News from the Caucus

OLYMPIA…Senate Republican Leader John Braun, R-Centralia, released the following statement in response to the announcement today by the Office of Financial Management (OFM) that the collective bargaining agreements with the public employees union, negotiated by the governor and his campaign donors in secret, will cost more than $1 billion. “I don’t fault public employees for...

A bipartisan group of Senate leaders today called on state Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler to resign, calling his actions in office “appalling” and “unacceptable,” after he fired a whistle-blower who came forward with allegations of abusive and inappropriate workplace behaviors. “The claims of inappropriate workplace conduct were disturbing on their own and called into question...

House Republican Leader J.T. Wilcox and Senate Republican Leader John Braun released the following statement today: “We oppose the Biden Administration’s vaccine mandate for the private sector. This policy will be counterproductive. It will also endanger successful Washington businesses, which have already adjusted to protect public health, and risk more shortages of critical goods and...

EVERETT, Wash. — A series of contracts awarded by the Snohomish County Public Utilities District through a state clean energy grant program are under investigation by state lawmakers, some of whom are concerned about potential conflicts of interest between public and private entities. Central to questions being raised, mostly by Senate Republicans, are dealings between...

Much of the public discussion and advocacy surrounding the budget writing process often tends to focus on inputs, or the amount of taxpayer dollars spent on a particular program. The Legislature has an equally important duty to study the outputs, or the actual results of the way they spend taxpayer dollars. Accountability and transparency are...

Announces committee leadership for 2015 legislative session The Senate Majority Coalition Caucus announced today Senate committee leadership for the 2015 legislative session including the addition of a new committee that will focus on government accountability and reform issues. Senate Majority Leader Mark Schoesler said, “The committee leadership reflects the exceptional talent in this caucus who...