News Releases - Sen. Marko Liias

Liias sworn in for second Senate term, will continue fight for working families

by sdcadminJan 14 20190 Comments

Sen. Marko Liias (D-Lynnwood) was sworn in today for a second Senate term to serve Washington’s 21^st legislative district, which includes Edmonds, Mukilteo and Lynnwood.

A lifelong resident of the 21^st, Liias was the prime sponsor of landmark legislation in 2018 to ban conversion therapy and to create a student loan bill of rights. In his first Senate term, he was a key negotiator to enact statewide paid family leave. Returning to Olympia, he will continue fighting to ensure the Legislature puts the ...

Washington makes history, becoming the 10th state to protect LGBTQ youth from conversion therapy

by sdcadminMar 28 20180 Comments

From The Trevor Project: This week the state of Washington made history, becoming the first state in 2018, and the 10th state in total, to pass protections for LGBTQ youth from the barbaric practice of conversion therapy. Conversion therapists falsely claim be able to change LGBTQ youth into straight and cisgender youth. Prominent professional health associations—including the American Medical Association, the American Psychological Association, and the American Academy of Pediatrics, among numerous others—oppose the use of conversion therapy on youth, ...

Student Loan Bill of Rights passes out of Washington State Senate

by sdcadminFeb 14 20180 Comments

Taking a vital step to address the growing crisis of individual student loan indebtedness, the state Senate today passed legislation to expand consumer protections for Washington borrowers. Known as the Student Loan Bill of Rights, Senate Bill 6029 would establish a range of provisions designed to protect Washingtonians from deceptive or predatory practices and require student loan servicers to obtain licenses to operate in the state. “As one of the nearly 800,000 Washingtonians still paying off their college education, I know ...

Senate passes bills to boost jobs in Olympic Peninsula and across state

by sdcadminFeb 12 20180 Comments

Two bipartisan bills passed today by the Senate could spur job growth on the Olympic Peninsula and in rural and coastal areas across the state by boosting the timber industry, said Sen. Kevin Van De Wege, D-Sequim. Senate Bill 6140, cosponsored by Van De Wege, could create jobs in rural communities by directing the Department of Natural Resources to evaluate state land, forestland, revenue streams and related management methods to make it easier to transact common-sense land swaps and help ...

Limiting non-compete employment agreements would protect innovation, workers' rights

by sdcadminJan 23 20180 Comments

With non-compete agreements used broadly throughout the workforce, Sens. Marko Liias and Joe Fain have sponsored new bipartisan legislation aimed at protecting economic innovation and the rights of workers in a variety of fields and pay brackets. The proposal will be the topic of a public hearing on Thursday in the Senate Labor & Commerce Committee. “Non-compete clauses have become a backdoor inhibitor to the startup spirit that defines our region,” said Liias, D-Lynnwood. “We need to be ...

Senate passes new protections for LGBTQ youth

by sdcadminJan 19 20180 Comments

The Washington State Senate today took a significant step to protect LGBTQ youth by passing legislation to ban so-called “conversion therapy” and require school districts to adopt or amend anti-harassment policies to include transgender students. “It is long past time for Washington to make it clear to our LGBTQ youth that we value their safety and affirm that they too deserve protection as they navigate their young lives,” said Sen. Marko Liias, D-Lynnwood, sponsor of Senate Bill 5766 and Read More

Ban on 'conversion therapy' to be heard in Senate

by sdcadminJan 10 20180 Comments

What’s happening: The Senate Health & Long Term Care Committee will hear legislation to ban the practice of so-called “conversion therapy” for LGBTQ youth in Washington state. When: 10 a.m. Thursday in Senate Hearing Room 2. Where you can watch it live: https://www.tvw.org/watch/?eventID=2018011104 Brief Summary: Senate Bill 5722 would make it unprofessional conduct for a licensed health care provider to perform conversion therapy on a patient under the age of 18. Marko Liias, D-Lynnwood: “Every major medical organization which has reviewed ‘conversion therapy’ ...

With Democrats in majority, Liias to command Senate floor action

by sdcadminNov 14 20170 Comments

Sen. Marko Liias, D-Lynnwood, will lead Senate floor action as the majority floor leader in the 2018 legislative session. As minority floor leader last session, Liias served in a more reactive capacity for the minority Democrats. But since Democrats won a special election earlier this month in the state’s 45^th Legislative District, they now hold the majority in the Senate. This gives the Democrats and Liias the power to determine which bills will come up for a vote. Liias will also continue ...