Dear Friends and Neighbors, As of today, we are one month into the legislative session. The deadline for the Senate’s policy committees to act on bills introduced by senators is Feb. 21…a week from tomorrow. The Senate Housing Committee on which I serve is among those committees, so it’s about...

Click here or on the image to view this week’s report from the legislative session. Dear Friends and Neighbors, The cost of buying or renting a home has a major effect on the level of affordability in our state. Republicans and Democrats agree that Washington simply doesn’t have enough affordable...

January 16, 2025 New year, new session… and a new responsibility Dear Friends and Neighbors, Let me begin by wishing you a belated Happy New Year! This is my first legislative update in a number of months as I was subject to a communications “freeze” during the campaign season. Over...

Welcome to my legislative video update! Today I’m joined by Pierce County Executive Bruce Dammeier and Pierce County Councilmember Paul Hererra as we talk about a tiny home village project plan to house homeless individuals in PIerce County. Our goal is to model this village after a program near Austin,...

Dear neighbor, There is good news! For over two years now, you have heard me talk about the need to bring a balance back to our state government by addressing the governor’s emergency powers. I have received input from so many of you on this topic and know that this...

The cost of housing continues to be a major issue in our state. Building Permit costs and their associated timelines are a large driver of that cost. Rep. Chris Gildon, R-Puyallup, 25th District shares his idea to reduce those costs.

We’re nearing the end of the 2019 legislative session. With only a few days left, there’s still a lot left to tackle, including: 2019-21 operating budget, which as the name implies, funds our state’s operational costs and services. I discussed the House proposal in my last email update, which you...

Last week, the state Legislature passed the halfway point of the 2019 legislative session. For the past week and a half, lawmakers have been on the floors of their respective chambers passing legislation. Before we dive into some of the policies the House explored the past few days, I wanted...