In The News

Legislation to erect a memorial to firefighters who die in the line of duty was passed unanimously by the Senate. Sponsored in the Senate by Sen. Kevin Van De Wege (D-Lake Sutherland), the bill passed in the form of House companion legislation (HB 2091) and now goes to the governor to ...

OLYMPIA, Wash. - The Washington State Legislature has passed a bill to erect a memorial to firefighters who died in the line of duty. The bill passed unanimously by the state will now go to Washington State Governor Jay Inslee to be signed into law. The legislation provides for the memorial to ...

A report in today's Columbian looks at SB 6120, Sen. Kevin Van De Wege's legislation to require that new homes in likely wildfire areas be built with materials resistant to wildfires:

Washington lawmakers hope to tweak new wildfire protection rules for homes

WDFW says it has voluntarily stood down most staffers who work in, on or near water following an inspection by the state Department of Labor and Industries yesterday. The move comes nine days after WDFW seasonal science tech Mary Valentine is presumed to have drowned while working alone at a fish ...

On Saturday, KIRO-7 reported on Sen. Kevin Van De Wege's proposed SB 5946:

New bill would create fallen firefighter memorial in Olympia

OLYMPIA — A college wrestling grant bill spurred by late firefighter Charles “Chad” Cate’s pleas days before he died sailed quickly through the state Senate this week. SSB 5687’s progress Thursday marked heightened activity in Olympia as the 105-day legislative session moved further past its halfway point.

OLYMPIA, Feb. 13, 2023 — Happy Monday. We’ve got a holiday tomorrow and a legislative cut-off come Friday. That’s a recipe for a few broken hearts. Valentines Day will begin with an early morning show of love for taxing the super wealthy. It will come in the form of an 8 ...

The Washington State Patrol permanently stripped its staff psychologist of his power to approve or reject trooper candidates, a role that for nearly 30 years shaped the agency’s ranks. Under criticism for a lack of progress to diversify the force, WSP Chief John Batiste recently made the long-term shift to an ...

A state senator from Sequim says police accountability laws passed in 2021 would be improved in several areas by legislation introduced early this legislative session. “Every year the Legislature passes laws that wind up getting adjusted and updated with clean-up legislation in subsequent years, and it’s no different with the police ...

OLYMPIA, WA — New legislation introduced in Olympia Tuesday would increase state lawmakers' authority over the governor's emergency powers while the legislature is not in session. Sen. Emily Randall (D-Bremerton)'s Senate Bill 5909 would add legislative checks to state of emergency declarations and "prohibitive emergency orders" after 90 days. "The pandemic made it ...