 Secretary of State Kim Wyman (center) with me and my office staff.
There are
just five weeks to go in the 2015 legislative session. Although we are now two-thirds
of the way through the 105-day session, we still haven’t seen a budget proposal
from the majority party in the House of Representatives, which is responsible
for initiating the budget process this year.
Now there
are rumors that the process may be delayed even further, as the House
contemplates a spending plan that spends more than the state brings in
currently and may even include a massive new carbon tax.
One of the
first reforms we adopted this year moved the release of the state’s
first-quarter revenue forecast up to Feb. 20, a month earlier than usual; the
idea was that it would give lawmakers plenty of time to craft a budget.
While
progress on the budget has been slow, interest in our nuclear energy-related
bills has been increasing at warp speed. In the past two weeks, I have sat down
with reporters from across the country who have reported on the potential benefits
of these bills. The good news is all that hard work has paid off, and the House
has scheduled public hearings on three of my nuclear bills, along with the
incremental-hydropower bill. You can read more about that below.
We also
recently received a visit from Washington's Secretary of State Kim Wyman
(pictured above with me and my office staff). Elected in 2012, Secretary Wyman
is serving her first term and is the only woman currently in a statewide
executive office.
Thank you for your
continued feedback as I represent you as your state senator. If there is
anything I can do for you, please write, call or send me an e-mail. It’s an
honor to serve you in Olympia.
 Click here to watch this week's video.
This next
Thursday the House Technology and Economic Development committee will hear
public testimony on four of my energy bills, including three measures dealing
with nuclear-energy education and economic development.
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Senate
Bill 5093, which passed the Senate 44-5, would create a nuclear-education
program aimed at helping science educators teach nuclear science and
technology.
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Senate
Bill 5113 would direct the state Department of Commerce to coordinate and
advance the siting and manufacturing of small modular reactors (SMRs) in the
state to meet future energy, environmental and energy-security needs.
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Senate
Bill 5091 would add nuclear-generated power to the list of alternative
clean-energy sources in the state’s voluntary Green Power Program. The bill
passed the Senate by a vote of 29-20.
- Senate
Bill 5094 would allow incremental electricity produced as a result of
efficiency improvements to hydro-power to qualify as “renewable” under the
state’s 2006 energy-independence act. The bill passed the Senate 29-20 earlier
this month.
We worked
extremely hard in the Senate to produce bipartisan bills and included several
amendments by my Democratic colleagues that ultimately improved the bills
overall. Nuclear power is a carbon-free source of reliable, baseload power and
small modular reactors are supported by members of both parties both here and
in the other Washington.
It is my
sincere hope that we will see similar, broad bipartisan support in the House as
well.
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This week ended on a great
note, musically speaking, as the Legislature received a visit on Friday from
the steel-drum band from Tapteal Elementary in the 8th District. It was great to have the vibrancy and talent of the Tri-Cities' young people on full display here in Olympia.
If you, or a group with which
you are associated, have plans to be in Olympia, please let me know. We would
love to welcome you to the Capitol and hear your thoughts and concerns about
issues facing the state.
Thanks again for granting me
the honor and privilege of serving as your voice in the Washington State
Senate.
Sincerely,
 Sharon Brown
State Senator
8th District
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