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 ...
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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
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’ ...
Read MoreSen. 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 45th 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 ...
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A bipartisan majority of 27 Washington state senators today introduced a resolution urging peaceable action on the part of diplomatic bodies of the federal government in collaboration with the international community on behalf of victims of homophobic persecution in Chechnya. “There are reports of 100 or more gay and bisexual men having been abducted and detained at a de facto concentration camp, where many have been beaten, tortured and even killed, and yet many people in our country and around the ...
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Democratic senators introduced five separate reforms today to address frustration surrounding how Sound Transit 3 is handling car tabs. Senate Bill 5905, sponsored by Sen. Steve Hobbs, D-Lake Stevens, would adopt a new formula for assessing the value of vehicles taxed by Sound Transit on future bonds issued by accelerating the rate of depreciation. “We all have a stake in building a world-class transportation system, but we must also ensure that those who can least afford it don’t shoulder an unfair ...
Read MoreIn-school strategies to help students navigate the pitfalls of digital media and communication would be reviewed and improved by legislation scheduled to be heard at 8 a.m. tomorrow by the House Committee on Education. Senate Bill 5449, sponsored by Sen. Marko Liias, D-Lynnwood, earlier passed the Senate on a strong, bipartisan 40-9 vote. “We live in a dynamic environment where our young learners are being exposed to thousands of messages and advertisements, such as for alcohol, and there are folks online ...
Read MoreSen. Marko Liias, D-Lynnwood, issued this statement today following the Senate’s passage of legislation to postpone the so-called levy cliff that would have resulted in massive budget cuts to K-12 schools across the state. “This is a huge, huge victory for our local schools, which would have faced massive cuts and the prospect of budgets that would have laid off teachers and other staff. The Edmonds School District would have lost $14.8 million and the Mukilteo School District would have had ...
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