E-Newsletters

Dear friends and neighbors, It’s been months since the end of the 2021 legislative session, but little has changed since then in terms of our major needs and priorities. When the Legislature convened back in January, we faced potential economic catastrophe, spiking COVID-19 cases, political violence in D.C. and at home, and the uncertainty of a mostly remote session. At the same ...

Dear friends and neighbors, I will be hosting a virtual town hall meeting this Wednesday with my seatmates, Rep. Sharon Wylie and Rep. Monica Stonier, to recap the events of the 2021 legislative session and answer questions from constituents. The town hall starts at 6 p.m. and may be viewed live on Facebook and on YouTube. You may submit questions in ...

Dear friends and neighbors, The 2021 legislative session accomplished three major milestones: it was the first-ever session conducted mostly remotely, to keep people safe from the pandemic; it was the fourth straight year the Legislature finished its work on time, something that hadn’t happened since 1941; and, most importantly of all, we passed the most laws in recent memory to bring ...

Dear friends and neighbors, The transportation revenue package currently before the Legislature, vitally needed in communities across our state, is even more critical to Southwest Washington. Like past transportation packages, it would sustain our ability to travel smoothly and safely by supplementing the steadily declining gas tax revenues that maintain roads all over our state. More importantly, it commits $1.2 billion toward ...

Dear friends and neighbors, We received great news Thursday when the governor announced that Clark County will be able to move to Phase 2 of the Roadmap to Recovery plan, bringing relief to area businesses that have been wanting badly to reopen. I know how frustrated our local business owners have felt, and I share that frustration. The pandemic has saddled ...

Dear friends and neighbors, Since becoming chair of Senate Health & Long Term Care Committee in 2018, I have used the final months of each year to identify the upcoming priorities for the committee. In late 2018, for instance, I laid out seven goals for the 2019 session, and we passed every one of them. I took the same approach ...

Dear friends and neighbors, The 2021 Legislative Session is fully underway, and while our approach to this session is different due to the pandemic, the work to be done is more crucial than ever. Our first order of business, for instance, was to vote to change the rules so we can safely conduct session remotely because of the pandemic. But the ...