LEGISLATURE 2023-24: Legislative Newsletter (Feb. 19, 2023/LWVWA)

Editor’s Note: The League of Women Voters (LWV) of Washington uploaded this legislative newsletter to their website on Feb. 19, 2023. Our mission at the Voter Interests Project is to monitor elected officials and ballot measures; we generally do not report on the activities of non-profit organizations. However, the LWV Whidbey Island chapter conducts candidate forums during most election cycles, and are therefore of particular interest to voters. The LWV of Washington’s website states, “The League is a Nonpartisan Source You Can Trust”; however, the LWV does take positions on public policy. Our observation is that their policy positions inform their management of voter forums. Therefore, we believe it to be of interest to our readers to know the positions for which the LWV advocates.

Action Alerts

Click on the links below to learn more about bills currently being reviewed in the state legislature. You can “take action” on these most pressing bills by sending a suggested, editable email to legislators, encouraging them to vote to promote the League issue in question.

Take Action to Improve Voting Access for Citizens in our County Jails

Democracy depends on participation of all citizens—including those awaiting trial in our county jails. We believe every citizen should have an equal opportunity to vote, no matter their race, income, or circumstances. HB 1174 provides a comprehensive plan to improve access and remove barriers to voting for eligible jail inmates.

Click here ask all members of the Appropriations Committee to vote YES on HB 1174

Pass SB 5078—Related to Firearm Industry Responsibility

Please help reduce gun violence in this country, including in Washington State. You can help by asking that SB 5078 be moved with a Do Pass recommendation out of the Senate Ways & Means Committee before the cut-off for bills with fiscal impact on Friday, February 24. One of the ways to reduce gun violence is to require that the industry take responsibility for certain aspects of gun sales and ownership. This bill does that. It has already passed one committee on the policy basis; it just needs this fiscal committee approval to move forward.

Click here to ask the Senate Ways & Means Committee to PASS SB 5078.

This Week in the Legislature

Hang On, The Ride Is Speeding Up!

We reached a significant cutoff date for this year’s legislative session: February 17. That was the last date for bills to be passed out of the respective Senate or House policy committees where the bill was introduced. Any bills that did not pass out of policy committees are effectively “dead” for this year. Many of those bills may be reintroduced in 2024.

This deadline does not apply to the House fiscal committees, the Senate Ways and Means committee or the Transportation committees. There was a great deal of work at the end of last week, as legislators strived to move bills out of policy committees. This week the number of hearings and executive sessions will ramp up as legislators work to meet the next deadline, February 24. That is the last day to pass bills out of House fiscal committees, the Senate Ways and Means committee, and Transportation committees in the house of origin.

Since the timeline for this next step in only one week, we may not have an opportunity to let you know in a timely manner when things are happening. The committees are posting their Agendas as we progress through the week. If you are following particular legislation, be sure to click through on the blue bill number (on leg.wa.gov) on the legislation grid or weekly updates to get the most up-to-date status on a given bill, and thus determine your action. And be sure to check information on the individual issue webpages.

There are several other ways you can follow the hearings and legislative process:

Via TVW (Washington State’s public affairs TV network), and
On the Washington State Legislature website.

Check out the weekly updates for each issue (below) for information on how to testify, and how to sign on PRO or CON to proposed legislation.

The 2023 Legislative Issues

LWVWA Legislative Issues From the 2023 Washington State Legislative Session

Click on an issue to learn more about session results on bills the League supported and “This Week’s Updates” to read the issue chair’s report on this past week.

Democracy

Elections | Issue Overview | Read this week’s update

Money in Politics | Issue Overview | Read this week’s update

Education | Issue Overview | Read this week’s update

Redistricting | Issue Overview | New task force underway – see updates

Environment

Climate Crisis and Energy | Issue Overview | Read this week’s update

Forests | Issue Overview | Read this week’s update

Growth Management | Issue Overview | Read this week’s update

Solid Waste Management | Issue Overview | Read this week’s update

Transportation | Issue Overview | Read this week’s update

Social and Economic Policy