John Braun

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...

Provides nearly $70 million for to address students’ learning loss, additional $800 million for special education   OLYMPIA…The 2023-2025 Senate operating budget proposal released today includes nearly $70 million to help Washington’s students recover from learning loss resulting from remote learning and school closures during the pandemic. It also includes...

              Learn more about what the Legislature is working on to deal with student learning loss and the needs of special education students.

OLYMPIA… Senate Republican Leader John Braun today offered this statement following the Senate’s narrow passage of legislation that would let law-enforcement officers engage in vehicular pursuits in more situations than Washington law has allowed since 2021. Senate Bill 5352 was passed with a 26-23 vote on the final day of...

OLYMPIA… Little more than two years after the landmark State v. Blake court decision, a bipartisan majority of state senators today approved legislation that would make possession and use of hard drugs a gross misdemeanor, and significantly restore the legal leverage that can compel people to seek and complete substance-use...

OLYMPIA…Senate Republican Leader John Braun, R-Centralia, shared the following comments upon the passage of Senate Bill 5311, which provides $800 million in additional funding for special education programs in Washington schools. “Special education programs in Washington’s schools have been chronically underfunded. Although the funding in this bill still doesn’t go...

Senate Bill 5599 removes parents from health and mental health care decision-making process OLYMPIA…Senate Republican Leader John Braun, R-Centralia, made the following remarks after the state Senate’s majority Democrats passed legislation that would give youth-related facilities a troubling new excuse for withholding the whereabouts of runaway children from their parents....

OLYMPIA… Senate Republican leaders are encouraged by a House committee’s approval of legislation to loosen restrictions on police pursuits, but concerned that the bill still would not restore the ability of officers to pursue suspected car thieves. This morning the House Community Safety, Justice, and Reentry Committee passed House Bill...

Sen. John Braun updates us on the progress of the 2023 Legislative Session. Unfortunately, the highlight is the lack of progress on police pursuit. Learn more: