Search Results for: town hall
Christian bill boosting Medical Lake, Clover Park school construction passes committee
Christian testifies before the Senate K-12 and Early Learning Committee Jan. 14. OLYMPIA – A bill freeing up school construction money for districts operating schools on military bases won approval from a Senate committee Thursday. Senate Bill 5901, sponsored by Sen. Leonard Christian, R-Spokane Valley, excludes military base schools from school-construction funding calculations. The measure would end a longstanding inequity that has reduced school construction money for the Medical Lake and Clover Park school districts. Christian told the Senate K-12 and Early Learning ...
Fortunato bill for rapid replacement of Fairfax Bridge gets a hearing
OLYMPIA — Legislation sponsored by Sen. Phil Fortunato to fast-track the emergency replacement of the Fairfax Bridge will receive a public hearing in the Senate Transportation Committee on Tuesday, Jan. 27. Senate Bill 5987 is in response to the closure of the Fairfax Bridge on State Route 165, which cut off access to parts of Mount Rainier National Park and forced residents and businesses in surrounding communities to rely on unsafe and inefficient detours. The bill would declare the bridge failure ...
VIDEO | Weekly Update | LRA Town Hall scheduled for Monday, Jan. 26, 2026
State Senator Matt Boehnke from Washington’s 8th Legislative District shares an important update from Olympia during week two of the 2026 Legislative Session. He addresses community concerns about a proposed less restrictive alternative (LRA) facility in Kennewick, explains steps taken with local leaders and law enforcement, and invites residents to an upcoming town hall to ensure open dialogue and neighborhood safety. #waleg WATCH ...
2026 session underway, scheduled to last 60 days
January 14, 2026 Dear Friends and Neighbors, I hope all of you enjoyed the holiday season! Here’s wishing you a happy and healthy 2026. I’m back in Olympia for the 2026 legislative session, which began Monday and is scheduled to end March 12. With the session underway, I want to make sure that you know how to reach me about issues that are important to you. As of last Monday (the first day of session), bills are being introduced in both chambers, the House ...
Seen and Heard 16
Sen. Braun AUDIO: KVI Radio: Sen. John Braun Calls for Probe into Covenant Homeownership Program Mismanagement AUDIO: KIRO RADIO: Sen. Braun on Housing Program Abuse AUDIO: Sen. Braun on Race-Based Housing Scandal on KVI Radio AUDIO: Braun: Corruption in race-based homeownership program exploits taxpayers, undermines public trust AUDIO: Green Hill scandal ‘a systemic failure,’ demands accountability, transparency, reform AUDIO: The Right Spokane Perspective: Sen. John Braun on Budget Discipline and Legislative Accountability AUDIO: Hair-on-Fire” Politics: Sen. Braun Slams Medicaid Fearmongering & Budget Bloat on Lars Larson Show AUDIO: ...
Town hall meeting set for Saturday
Note: The following e-newsletter was sent to Sen. Christian's subscribers Nov. 12, 2025. To subscribe to Sen. Christian's e-newsletters, click here. Dear Friends and Neighbors, The 2026 legislative session is coming right up, and I’ll be holding a town hall meeting in Spokane Valley Saturday to tell you about it. Trust me, we’ll have plenty to talk about. • This year’s Legislature passed the biggest tax increase of all time, a total $14 billion. Yet our colleagues in the majority party already are talking ...
Who says crime doesn’t pay?
Note: The following e-newsletter was sent to Sen. Leonard Christian's subscribers Oct. 31, 2025. To subscribe to Sen. Christian's e-newsletters, click here. Washington taxpayers are spending millions to settle lawsuits stemming from mismanagement at Green Hill School, the state's high-security facility for dangerous juvenile offenders. Dear Friends and Neighbors, The way things have been going lately in Washington state’s juvenile rehabilitation system, I don’t think anything can surprise us. Consider the recent case of a corrections officer at Green Hill School. This month ...
Washington state goes for broke!
Forecast for Olympia: Major storm coming in January. Dear Friends and Neighbors, Big new taxes kicked in Wednesday across Washington state, and guess what? We're already broke. Olympia learned last week that the $77.9 billion budget approved in April already is in deficit. That's in spite of the biggest tax increase in the history of the state, a staggering $14.1 billion in new taxes. Despite this new money, the state Economic and Revenue Forecast Council projects that Washington will run $421 million short ...
25th District lawmakers to host in-person town hall meeting Oct. 11
Sen. Gildon, Rep. Jacobsen and Rep. Keaton PIERCE COUNTY -- The state lawmakers serving parts of Pierce County, including Puyallup, South Hill, Summit, and Waller are holding an in-person town hall meeting from 9:30 to 11 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 11. Sen. Chris Gildon and Reps. Cyndy Jacobsen and Michael Keaton will take questions and comments from their constituents regarding decisions made during this year’s legislative session and issues to address when lawmakers reconvene in mid-January 2026. The town hall will be at ...
