Five laws in 60 days
This year’s short session was a sprint!
In just 60 days your Democratic legislature made historic investments to tackle our housing and homelessness crises and passed the Move WA Forward transportation package which will invest in infrastructure, transit, and alternatives to our dependency on oil and gas. We also increased funding for food and utility assistance programs and shored up our Paid Family and Medical Leave program, helping families hit hardest by the impacts of the pandemic and inflation.
Together, we passed almost 300 bills! And, I am so proud to have passed five (5!!) of my own bills to protect workers, end gun violence, and ban toxic chemicals. They are:
- Silenced No More Act: NDAs and settlement agreements have been used by employers for decades to perpetuate a culture of silence by blocking employees from speaking out in pursuit of justice, healing, and protecting others. HB 1795 allows workers to share their stories of harassment, discrimination, retaliation, and wage theft in the workplace if they choose to do so.
- Supporting rideshare drivers: This first-in-the-nation law advances the rights of our Washington State rideshare drivers by providing them the highest statewide minimum wage, paid sick days, workers’ compensation, discrimination protections, and protection against retaliation.
- Banning ghost guns: Gun violence is a public health crisis that is now the leading cause of death for children and teens in our state. This is heartbreaking to me as a mother and as someone who lost my dear friend Gabe to gun violence. HB 1705 bans untraceable, homemade ‘ghost guns’ which are dangerous because there is no way of tracing them and they can be obtained without a background check.
- Eliminating PFAS ‘forever chemicals’: These chemicals are toxic, pervasive, and threaten the health and safety of us all. I was alarmed when I learned that PFAS was found in the breast milk of Puget Sound area moms. HB 1694 will speed up the process to ban these harmful chemicals so Washington families don’t have to wait until 2030 to see action.
- Redeveloping Interbay: The Seattle Armory property in Interbay is ready to be reimagined when the National Guard relocates as a matter of regional security. HB 1173 creates the Ballard-Interbay State Lands Development Authority to oversee the redevelopment of this land to create jobs in our district and maximize our community’s benefit.
After a little R&R, my attention is now on our reelection campaign this November! I can’t believe the time has already come to hit the campaign trail again. I’m looking forward to knocking on doors and talking face-to-face with families in the 36th District.
It is the joy of a lifetime to serve my community in the State House. Thank you for believing in me.