Dear Friends and Neighbors, Two full academic years have passed since Washington’s governor belatedly ended his pandemic-related closure of the state’s public K-12 classrooms. Data from the state’s latest assessment of Seattle high school students shows those at more affluent schools are close to the pre-pandemic scores of their peers....

20th District senator says Democrat colleague’s proposal to reduce pain at pump also deserves consideration CENTRALIA… The excessive financial windfall from Washington’s cap-and-tax policy should be used to address the affordability crisis facing the state’s homeowners and renters, says Senate Republican Leader John Braun. As of last month, state government had...

CENTRALIA… The average price of a gallon of regular gasoline in Washington is now worst in the nation, and Senate Republican Leader John Braun says the state’s controversial cap-and-tax law is clearly the main driver of the price jump. Braun, from Centralia, serves Washington’s largely rural 20th Legislative District. He...

CENTRALIA… State lawmakers have been called into a special session to continue work toward a new state law on the possession of controlled substances, after failing to come to an agreement before the regular legislative session ended April 23. Senate Republican Leader John Braun offered this comment following Gov. Jay...

OLYMPIA… The 2023 legislative session has ended without the passage of a new state law on the possession of controlled substances, leaving it up to counties and cities to put their own drug-possession laws in place once the state law adopted in 2021 expires July 1. Senate Republican Leader John...

OLYMPIA… Senate Republican Leader John Braun offered this comment following Rep. J.T. Wilcox’s announcement today that he is stepping down as House Republican leader, a position he has held since March 2018: “Representative Wilcox and I have similar experiences as legislators, from when we were elected and our budget-committee backgrounds to...

OLYMPIA… Senate Republican Leader John Braun today provided the following comments after the Senate’s narrow passage of legislation that is a half-step toward letting law-enforcement officers engage in vehicular pursuits in more situations than Washington law has allowed since 2021. Senate Bill 5352 was passed with a 26-22 vote, representing the mixed...

OLYMPIA… In what amounts to the ninth inning of the 2023 legislative session, more than two-thirds of the state Senate’s majority Democrats have slid an extreme tax-increase proposal into the lineup of bills still in play. Senate Bill 5770 would raise the limit on increases in state and local property...

OLYMPIA… The state Senate voted more than five weeks ago to make possession of hard drugs a gross misdemeanor, and improve on the Legislature’s disastrous response to the state Supreme Court’s 2021 Blake decision. The state House of Representatives just passed a version of Senate Bill 5536 that would lower...