Dear friends and neighbors:
We are now more than halfway through the 2025 legislative session. As we have done for many years, your 3rd Legislative District team will be holding a town hall next weekend to meet with you and answer your questions about our work in Olympia. I hope you can join me and Reps. Timm Ormsby and Natasha Hill on Saturday, March 22, from 10:30 a.m. to noon at Spokane Falls Community College, Building 15 in the Music Auditorium.
Bills on the move
Yesterday we passed one of the major “cutoffs” of the 105-day session, where bills must pass their chamber of origin to stay alive. Here are a few of my bills that passed the Senate and now move to the House of Representatives for consideration.
Removing medical debt from credit score reporting: Senate Bill 5480 would protect consumers hit hard by unexpected medical debt by prohibiting collection agencies from reporting that debt to credit agencies. I know many people in Spokane have concerns about rising costs, especially health care costs. This is a commonsense step to help people across the state because no one chooses to get sick or have a medical emergency and it should not make it more difficult to get a car or home loan, rent an apartment, or find a job. You can watch my floor remarks here and read more about the bill here. The bill received bi-partisan support with a vote of 35-12.
Expanding childcare for military families: SB 5545 would expand access to childcare for military families at Fairchild and other bases around the state. The bill makes the licensing process easier by exempting off-base military family home childcare providers on or near military bases from state certification because these providers are already certified through the U.S. Department of Defense. You can read more about the bill that passed 49-0 here.
Supporting healthy kids and families: SB 5244 would allow Women, Infants and Children Nutrition Program providers to perform infectious disease tests using finger-stick sampling. This simple but important change removes a major workforce barrier for community health clinics, where finding licensed staff for essential tests can be difficult. SB 5244 passed the Senate with a unanimous vote.
Supporting state tourism: SB 5492 will create the foundation for long-term funding for the tourism industry in Washington. This will help our local hospitality businesses here in Spokane and across the state. You can watch my floor remarks here where I reference the iconic “Spokane – You’ll Love It Here” campaign from late 1980s. SB 5492 passed the Senate with a unanimous vote.
Thanks for taking the time to read my newsletter and I hope to see you on March 22 for the town hall! Follow me on Facebook and Instagram for more updates and don’t hesitate to reach out to me at Marcus.Riccelli@leg.wa.gov.
It is an honor to serve you!
Sincerely,
Sen. Marcus Riccelli
