Browsed by
Category: Legislature

Legislature

WA lawmakers head into third session

WA lawmakers head into third session

Washington legislators are headed into an unusual second special session, still hoping to bridge stark partisan differences and avoid a June 30 deadline for averting a partial government shutdown. Dejected and weary lawmakers were closing out their 30-day special session Tuesday with little to show for their labors.  Gov. Jay Inslee, a freshman Democrat who once served in the state House himself, called a special session to convene at 9 a.m. on Wednesday. At a Capitol news conference, Inslee sought…

Read More Read More

Steve O’Ban sworn in as 28th District senator

Steve O’Ban sworn in as 28th District senator

Secretary of State Wyman presents Senator O’Ban with a certificate of appointment on the Senate floor. (Photo courtesy of Legislative Support Services Photo Department.) A day after the Pierce County Council chose him to replace the late Mike Carrell as the 28th District’s state senator, Steve O’Ban has been sworn in to the Senate. O’Ban was elected a state representative for the district last November. The Senate will hold a legislative memorial service for Carrell June 10 on the Senate…

Read More Read More

Remembering Senator Mike Carrell

Remembering Senator Mike Carrell

(Photo courtesy of Washington State Archives.) Many around the Capitol were saddened by the news that 28th District Senator Mike Carrell passed away Wednesday morning. Carrell, 69, was first elected to the House in 1994. He was elected to the Senate in 2004, and won re-election races in 2008 and last November. From Secretary of State Wyman: “I’m saddened to hear about the passing of Senator Carrell. I know he battled his illness with great courage. Senator Carrell cared passionately…

Read More Read More

Bills passed: how Legislature compares to earlier years

Bills passed: how Legislature compares to earlier years

With the 2013 Legislature taking a two-week break to catch its collective breath between the end of the 105-day regular session and the special session starting May 13 to pass a new operating budget and other items, it’s worth taking a look back to see how many bills were passed by the Legislature in previous odd-year “long sessions” and compare the bill production to this year. This chart was compiled by office staffer (and legislative history buff) Patrick McDonald and…

Read More Read More

Eyman files ‘Super Bowl’ of anti-tax initiatives

Eyman files ‘Super Bowl’ of anti-tax initiatives

UPDATE: Note that last paragraph recasts the original language… Initiative activist Tim Eyman has filed what he called the “Super Bowl” version of his long line of ballot propositions aimed at blocking taxes and requiring a supermajority to pass tax hikes in Olympia. It will have to be a hurry-up offense for Eyman, since there is little more than two months before his July 5 deadline to submit well over 300,000 petition signatures to secure a place on the fall…

Read More Read More

Inslee signs bill boosting electors’ compensation

Inslee signs bill boosting electors’ compensation

Secretary Wyman stands with legislative intern Nate Hauger (middle) and Rep. Steve Bergquist outside the Governor’s Office prior to Gov. Inslee signing the  presidential electors’ compensation bill into law.   Gov. Jay Inslee has signed legislation raising the expense allowance for members of the state’s Electoral College, the party activists who cast the state’s electoral votes for the U.S. presidential ticket that wins the state popular vote. The rate had been unchanged since statehood. House Bill 1639 adjusts the travel,…

Read More Read More

Lawmakers boost compensation for WA electors

Lawmakers boost compensation for WA electors

For the first time since the horse-and-buggy days of statehood, Washington is boosting the expense allowance for members of the state’s Electoral College, the party activists who cast the state’s electoral votes for the U.S. presidential ticket that wins the state popular vote. The Senate gave strong bipartisan approval on Friday to a House-passed bill that was championed by Secretary of State Kim Wyman and shepherded through the long legislative process by office intern Nate Hauger from Central Washington University….

Read More Read More

Beef: It’s what’s for lunch

Beef: It’s what’s for lunch

(Photo courtesy of Benjamin Helle) Maybe it was seeing the cattlemen in their cowboy hats. Maybe it was getting a savory whiff of meat on the barbeque. Or maybe it was just knowing that a tasty lunch was available – for free. Next to sine die, Beef Day is one of the most anticipated days of the legislative session, and this year’s lunch was a smoking success, attracting hundreds of legislators, staffers, lobbyists and visitors to the Hill Thursday. The…

Read More Read More

House offers budget bookend: $1.3b in new revenue

House offers budget bookend: $1.3b in new revenue

The budget battle is about to get  hotter. Majority House Democrats on Wednesday unveiled a $34.5 billion budget plan for the next two years, relying on $1.3 billion in new revenue as a down-payment on the state Supreme Court’s order to boost aid to public schools. The blueprint, which they called honest, balanced and responsible, follows the contours laid down by new Gov. Jay Inslee, a fellow Democrat, and sets up the expected collision with the Senate’s no-new-taxes, $33.4 billion…

Read More Read More

Civility, respect … and more sleep!

Civility, respect … and more sleep!

Secretary of State Kim Wyman introduces her predecessor, Sam Reed, who moderated a panel on legislative civility.  Researchers from Washington State University wanted to know: How can you improve the public view of state government and the Legislature, improve the legislative process, and make Olympia a more civil place? So professors Nicholas Lovrich and Francis Benjamin conducted surveys with past and present Washington legislators, staff and lobbyists — and came away with a treasure trove of observations about how legislators…

Read More Read More