Dear friends and neighbors, 

The 2024 session is truly in full swing! It is an immense privilege to once again serve the 47th Legislative District in the Washington State Senate and champion our communities’ priorities.   

2024 LEGISLATION 

My bills are moving through the process, and I’ve already had several hearings. 

Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women

  • Supports law enforcement in their efforts to locate missing persons, aiding our work to address the missing and murdered Indigenous women crisis. (SB 6186) 

Developmental Disabilities

  • Helps enhance the quality of life for individuals with developmental disabilities and their families by integrating respite care into the aggregate services offered under both the basic plus and the children’s intensive in-home behavioral support waiver. (SB 6216)
  • Calls on Congress to fully fund 40% of the costs of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, so we can transform the lives of millions of students with disabilities by ensuring they have access to quality education. (SJM 8007) 
  • Allows parents and children who are related by marriage or domestic partnership, like fathers-in-laws or daughters-in-laws, to qualify for the home care lower training and certification requirements extended to other family members. (SB 5811)
  • Ensures records on the historical treatment of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities at Lakeland Village are preserved, providing families a way to gain closure or learn about their relatives if they ever lived there. (SB 6125) 

Good Governance

  • Have you ever used TANF? This establishes a customer voice council to gather and use client perspective and feedback to inform local practices, statewide policymaking, and evaluation of programs and practices. (SB 5889) 
  • Takes a practical and necessary step to safeguard our communities’ ability to showcase their unique attractions and draw visitors by giving local governments flexibility to make exemptions to the tourism promotion area lodging charge. (SB 6202) 

You can track all of my legislation here. 

CLIMATE COMMITMENT ACT: FAST FACTS 

There’s been a lot of talk about Washington’s Climate Commitment Act as of late, and I wanted to provide some fast facts.  

What is the CCA? 

The CCA is a carbon emission reduction program. Large emitters must either reduce emissions or buy credits. 

Where does the revenue go? 

The CCA supports clean transportation, energy, climate resilience, environmental justice, and health equity. It also helps families with energy efficiency, builds EV infrastructure, protects communities from pollution, creates green energy jobs, provides free transit for youth, and addresses industry and agriculture efficiency. 

What’s the impact on gas prices? 

The CCA affects major emitters like oil companies, potentially adding some costs to gas. However, gas prices fluctuate due to various factors, and despite concerns, they are currently at similar levels to when the CCA was implemented. 

What is the future of the CCA? 

There is currently a proposed initiative to the Legislature that, if passed, would repeal the entire CCA. The Legislature can act on the initiative as written, propose an alternative, or take no action. The last option will send the initiative to the voters in November. 

SENATE PAGE PROGRAM 

Last week, we were joined by Andrew, a student at Cascade Christian Junior High who lives in Auburn. Thank you for paging and your civic engagement, Andrew! 

The Washington State Senate has one of the best page programs in the country, and applications for 2024 are open! This exciting program allows young Washingtonians to get a closer look at the civic process and meet other students from across the state. 

Pages are students aged 14 through 16 who serve for one week during the legislative session. During that week, they spend time in Page School learning about the legislative process while also distributing materials throughout the Capitol campus, assisting legislators, working on the Senate floor, and presenting the colors at the opening of each day’s legislative session. Pages receive pay during their week in Olympia. Scholarships are also available for pages from families with financial need, and housing is available with host families in Olympia. 

GET INVOLVED 

STAY IN TOUCH 

As always, I’d love to hear from you and look forward to continuing to learn more about your priorities for the upcoming year.   

Sincerely,  

Claudia Kauffman