Dear friends and neighbors, 

The 2026 legislative session officially ended earlier this month. When this year’s 60-day session started in January, my top priority was delivering results for southwest Washington. I passed legislation that focusses on special education, funding our schools, preventing election fraud, protecting the health of our environment and agricultural lands in Clark County, and more. I also worked to ensure the 18th District received their fair share of resources in the state’s capital budget. Below is a summary of my work this legislative session to help keep southwest Washington a place where everyone can thrive.  

Capital Budget: This session, we passed a bipartisan capital budget. I fought hard to secure funding for projects and programs in the 18th District. In total, over $10 million will go toward funding projects in our district that support our first responders, create affordable housing options, and more. Here are highlights from the capital budget: 

  • $4 million for the Hidden Village Mobile Home Park to create and preserve affordable homeownership units. 
  • $309,000 for Clark County Fire District 3 to help ensure they have the resources needed to keep our communities safe. 
  • $400,000 for inclusive play equipment at Remy Park. 
  • $258,000 for District Distributed Antenna System Installation.   
  • $1 million for the 92nd Avenue Pump Station to allow Battle Ground’s westside to continue to develop.  
  • $600,000 for the Salmon Creek Treatment Plant Aeration Equipment Replacement project to improve wastewater infrastructure.  
  • $228,000 for improvements at Madrona Recovery so they can better provide behavioral health services.  
  • $3.5 million for the Family Forest Fish Passage Program to help restore fish populations.  

Legislative Wins: This session, I helped push six bills across the finish line! Here is a snapshot of the legislation I sponsored and pushed for this year that passed:  

Senate Bill 5944 clarifies and strengthens collective bargaining rights for language access providers. As of now, if a language access provider were to drive from Battle Ground to Goldendale only for their client to cancel or fail to show up, not only would they be prevented from seeking other work that day due to spending five hours driving, but they would also not be reimbursed for their gas or mileage. Language access providers play a critical role in ensuring essential services in our state are accessible to all communities. Updating collective bargaining law to accurately reflect their work helps strengthen the effectiveness of state services. 

I was proud to work with Rep. Julio Cortes on this important bill. You can watch a video we did this session when Senate Bill 5944 passed off the Senate floor here! 

Senate Bill 6084 addresses a recent Lewis County court case by clarifying the definition of an election and stipulating that a person may not vote in an election in Washington and another state if the election date is the same for both states. This commonsense bill is critical to helping us prevent confusion and potential voter fraud during the 2026 primary and general elections and beyond. Simply put, if you live here, you vote here. You don’t get to vote anywhere else. You can read more about this bill here.  

Senate Bill 5994 preserves timber tax distributions for school districts with recent levy failures. Many school districts across southwest Washington and the state have faced a significant increase in school levy failures. Current law prevents these school districts from receiving their distribution of funds from the state’s timber tax. This hits students and faculty with a brutal 1-2 punch through no fault of their own. I sponsored Senate Bill 5994 because it’s critical we limit the damage this causes. This bill ensures that schools dealing with these circumstances can access funding from the timber tax, even when a levy fails. Our district contributes a great amount of revenue to the state’s timber industry, and our students should not be punished for something they have no control over.   

Senate Bill 5969 reduces duplication between Individualized Education Plans (IEPs) and High School and Beyond Plans (HSBPs). This bill creates a cohesive statewide system for creating IEPs and HSBPs, both of which contain similar information to one another. I serve as a special education teacher in the Camas School District and have seen firsthand how providing transition plans for students with disabilities can help them meet graduation requirements, set goals, and prepare for the future. While IEPs cover everything HSBPs cover, teachers are forced to spend their limited time in the classroom filling out two separate forms that cover much of the same information. Senate Bill 5969 allows teachers to spend more time teaching rather than entering the same information twice on two separate forms.  

Senate Bill 6137 protects student athletes and properly regulates sports betting on in-state college teams. This bill permits wagering on a collegiate sport or athletic event that involves a college located within Washington in tribal casinos. This bill prevents sports wagering from taking place on the illicit, or “gray,” market, instead giving tribal gaming facilities the sole authority to offer sports wagering on their grounds. In addition, it bans betting on the performance or nonperformance of an individual in state college athletics. During a time when online hate and harassment are on the rise, it’s more important than ever that we protect student athletes by properly regulating sports betting on college sports in our state. This bill will protect athletes while allowing Washingtonians to enjoy sports wagering in an ethical and regulated manner. 

Senate Bill 5820 closes a loophole in the Growth Management Act (GMA) by repealing prior legislation that allows industrial development on timber, agricultural, and mineral resource lands or critical environmental areas adjacent to the railroad in Clark County. Clark County is one of only two of Washington’s 39 counties to be exempt from the GMA’s conservation requirements, and I’ve spoken with many members of our community who are concerned about the negative impact this has had on our region. Our state laws mandate the protection and conservation of our most precious lands, including our agricultural and critical areas. This bill opens the door for future recreational use of the rail corridor, creating opportunities for tourism, outdoor access, and economic development. You can read more about this bill here.  

House Bill 2165 prohibits individuals from using false law enforcement identification. I was proud to sponsor the Senate version of this bill. House Bill 2165 bans individuals who are not law enforcement from wearing, displaying or possessing badges or other law enforcement insignias. ICE agents are stoking fear across Washington state and the country while making us less secure. The FBI has warned of criminals posing as ICE officers and carrying out robberies, kidnappings, and sexual assaults in several states. This is unacceptable and erodes the public’s trust in law enforcement. House Bill 2165 is a critical step in helping us restore that trust so we can keep our communities safe.  

I hope to see you at our town hall! 

Your input is critical to my work and helps me better represent you in Olympia. That’s why I’m excited to invite you to an in-person town hall I am hosting on Saturday, April 11, at Washington State University Vancouver. Here are the details: 

In-Person Town Hall with Sen. Adrian Cortes
Saturday, April 11
Doors open: 11:30 a.m.
Town Hall: 12-1 p.m.

WSU Vancouver
Dengerink Administration Building, Room 110 (VDEN 110)
14204 NE Salmon Creek Ave.
Vancouver, WA 98686

We’ll discuss the 2026 legislative session, the biggest issues impacting our community in the 18th District and our state, and more. Please join us for an in-depth conversation about the Legislature’s work.  

Thank you to everyone who reached out to our office this legislative session. I encourage you to stay involved during the interim. Please feel free to call my office at 360-786-7634 or to email me at Adrian.Cortes@leg.wa.gov.   

It’s an honor to represent you and a privilege to bring our southwest Washington values to Olympia.     

Sincerely, 

Sen. Adrian Cortes