Dear friends and neighbors,  

The 2025 legislative session officially came to a close last month. In our final days, we passed three budgets that increase investments in K-12 education, fund cores services, and provide resources to our neighbors in the 30th district and communities statewide. Despite facing a large budget deficit, Senate Democrats were able to achieve a lot for Washingtonians. Here are few highlights: 

  • Education: We invested more than $1 billion in our public schools over the next four years to help close district budget shortfalls and ensure our young scholars have the tools needed to be successful.  
  • Housing: Several new laws will help expand affordable housing options. The capital budget includes a historic investment of $782 million to build desperately needed housing, and we passed policies to protect tenants from excessive rent hikes, with an annual rent cap of 7% plus inflation or 10%, whichever is less, and up to 5% for manufactured homes. Excessive rent increases are outpacing incomes, hitting seniors and people on fixed incomes the hardest. In addition, we passed legislation that supports transit-oriented development with affordability requirements and offsets, including a 20-year property tax exemption.  
  • Community Safety: We created additional safeguards for the purchase of firearms and invested an additional $100 million in law enforcement and other essential services. We also empowered local governments to hire and retain more mental health co-responders, support community outreach programs and other public safety efforts. 

Operating budget highlights: This year brought extraordinary challenges, and we were faced with a significant budget shortfall. As a member of the Ways & Means Committee, I listened carefully to the people I serve and worked with my colleagues to adjust where we could to minimize harm. This budget protects core services like behavioral health and long-term care, while strengthening food security, public safety, expanding housing, and supporting vulnerable communities. We also worked hard to prioritize education and boost funding for special education and school operating costs.  

Protecting core services 

  • $93 million for emergency food assistance organizations 
  • $117 million for local housing programs 
  • $20 million to expand resources for crime victims 
  • $25 million to improve support for refugee and immigrant communities 

K-12 education investments over four years 

  • $750 million for special education services 
  • $213 million for materials, supplies and operating costs 
  • $200 million for local effort assistance funding to help property poor school districts 

 

Capital budget: I worked hard to ensure our state invested in the 30th. In total, our district is receiving over $4 million to help provide resources and services to our neighbors.   

  • $258,000 to fund the planning of an emergency shelter facility and programming for youth and young adults operated by Fusion. 
  • Over $1 million for expanding education and human services at the El Centro de la Raza Mercado Project. 

Transportation budget: We made key investments in public transportation, highway improvements and local programs in the 30th. Here are some highlights! 

  • Improvements to SR 167 to relieve congestion and improve motorist safety.   
  • Widening and adding bike lanes to S 324th St. in Federal Way to improve multi-modal access to the Federal Way Transit Center and light rail station.  
  • Improvements to South 314th St., including curbs, gutters, sidewalks, street lighting, and street trees. 
  • Support for driving assistance programs such as Mujer al Volente, which provide driving lessons to refugee and immigrant women. 
  • Funding to translate the written driver’s test manual and test into Dari, Farsi, and Somali. 
  • Increases to the number of workers with employer-provided transportation benefits, focusing on underserved populations and employers with low-income and essential workers.  
  • Providing outreach and education to promote greater transit ridership among youth and their families.  

Juvenile Justice: As chair of the Human Services Committee, tackling the significant challenges facing our juvenile justice system has been one of my top priorities. This includes addressing the overcrowding at juvenile rehabilitation (JR) facilities such as Green Hill and Echo Glen, which has led to unsafe conditions for both staff and residents. My approach to juvenile justice has always been centered around addressing the root causes of youth incarceration and looking at the problem as a whole. For me, that means asking why a young person ends up at a JR facility in the first place. More often than not, the answer to this question is a problem that could’ve been prevented if that young person had access to supportive services and better opportunities.  

This session, I focused on upstream approaches to prevent youth incarceration, expanding diversion programs, investing in successful alternatives to incarceration, and supporting youth with re–entry to reduce recidivism. By working to keep youth out of the justice system, we improve the safety and health of our communities. Studies have shown alternatives to incarceration can have a better impact on public safety, and incarceration results in higher rates of rearrest and reincarceration compared to rehabilitative community alternatives.  

