Dear neighbors,
Today the legislative session arrived at our first major deadline, the policy committee cutoff. Bills that were not passed on by the committee considering them are now dead for the session — with an exception for bills necessary to implement the budget. Bills that were passed out of committee live on and could still make their way into law this year.
Here’s an update on several of my bills that are still alive — plus a request for your help updating my resource guide.
Passed the Senate
SB 5110 adds penalties for employers who violate workplace protections that currently have no enforcement mechanism — for example, the prohibition on requiring genetic testing and the prohibition on obtaining information about a worker’s participation in an employee assistance program. A right that exists without enforcement is not really a right.
Out of committee
SB 5123 would address the lingering effects of the war on drugs by prohibiting employers from discriminating against a person in hiring based on the use of cannabis outside work. Pre-employment testing is an undue burden on people using a legal substance, especially if they are doing so for medical reasons.
SB 5111 would help construction workers accrue paid sick leave. Currently, construction workers with short-term jobs can never use paid sick leave even when working full time because they don’t meet the threshold to accrue leave, which is 90 days with one employer. All workers in the state should have access to paid sick leave, which was the intent of the original initiative, but there is a gap between values and execution that this legislation would fix.
SB 5729 would extend current law that limits out-of-pocket costs for insulin to $35 a month. Insulin is a lifesaving medication that was first used a century ago. There is no reason for the price to be so high today, but across the country, it has skyrocketed by 54% in recent years. This bill will keep vital prescriptions affordable.
SB 5417 would prohibit employers from disciplining or firing employees who refuse to attend meetings that are intended to communicate the employer’s opinion on religious or political matters. Employers use these captive audience meetings to intimidate and threaten employees trying to unionize, and this bill would protect against that.
SB 5610, the Used Motor Vehicles Express Warranties Act, would require used-car dealers to provide a short-term warranty when people buy a used car, with the length of the warranty depending on the age and mileage of the car. Used cars that break down after being bought are one of the top complaints the Attorney General’s Office receives from consumers.
Before the Ways & Means Committee
SB 5501, the Count the Kicks bill, would bring a successful stillbirth prevention program to Washington. It would educate providers and expectant moms to pay close attention to fetal movements. It is sad that we lose nearly 500 babies a year to stillbirths when we can be proactive and help prevent up to a third of all stillbirths.
SB 5453, banning female genital mutilation (FGM), was heard in Ways and Means this week and awaits a vote. Forty U.S. states have already banned FGM, and it’s time for Washington to become the 41st.
SB 5259 would help prevent organized retail theft. It would establish the Organized Retail Theft Task Force and provide a B&O tax credit to businesses for physical security improvements, as well as a cannabis excise tax reduction for similar improvements. It would also prohibit disciplining employees who take reasonable actions to prevent theft.
SB 5632 would provide health care premium assistance for Washington workers who lose employer-provided insurance because of a labor dispute. Workers should not be penalized for going on strike by losing their health care coverage.
Highlight of the week: Your help needed to update my resource guide!
Each week this session, I’ll highlight a resource that may be of use to you, your family, or your neighbors. I hope you’ll pass the information along to anyone who may be able to take advantage of it. This week, I want to let you know about my resource guide for constituents.
The resource guide provides contact information for government community services, including public health and safety information, family and senior programs, and educational contacts. These are services available to you that you have paid for through taxes.
The guide has proven useful for many constituents who have been in touch with my office. But the last time we updated it was before the pandemic. Many things have changed since then. So we need your help to update it! If you know of community resources we should update or add, please reach out to my office by clicking here.
Previous highlights of the week: Dementia Road Map for Caregivers, Paid Family and Medical Leave, Healthy Starts Act pregnancy accommodations, Working Families Tax Credit, Washington State Quitline.
Stay in Touch
Thank you to all the constituents and advocates who came to Olympia this week to make your voices heard. If you’d like to follow what I’m working on, you can like my official legislative Facebook page here.
Please don’t hesitate to stay in touch. Stay safe and take care.
Always,
Sen. Karen Keiser
Senate President Pro Tempore
Chair, Senate Labor & Commerce Committee
