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Dear Friend:
Although I am elected by the people of the 2nd District, I believe it is critical that caucus leaders act for the entire state -- just as statewide elected officials should. In order to do that, I have traveled all over the state during the interim. I discuss some of the things I have learned in this recent video update (also see below).
It has been said that you can see all the votes you need to win from the top of the Space Needle, but that does not mean you should govern like that. I hope all caucus leaders and statewide elected officials will consider the whole state when they work for Washington.
Meeting with Association of Washington Cities
A stakeholder group that understands the challenges facing communities across the state is the Association of Washington Cities. I met with them on Thursday and it was interesting to hear how many of their priorities align with House Republican priorities.
Listening to this group reinforced what I have known for a while: Whether it is Seattle or a small town on the coast, communities throughout the state are facing similar challenges of affordable housing, homelessness, drug addiction and enforcing the rule of law.
These challenges must be addressed in comprehensive ways by both urban and rural state lawmakers. This will require a break from the status quo, including the belief that creating more public housing -- at a very high cost -- is the way out of our affordable housing and homeless problems. These problems will only get worse if Democrats continue to ignore private-sector solutions and attack the rights of landlords. On the other side, Republicans don't strengthen their debate positions by simply bashing Seattle.
Our members are working hard
With summer ending and fall approaching, now is the time for state lawmakers to bring ideas to the table for next year's legislative session. I know our members are meeting with stakeholders, attending meetings, taking tours and discussing policy concepts with our staff. And solutions are forming from these activities. Please stay tuned.
Committee Assembly Days
Most of our members will be in Olympia this week for Committee Assembly Days September 12-13. You can find the schedule here. I look forward to seeing everyone, including our new Speaker-Designate Laurie Jinkins.
Sincerely,
Rep. J.T. Wilcox
House Republican Leader
(360) 786-7912
The Legislature passed the two-year, state transportation budget (House Bill 1160) near the end of the 2019 legislative session. On May 21, six single-sentence provisions relating to public transportation grants were stricken by veto from Gov. Jay Inslee.
This executive action drew bipartisan criticism from the Legislature. The House Executive Rules Committee and the Senate Facilities and Operations Committee voted unanimously to file a lawsuit against the governor to challenge these vetoes.
Learn more:
Rep. Gina Mosbrucker hosted a news conference at the YMCA of Yakima to unveil a new domestic violence resources poster that will be featured in Washington workplaces. The poster concept is the result of House Bill 1533, which was prime sponsored by Mosbrucker and passed in the 2019 legislative session. The measure requires information about domestic violence resources be provided in the workplace.
Washington Employment Security Department (ESD) Commissioner Suzi LeVine also participated in the August 30 event. ESD is responsible for producing and distributing the poster.
Learn more:
In his video update from August 21, House Republican Leader J.T. Wilcox discusses his experiences visiting various communities throughout the state this interim, including some lessons learned. Rep. Wilcox: "We have a lot of talent in Washington. The way to tap that is to go and talk to regular people. It's not always a part of government. It's not always by doing listening tours. It's by having respect for problem-solvers all around the state of Washington."
Governor’s plan to increase culvert funding is ‘legally dubious’ (Rep. Jim Walsh/The Chronicle)
Years after scandal, corrections reforms idled (Sen. Mike Padden/The Everett Herald)
Alaska’s nonprofit hatcheries give us hope for Washington’s salmon runs (Rep. Luanne Van Werven and Sens. Ann Rivers and Shelly Short/The Seattle Times)
Elected leaders — not more government — must make tough choices on region’s homeless crisis (Reagan Dunn, vice chairman of the Metropolitan King County Council/The Seattle Times)
L&I extends overtime rules public comment period (iFiberOne)
Federal certification years off for Western State Hospital despite improvements (MyNorthwest)
Fight over law’s wording could get you a car-tab refund but cost Sound Transit billions (The News Tribune)
Officials learn more about efforts to address state's sexual assault kit backlog (Yakima Herald)
Editorial: End of sales-tax exemption requires vigilance (The Columbian)
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