The legislation I introduced to address overcrowding at JR facilities passed the Senate, but unfortunately, did not pass the House before cutoff. Urgent problems require urgent solutions, and inaction on this important piece of legislation was not an option for us. I’m deeply disappointed this did not pass and will work with my House colleagues over the interim to help foster a mutual understanding of the legislation’s importance, so it can be prioritized next year. I spent the final days of session working with Senate budget leads to find ways to fund and support DCYF related to JR within the budget proviso process. I worked to expand capacity to address overcrowding by funding the new Harbor Heights site at Stafford Creek, and we secured an increase to the juvenile justice block grant of $3 million to assist with increased diversion programs statewide. 

There is still more work to do, and we need to do everything we can to address overcrowding at JR facilities, specifically at Green Hill. Below is a snapshot of legislation I introduced this session that didn’t pass, but plan to focus on again next year. These bills have laid the groundwork for our future efforts to reform the juvenile justice system. 

  • SB 5296: would have allowed judges to determine whether incarceration for individuals adjudicated of certain juvenile offenses is needed to protect public safety. Judges would have additional options to choose from, including community-based supervision, house arrest, and treatment, so they can decide the type of juvenile justice response most appropriate for public safety. Very serious offenses are excluded from this consideration. While the bill’s primary goal was to improve public safety, it would also significantly lower overcrowding at JR facilities. 
  • SB 5617: this bill sought to address gaps in services for minors who exhibit problematic behavior, end up in juvenile detention, and face imminent threat of unaccompanied homelessness upon release. Right now, our state isn’t set up to take care of youth in difficult situations where they can end up living on the streets or incarcerated. This bill was a multipronged approach to this problem and focused on preventing youth from becoming homeless in the first place. Its goal was to expand services and programs that already exist and have proven successful. For example, this bill would have allowed juveniles in detention to file a Child in Need of Services (CHINS) petition prior to their release if they believe there will not be an adult they can be released to. This would help youth transitioning out of juvenile detention to access services more readily and land back on their feet. 

I’m proud to serve as chair of the Human Services Committee and vice chair of the Early Learning & K-12 Education Committee. Below is a snapshot of some of the passed bills I sponsored or championed in these two committees.  

Early Learning & K-12 Education Committee: 

  • HB 1296: I worked closely with my House counterparts to pass legislation that promotes safe and supportive public education in our state. HB 1296 supports the rights of students, teachers, and their families in order to create a safe, healthy learning environment for all students. This bill updates Washington’s anti-discrimination laws to ensure all students are protected in public schools, creates additional protections from retaliation for teachers, gives parents and students the ability to hold school districts accountable if they intentionally violate state law, and aligns the 2024 parental rights in public education bill with other current state laws. It became clear over the summer that some of the more poorly written provisions in the 2024 bill were causing confusion for school districts due to potential conflicts with existing state law. This bill preserves the core of that legislation while adjusting key provisions in order to eliminate ambiguity and confusion over which law governs.  
  • SB 5030: Many working families miss out on important early intervention services simply because they do not have their child’s birth certificate. This bill waives fees to obtain birth certificates for families earning low incomes and allows alternative forms of documentation for enrollment, such as a hospital certificate or adoption record. 
  • SB 5752: The Legislature passed the Fair Start for Kids Act in 2021 to make childcare and early learning more affordable for Washington families. Due to our budget situation, legislators and agencies were asked to identify areas to save money while we balance our budget. SB 5752 makes updates to the Fair Starts for Kids Act, including modified copays to reflect inflation and delayed implementation of different parts of the program. While these changes were unfortunately necessary, we were pleased to be able to preserve the core of the act despite our budget challenges. These strategic adjustments and temporary delays will keep this important program running while ensuring working families continue to have access childcare. 

