This past week made Olympia feel like home as we welcomed more than 100 Spokane area constituents to the Capitol Campus.
There were education, business, non-profit and community leaders advocating for our community as part of the Greater Spokane Incorporated joint chamber delegation. Plus, we hosted several other large groups of constituents, including home care workers, teens advocating to protect and expand funding for health care, and a group calling themselves “Outmates” who had served their time and are looking for a fair start to begin productive lives after prison.
These meetings keep me focused on my primary mission here in Olympia: to represent Spokane, expand opportunities and build prosperity in our community. A big thank you to everyone who made the trip!
In addition, on Monday, we honored the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. at the Capitol. It seemed particularly fitting on a day dedicated to Dr. King that we focus our attention on grassroots constituent advocacy and particularly on our next generation of leaders: our children, which was a common theme through almost all of the Spokane-related meetings last week.
Sheena Henderson Act:
In July 2014, Christopher Henderson shot and killed himself and his wife, Sheena, at Deaconess Hospital. The firearm he used had been confiscated by police a month earlier, following an apparent suicide attempt.
In the wake of this tragedy, Sheena’s parents have called for legislation that will help prevent violence like this in the future.
To that end, I have introduced a bill that will create a safety protocol for returning confiscated firearms. SB 5381 prioritizes the safety of families by requiring police to provide notice to immediate familymembers that have requested such notice before firearms are returned.
I was so glad that members of Sheena’s family could be with me last week as we dropped the Sheena Henderson Act in the hopper and begin its journey to, hopefully, becoming a law.
Sen. Billig dropping the Sheena Henderson Act with Sheena’s family.
SB 5381 has been referred to the Law & Justice Committee and we will hopefully have a hearing on the bill in the next couple of weeks.
You can read more about Sheena’s story here.
Keeping in Touch:
If you have a comment, idea, or question, please let me know. I would love to hear from you!
You can reach me by e-mail (andy.billig@leg.wa.gov) or by phone at 360-786-7604.
And if you know someone who would like to get their own copy of my weekly e-newsletter, tell them they can go to my website at http://www.senatedemocrats.wa.gov/senators/billig/ and click on the link to “Sign up for my e-newsletter.”
Onward!
Andy
