After spending many late nights on the House floor, the Legislature passed the operating budget and adjourned on-time after 105 days. This is the first time in nine years the Legislature has been able to end on-time in a budget writing year and we succeeded in tackling a significant number of issues in the past four months.
The Legislature accomplished some nation-leading efforts in health care access, environmental protection, and college investments. We also made strong investments in affordable housing, mental health access, and transportation infrastructure.
While I am proud of the work that the Legislature did to provide comprehensive investments in the future of our state, I am most proud to have followed up on our commitment to invest more money in special education supports as we work to address the impacts of the McCleary decision and transitioning the responsibility of fully-funding K-12 education to the state.
Just as I have been dedicated to ensuring every child in our state gets a high-quality education, I have found that passion extends to our littlest learners with a focus on ensuring high-quality childcare that is accessible and affordable for working families in our communities.
It’s why I was proud to stand with the governor and dozens of advocates, parents, and children as he signed HB 1344 into law and why I will keep fighting to ensure every child shows up to kindergarten ready to learn so fully-funding our K-12 system creates a strong return on your investment.
As someone who has dedicated my career to advocating on behalf of veterans, military service members and their families, I was honored to launch and chair of the first ever Veterans and Military Families Caucus, where I worked with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to help disabled veterans gain access to in-state tuition, allow nonresident children from military families to enroll in Washington’s public schools prior to their arrival in the state, and provide property tax relief for disabled veterans and seniors.
This work and other efforts we worked on all stem from my focus to put our kids, families and community first. My lived experience is the driving force behind my commitment to keep fighting for real families and putting problem-solving above partisan politics.
Local Community Projects
This session I fought alongside 30th District Rep. Pellicciotti and Sen. Wilson to secure funding for local community projects. These funds direct state resources to improve access to services, community development, and the overall quality of life in South King and North Pierce counties.
The final two-year operating, capital, and transportation budgets were passed prior to the end of session and include several local priority investments, which can be found here.
Moving Home
As we wrap things up in Olympia and head back home, I wanted to let you know how to stay in touch with my office throughout the summer. As a part-time citizen legislator, I’m back at my full-time day job but focused on remaining as accessible as possible.
Beginning May 24th, I will be hosting “Coffee with Kristine” on Fridays from 7 – 9 a.m. at Poverty Bay Coffee Company (1108 S 322nd PL, Federal Way, 98003).
My legislative assistant, Daniel Olson, will be working out of our new district office, located at 31919 1st Ave South, Suite 207 (Chamber of Commerce Bldg) in Federal Way. He’ll be working Tuesday – Friday or by appointment. Please don’t hesitate to contact Daniel with any questions or concerns!
Finally, thank you to everyone who called, wrote, emailed, and visited us in Olympia this session! My favorite part of this job is connecting with you and I deeply appreciate your willingness to take time out of your busy schedule to let me know what matters most to you and your family.