Press Releases

Sen. Jesse Salomon (D-Shoreline) released this statement after a draft opinion leaked this week indicates that the U.S. Supreme Court plans to reverse 50 years of settled law and overturn abortion rights by repealing Roe v. Wade. “This is a terrible action by every measure. Whether you believe in the right to choose, or you trust in our courts to respect and honor past legal precedents, or believe individuals should have control over their bodies, this court opinion flies in the ...

In a blow against urban sprawl, the Legislature has passed a bill to lessen the impacts of development on natural resources, ecosystems and habitats. Having earlier passed the Senate, Senate Bill 5042 was passed late Thursday by the House and now goes to Gov. Inslee to be signed into law. Sponsored by Sen. Jesse Salomon (D-Shoreline), SB 5042 will protect communities from having to provide costly infrastructure for unplanned development by closing a problematic loophole in permitting. “If a local government expands ...

Sen. Jesse Salomon (D-Shoreline) released this statement in support of Gov. Jay Inslee’s decision to suspend the state’s business activity with Russia and his call for businesses to pull their private-sector interests from Russia as well. “I commend Gov. Inslee’s stance and call for more people, businesses, and state governments to follow suit. I have asked my financial planner to review the assets my wife and I own in order to determine if we have any Russian assets to divest. “Vladimir Putin’s ...

Legislation introduced by Sen. Jesse Salomon (D-Shoreline) would establish a civil, non-criminal process for intervening and providing treatment for people found to possess illegal drugs while creating a higher level of accountability for behaviors like using drugs in public. Senate Bill 5976 would address the legal crisis created in 2021 when the state Supreme Court totally invalidated the law prohibiting illegal drug possession in State v. Blake. A temporary legislative fix in response to the ruling (SB 5476) reduced ...

Critical fish habitat would receive increased oversight and protection through legislation passed today by the Senate. SB 5885, sponsored by Sen. Jesse Salomon (D-Shoreline), builds on his 2021 legislation to require friendly shoreline development by directing the state to identify illegally built docks and seawalls and to enforce laws prohibiting them. “Illegally built docks and seawalls are unnecessarily harmful to shoreline habitat and marine life,” Salomon said. “They damage eelgrass habitat, disrupt salmon migration, and expose salmon to more predators.” Salomon’s ...

Public safety would be heightened by the creation of an account to increase resources for residential and commercial fire inspections, under legislation passed today by the Senate. Senate Bill 5880, sponsored by Sen. Jesse Salomon (D-Shoreline), would fund the account by increasing license fees for installers as well as penalties for systems installed without state certification. The bill passed 44-5 with overwhelmingly bipartisan support. “Our standards are put in place to protect property, prevent tragedies and save lives, but the state ...

It would be legal in Washington state to use psychoactive mushrooms to treat depression, PTSD and other conditions, under legislation heard today by the Senate Health & Long Term Care Committee. “The use of mushrooms as part of therapies to treat problematic mental health issues should be divorced from the lingering cultural drug stereotypes of the sixties,” said Sen. Jesse Salomon (D-Shoreline). “It’s long past time we stop grouping psilocybin with Schedule 1 substances like heroin and meth and recognize its ...

Permits issued to develop farmland could be withdrawn if a planned project would violate the state Growth Management Act (GMA), under legislation passed last week by the Senate. Senate Bill 5042, sponsored by Sen. Jesse Salomon (D-Shoreline), would protect communities from having to provide costly infrastructure for unplanned development by closing a loophole in permitting. “The way it works now, once a permit is vested a developer has a right to develop a proposed project even if the local law that ...