News Releases

OLYMPIA – The Washington State Senate today took a step forward on workplace equity for women by passing the Pregnant Worker Fairness Act (SB 6149). The bill requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for pregnant employees including more frequent, longer or flexible restroom, food ...

Sen. Karen Keiser, D-Kent, today introduced the Pregnant Worker Fairness Act, legislation which would provide basic accommodations for pregnant women in the workplace. “The Pregnant Worker Fairness Act will ensure that all women are able to keep their jobs during pregnancy. Too often, women who work jobs that are physically demanding, in restaurants or retail work, checking baggage at the airport, ...

Sen. Karen Keiser, D-Kent and a key health care policy maker in Olympia, today applauded the U.S. Supreme Court’s 6-3 King v. Burwell decision to uphold Obamacare subsidies but warned that budget maneuvers could still undermine the success of health reform. “While the law I sponsored to establish our state’s health care exchange was a compromise crafted with bipartisan input ...

Sen. Karen Keiser, D-Kent, issued the following statement today regarding the hearing of an anti-teacher bill before the Senate Commerce & Labor Committee: “At a time when the Legislature is failing to negotiate a budget to fully fund our schools, we should not be wasting our time with 'show trial' hearings on anti-teacher bills that have no chance of becoming law. ...

Senate Resolution 8671, sponsored by Sen. Karen Keiser, Sen. Joe Fain and Sen. Bob Hasegawa, celebrated Kent’s anniversary and evolution from an agrarian community to an economic dynamo known for creating the first lunar rover, designing next-generation rockets and serving as a globally connected hub of innovation and transportation. In the 1860s, the area was known as Titusville and become ...

A pair of bills passed today by the Senate would reduce classroom overcrowding and create thousands of new jobs in communities across the state. Senate Bill 6080, sponsored by Sen. Bruce Dammeier, R-Puyallup, and co-sponsored by Sen. Karen Keiser, D-Kent, would build more than 2,100 classrooms for grades K-3 over the next six years at a cost of nearly $1 ...

Parks projects in Des Moines and Kent are funded in the 2015 Capital Budget proposed today by the Senate, Sen. Karen Keiser, D-Kent, announced. “These are investments in the outdoor recreational priorities of our citizens, today and for future generations,” said Keiser, the Democratic lead on the Senate Capital Budget. “We are blessed to live in a particularly beautiful region, and ...

On Wednesday night, my seatmates Rep. Tina Orwall and Mia Gregerson and I enjoyed a lively discussion of legislative issues with a wonderful group of constituents who called in with terrific questions for our telephone town hall. You can hear the full discussion here: [audio mp3="https://dev2.sdc.wastateleg.org/keiser/wp-content/uploads/sites/18/2015/03/33rd-district-TTH-3-25-15.mp3"][/audio]

Public utility districts, ports, and other public districts would gain a low-interest alternative financing mechanism to pay for major investments to the essential infrastructure that keeps their water clean, their buildings intact, and their economy robust, under legislation that passed today out of the Senate. Senate Bill 5624 and Senate Joint Resolution 8204, sponsored by Sen. Karen Keiser, ...

Dozens of public districts would gain an alternative financing mechanism to pay for essential infrastructure projects to maintain and improve local roads, water and sewer systems and public buildings under bipartisan legislation that passed today out of the Senate Ways & Means Committee. Senate Bill 5624 and constitutional amendment SJR 8204, sponsored by Sen. Karen Keiser, D-Kent, would ...