OLYMPIA — Washington state’s behavioral health system is coming out of the 2023 legislative session with nearly $1 billion in new funding and crucial innovative initiatives established. “With the rollout of Washington’s new 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, our state is becoming a national model for behavioral health crisis intervention,” said Sen. Manka Dhingra (D-Redmond), deputy majority leader of the Senate. “And this year, the Legislature stepped up to fulfill that promise — not only to deliver the services that people ...
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About Manka
Manka Dhingra is Deputy Majority Leader of the Washington State Senate. She brings two decades of experience as a prosecutor and behavioral health expert to her role as chair of the Senate Law & Justice Committee. She also serves on the Health & Long Term Care Committee and the Ways & Means Committee.
Dhingra was first elected to the Senate by the constituents of the 45th Legislative District in November 2017, the first Sikh state legislator elected in the nation. Since then, she has sponsored and passed legislation addressing a wide range of issue areas, including: curbing domestic violence and sexual assault, preventing firearm violence, providing property tax relief for seniors and people with disabilities, prosecuting financial fraud, and reforming the criminal justice system with an evidence-based approach.
During her time in the Senate, Dhingra founded the Senate Behavioral Health Subcommittee and helped pass legislation and funding to transform the Washington State behavioral health system, reorienting it around prevention rather than crisis response. She continues to strive to ensure that Washingtonians with behavioral health needs get the treatment they need and deserve.
Read Manka’s full biography here.
Manka in the News
TNT: Inslee signs abortion-related bills into law. Here are other key bills also signed so far
Gov. Jay Inslee signed five new pieces of legislation into law on ...
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KING 5: Senate committee passes bill banning sale of assault weapons in Washington
OLYMPIA, Wash. — The manufacture and sale of guns defined as assault ...
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Sequim Gazette: Bill restricts collection of health data
Use of consumer reproductive health data would be much more restricted under ...
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PubliCola: New Drug Possession Bill Emphasizes Coercive Treatment
Democrats in the legislature are making procedural moves that will decide what ...
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Suburban Times: Quan Huynh ’25 Discusses her Internship at the Washington State Senate
Pacific Lutheran University Pre-Law Club President Quan Huynh ’25 unexpectedly stepped into ...
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Columbia Herald: Domestic violence bills look to improve victim safety
Victims of domestic violence will get more protection under a package of ...
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Crosscut: Push to decriminalize fades as WA Senate considers new drug law
As Washington lawmakers try to reshape how the state deals with substance-use ...
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NewsBreak: Washington State Lawmakers Hold Bipartisan Press Conference to Address Domestic Violence Legislation
OLYMPIA, WA – Twenty percent of all murders in Washington State are ...
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Spokesman-Review: Washington lawmakers highlight bills to address domestic violence, missing and murdered Indigenous people
Police could call judges at a domestic violence crime scene to issue ...
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GeekWire: Seattle-area police use adhesive GPS trackers to catch fleeing suspects, prevent high-speed chases
The Redmond Police Department implemented new GPS technology last month that has ...
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