{"id":3266,"date":"2025-01-22T12:18:13","date_gmt":"2025-01-22T19:18:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/hansen\/?p=3266"},"modified":"2025-01-27T17:34:07","modified_gmt":"2025-01-28T00:34:07","slug":"the-2025-session-is-underway","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/hansen\/2025\/01\/22\/the-2025-session-is-underway\/","title":{"rendered":"The 2025 session is underway!"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dear friends and neighbors,\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We just started the second week of the 2025 legislative session, and I wanted to give you a brief update. Most time-sensitive: <\/span>We are accepting page applications<\/span><\/a>, so if you know a young person 14-16 years old interested in politics, we\u2019d love to see if we can fit them in to spend a week with us in Olympia (I did this when I was a kid, and it was great fun).<\/span> Applications close March 27, 2025.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/p>\n

Chief Justice Debra Stephens swore me in to my first full term as your state senator! There<\/span>\u2019<\/span>s a lot of work ahead, and I\u2019m humbled and honored to continue working on behalf of all of us. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

New committee assignments<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The biggest changes for me this year are my new committee assignments: I\u2019m now on the Ways & Means (the committee that oversees the state budget) and the Early Learning & K-12 Education committees. Both Hansen kids \u2014 like me \u2014 are products of Washington state public schools, and I am deeply committed to public education in our state. I\u2019m grateful my colleagues have trusted me with committee assignments that will put me at the center of critical decisions on school policy and funding. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This week, we\u2019re hearing public testimony in the Early Learning & K-12 Education Committee on several bills to improve funding to Washington\u2019s schools in areas such as transportation (<\/span>SB 5187<\/span><\/a>), materials, supplies and operating costs (<\/span>SB 5192<\/span><\/a>), and special education programs (<\/span>SB 5263<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>SB 5307<\/span><\/a>).<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

How to get involved\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Everything we do at the Legislature benefits from public input. To make a difference for our community on the issues you care about, here\u2019s how you can get involved:\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n