next employer – where they continue predatory behavior. This is called “Passing the Harasser.” In 2020, I developed and passed the first legislation in the US to end this practice. This year, working with UW faculty and student survivors, we developed and passed HB 1522 to expand the protection to address sexual misconduct at conferences.
As the Chair of the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee, I’ve overseen audits to improve government performance and transparency. This year, we’ve focused on improving the performance of the Employment Security Department in processing pandemic-era unemployment claims and improving how schools use federal funds to reduce learning loss during COVID-19.
Access to Emergency Contraception:
On June 23rd, the Seattle Times wrote a great piece on the inspirational work of UW students who were seeking to ensure access to emergency contraception and medically assisted abortion on the UW campus and campuses statewide. Knowing that I represent many of these students in the legislature and that I am a UW School of Public Health faculty member, the students approached me to write HB 1837 which would have put emergency contraception vending machines on public community college and university campuses across the state – from near the Idaho border to here in Seattle. We brought together students from across the state and successfully secured funding for these important resources.
Open Government
I’ve also heard from you about the ads, digital media and mailings urging you to call or email legislators to support or kill legislation on behalf of some special or corporate interests hiding behind a front group with a nice-sounding name. This session, I developed legislation with the Public Disclosure Commission and Senator Valdez to close this loophole. House Bill 1317 was signed into law in April, requiring special interests to disclose who is really funding their lobbying efforts the same way campaign ads disclose top donors. In March, I was honored as the open government legislative champion for the past year by the Washington Coalition for Open Government.
Reducing Gun Violence
Assault rifles are made for one purpose: killing humans. I was one of only a handful of legislators who were willing to cosponsor a ban on assault weapons when it was first introduced at the request of AG Bob Ferguson in 2016. This year, we finally passed House Bill 1240 to prohibit the manufacture and sale of assault weapons in Washington!
Investing in Washington
As a member of the Appropriations Committee, I advocated for increased funding for public education, expanding access to college pathways, and investing in healthcare – with an emphasis on our dire behavioral health needs. We’ve secured a historic investment of $1.1 billion to reduce homelessness and support community behavioral health services, health provider rate increases, substance use disorder prevention and treatment, and crisis diversion.
In review, the 2023 legislative session has focused on uplifting those most in need, while also recognizing that we can’t address one area at the expense of others. Our collective goals, such as affordable housing, behavioral health access, reducing workforce shortages, education, and providing safe access to healthcare, mutually reinforce each other. I will continue listening to you and keep working on solutions to our most pressing challenges.
Community Town Hall
Sen. Javier Valdez, Rep. Darya Farivar, and I will discuss major updates from this session followed by time to answer your questions. This event will be held at Nathan Hale High School in the performing arts center (PAC). We look forward to seeing you there!
Follow this link or the QR code to submit your questions ahead of time: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/GBJBYC3.
Address: Nathan Hale High School is located at 10750 30th Ave NE, Seattle, WA 98125.
Stay tuned for insight into my future efforts and opportunities to stay involved.
Thank you,
Rep. Gerry Pollet