Human Services Committee:  

  • SB 5128: Helps emerging adults incarcerated at Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) facilities reconnect with their health care coverage and return to their communities successfully. Right now, there’s inconsistency between juvenile detention facilities and DCYF-operated facilities regarding Medicaid health care coverage for youth serving sentences. The bill ensures continuity of coverage. It’s so important our young people serving sentences do not lose their coverage, so they can receive the health care they need while in juvenile detention and upon release. 
  • SB 5029: Updates current law by removing the requirement that transportation for people discharged from Department of Corrections (DOC) is the cheapest available and under $100. This bill also directs DOC to partner more closely with our non-profit community to ensure a warm hand off upon release by requiring DOC to make a reasonable effort to coordinate the timing of the release and transportation with a partnering nonprofit. It’s important we set people up for a successful reentry into society upon release from DOC, and helping people get back home is one of the first and simplest steps we can take to do just that.  
  • SB 5219: Aligns several partial confinement programs at DOC to allow a person to participate up to the final 18 months of their confinement term. These programs include Community Parenting Alternative, Graduated Reentry Program, and Work Release. Right now, the point at which someone serving out a sentence can participate in partial confinement programs at DOC varies from program to program. By aligning these programs, we encourage individuals who are incarcerated to choose the program that best suits them by removing the incentive to pick the program that starts earlier.  
  • SB 5232: Makes updates to the Essential Needs and Housing (HEN) Program, so we can more effectively serve individuals who are low-income, have a disability, and are unable to work. HEN supports some of the most vulnerable people in our state by providing rent assistance and essential personal needs such as hygiene and cleaning supplies and bus tokens. These updates ensure HEN clients do not lose essential services.   
  • SB 5032: Expands the duties of the Office of the Family and Children’s Ombuds (OFCO) to include JR facilities operated by DCYF. This bill gives the OFCO the authority to manage, investigate and resolve complaints about JR facilities. Right now, there is no one place people can point to if they want to file a complaint about a juvenile rehabilitation facility, such as having a problem with a staffer or receiving inadequate care. This problem became apparent recently when youth at Green Hill and their families tried to file complaints about the facility’s overcrowding. This bill helps ensure people can turn to just one place when filing a complaint about JR facilities, so they can receive the support they need.   
  • SB 5199: Provides that the DCYF Oversight Board members with direct lived experience may receive compensation and are entitled to be reimbursed for travel expenses. A few years ago, we passed an important bill that allowed us to provide stipends to board and commission members with lived experience who otherwise aren’t compensated for serving on those boards. Unfortunately, this statute was not updated with the passage of the law, so it needed to reflect this. To recognize the value and importance of the required lived experience membership, SB 5199 provides for compensation to members with direct or lived experience. This is more important than ever, especially because last year we passed the Nothing About Us Without Us Act, which was a historic bill that required task forces, work groups, and advisory committees tackling issues affecting underrepresented populations include at least three individuals with direct lived experience on that issue. SB 5199 helps us ensure the DCYF Oversight Board represents the people they serve and is in alignment with the act.  
  • SB 5139: Adds more representation to the Re–entry Council, which was created under the belief that every single incarcerated individual who has done their time in the state prison system deserves a second chance upon release. Much like SB 5199, it was critical we passed this legislation to implement the Nothing About Us Without Us Act and ensure the Re–entry Council included people with lived experiences and those closest to the challenges the council is trying to solve.  

The 2025 legislative session might be over, but the work isn’t. Our office will continue to support the people of the 30th and the state during the interim. We will be available and ready to support you in any way we can. Be sure to stay tuned for more updates from our office in the coming weeks, and as always, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me by calling 360-786-7658 or emailing me at claire.wilson@leg.wa.gov.   

Thank you to everyone who visited, called, or emailed our office this session. Your input is critical to my work and helps me better represent you. It’s a privilege to serve the 30th, and I look forward to continuing our work together to address the challenges facing our community and state. 

Sincerely,  

Sen. Claire Wilson