Sticking to my priorities Friends and Neighbors, One of the ways Senate Republicans decide what our legislative priorities will be each year is to take a deep and thoughtful look around the state at the problems everyday people face. What complicates their lives? What puts them in danger? What makes...

The right to protest does not include blocking access to our busiest airport Friends and Neighbors, In response to the pro-Palestinian protest that blocked access to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport last week, I shared the following statement. “People have the right to peaceably protest, but they don’t have the right to...

Friends and Neighbors, Thank you to everyone who took my short survey ranking your legislative priorities. The graphic above represents the results. Read further to learn more about legislative efforts to address those priorities. It can be hard to get even the best bills passed when you are in the...

Arrests at Green Hill School may be sign things are improving Friends and Neighbors, I toured Green Hill School this week to see for myself the conditions and protocols at the detention facility. Green Hill once housed only juveniles, but now houses adults up to age 25 if they were...

Friends and Neighbors, The 2024 legislative session wraps up today. The 2025 session doesn’t begin until next January. In the meantime, we move into the period called “interim,” when legislators return to their districts and their regular lives… while continuing to respond to questions and concerns from their constituents. This...

Fighting for public safety while others fight for the rights of offenders   Watch my legislative video update   Dear Friends and Neighbors, We have reached the point during the legislative session when the Senate is back to meeting as committees, having hearings on bills that passed the House of...

Watch: My weekly video update – session, taxes and natural gas   FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS, We are about to hit some milestones in this 60-day legislative session, which makes it a good time to explain what happens to legislation from here. Next Wednesday, Jan. 31, is policy-committee cutoff. This is...

Friends and Neighbors, Today marks the beginning of the 2024 Legislative Session. We operate on a biennial schedule, so this is the “short” year. This means we meet for 60 days, during which time we are tasked with making minor adjustments to the biennial state budget adopted in 2023 rather...

Friends and Neighbors, This will be my final e-newsletter for 2023. You will receive my next one during the first week of January, so I want to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. The 2024 Legislative Session begins Monday, Jan. 8. It will end Thursday,...