Dear Friends and Neighbors,

Educational Service Districts Tour

This interim, I resumed my annual tradition of visiting each educational service district (ESD) around the state, a tradition that took a pause in 2020 due to the pandemic. I heard from each ESD about the massive pressure placed upon students, educators, families, staff, and the districts themselves to respond to and adapt to new, pandemic-related needs. When visiting each school, I asked them about:

  • How districts used federal funds
  • How the implementation of equity training, as mandated by Senate Bill 5044 is going
  • How ESDs are responding to and supporting student and staff behavioral and mental health needs
  • What new practices might continue post pandemic.

These meetings are crucial to not only reconnect on priorities for the legislative session, but also to ground ourselves in realistic expectations for how the Legislature can help. The findings from these meetings are available on my website through this report, linked here.

Committee Assembly Days

Every interim, the Legislature convenes for Committee Assembly Days, which provide an opportunity for committees to consider emerging issues, discuss issues that may be of importance during the following session, or review implementation of bills passed in previous sessions. This year, Committee Assembly Days will convene Nov. 15-16. I look forward to getting together with my committees, which are:

During this year’s committee days, we will keep our remote option available. The effectiveness of the remote option last session led to three times more participation than in previous sessions. This means we hear from more of our community.

You can find meeting times, agendas, video links and more for each committee meeting at leg.wa.gov.

A busy pre-session calendar

Though the legislature is part time, I’ve been hard at work on behalf of the people and will attend several conferences in the remainder of the year. While I’m grateful for the opportunity to travel, my next few weeks will be busy between conferences, stakeholder and constituent meetings, and preparing for the legislative session. To follow along on what I’m working on, follow me on Facebook and subscribe to receive my e-newsletters.