25th District lawmakers to host in-person town hall meeting Oct. 11
Rep. Michael Keaton, Rep. Cyndy Jacobsen and Senator Chris Gildon PIERCE COUNTY -- The state lawmakers serving parts of Pierce County, including Puyallup, South Hill, Summit, and Waller are holding an in-person town hall meeting from 9:30 to 11 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 11. Sen. Chris Gildon and Reps. Cyndy Jacobsen and Michael Keaton will take questions and comments from their constituents regarding decisions made during this year’s legislative session and issues to address when lawmakers reconvene in mid-January 2026. The town hall ...
12th Legislative District Town Hall
Sen. Goehner, R-Dryden, Rep. Steele, R-Chelan, and Rep. Brian Burnett, R-Wenatchee, will hold a town hall on Oct. 11. My colleagues and I, Rep. Mike Steele and Rep. Brian Burnett, will hold a community town hall on Saturday, October 11, from 10 to 11 a.m. at Miller's, located at 4597 Tolt Ave. in Carnation. If you are able to attend, we would love to see you. The event, supported by the City of Carnation, is open to the public and provides residents with ...
12th District residents take the lead in shaping state policy
Sen. Goehner, R-Dryden, at Beef Day on the Hill at the Washington State Capitol, April 9, 2025. This past legislative session, citizens across Washington demonstrated the power of public engagement like never before. With remote testimony now a permanent option, residents can weigh in on bills that affect their families, farms, and businesses, without ever having to travel to Olympia. In the House, over 11,700 people signed up to testify, while more than half a million registered their opinions online. The Senate ...
Fortunato thanks governor for emergency declaration, renews call for second bridge, tax relief for rural communities
Sen. Phil Fortunato, R-Auburn, issued the following statement after Gov. Bob Ferguson declared a state of emergency in response to the White River Bridge closure on State Route 410: “I appreciate the governor’s swift action in declaring an emergency so the state can move quickly to stabilize the White River Bridge. That step is critical, but it is not enough. Rural communities like Wilkeson and Carbonado are being hit hardest by these bridge failures, and they cannot be left to shoulder ...
Town halls give the people a chance to speak
Note: The following e-newsletter was sent to Sen. Wilson's subscribers Aug. 18, 2025. To subscribe to Sen. Wilson's e-newsletters, click here. Seventy people turned out in Long Beach July 19 as Reps. Jim Walsh, Joel McEntire and I held town hall meetings across the 19th Legislative District. Dear Friends and Neighbors, Summer is a time for vacations, backyard barbecues and long afternoons on the beach. For those of us who serve in the Legislature, it’s also a time for town hall meetings. In ...
Hospitals Are Being Set Up to Fail And Patients Will Pay the Price
Let me paint you a picture. Imagine you’ve opened the only restaurant in your small town. It’s not easy. Finding help is tough, margins are tight, but with a lot of heart and hard work, you make it work. Folks love the place, and you’re proud to serve your community. Then one day, the local government steps in with good intentions. They want to help folks who are struggling, so they partner with you to provide subsidized meals for lower-income families. It ...
Washington reparations program faces a much-deserved legal attack
Note: The following e-newsletter was distributed to Sen. Christian's subscribers on August 1, 2025. To subscribe to Sen. Christian's e-newsletters, click here. This 1964 Seattle protest illustrates the agitation that led Congress in 1968 to ban redlining, restrictive real estate covenants and other forms of racial discrimination in housing. Six decades later, a state reparations program purports to offer compensation by discriminating on the basis of race. Credit: CC-by-2.0/ Wikipedia Dear Friends and Neighbors, I think most of us would agree that racial ...
Want to feel inspired?
Joining me at the recent graduation ceremony at the state prison in Connell were, from left: Denise Kammers, the Dean of Corrections Education for Walla Walla Community College; Dante Leon, WWCC Vice President of Instruction; Dr. Chad Hickox, WWCC President; Ricardo Chavez, WWCC Director of Adult Basic Education for Corrections Education; Hanan Al-Zubaidy, Associate Director for Corrections Education from the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (front); Dr. Allen Sutton, WWCC Director of Connection and Belonging (back); Lauren Reed, ...
19th District lawmakers to hold town halls across SW Washington
Sen. Jeff Wilson, R-Longview, Rep. Jim Walsh, R-Aberdeen, and Rep. Joel McEntire, R-Cathlamet. OLYMPIA – Lawmakers from Southwest Washington’s 19th Legislative District will hold town hall meetings over the coming weeks in Long Beach, Longview and Aberdeen. Sen. Jeff Wilson and Reps. Jim Walsh and Joel McEntire will meet with constituents to discuss the just-finished 2025 legislative session, as well as emerging issues that will be considered next year. The meetings are open to the public and offer an opportunity for Southwest ...
Good news from D.C. for defenders of Snake River dams
Around 100 people gave up part of a recent Saturday afternoon to attend a post-session town hall with the delegations from the neighboring 8th Legislative District and our 16th Legislative District. Keep reading for more details! Dear Neighbor, In a guest column published during this year’s legislative session I speculated that the administration changes in both Olympia and the District of Columbia would start to take the bullseye off the four federal dams on the lower Snake River. I really didn’t have to ...
AUDIO: Governor signs Goehner bill, opening the door to duplexes, townhomes in rural growth areas
Washington counties will soon be able to allow duplexes, townhomes, and cottage-style homes in more rural areas. Tracy Ellis explains. ...