Report from Olympia | April 19, 2021
  Dear Friends and Neighbors,
The clock is ticking. With the 2021 regular legislative session slated to come to an end this Sunday, there is not much time left for lawmakers to wrap up the important work we still have to finish.
Last week, we saw action on a number of pieces of legislation. The Senate finally debated and voted on a response to the controversial and damaging 5-4 decision handed down Feb. 25 by the state Supreme Court in the State v. Blake case. The decision threw out our state’s felony drug-possession law for hard drugs including heroin and methamphetamine. The final bill that passed the Senate last week was not one I could support. You can read more about that and other legislation below.
We received disturbing news from our state auditor’s office last week: its findings in an audit of the state Employment Security Department. It now appears that ESD downplayed the extent of the unemployment-insurance fraud it allowed, and repeatedly failed to properly respond to Washingtonians who needed the agency to deliver during a pandemic.
If you have been impacted by the ESD failure or have any questions about legislation and the budget as we approach the April 25 deadline, please don’t hesitate to write, email or call our office.
Best Regards,
Senator
Mike Padden
Shocking audit findings at ESD
New audit claims Employment Security Department could have lost as much as $1.1 billion in taxpayer money due to fraud and misappropriations
 On Tuesday of last week, the state auditor’s office released key findings from an audit of the Employment Security Department, which is tasked with administering the state’s unemployment insurance program and other labor-related functions.
Key findings of the audits include:
- The loss to the unemployment insurance program in 2020 may be as high as $1.1 billion, including:
- $647 million in known misappropriations and
- $461 million in questionable payments – claims that were flagged by ESD for review, but not yet investigated.
- Some forms of fraud continue, and a backlog of 56,000 possible cases was awaiting investigation at the end of 2020.
- ESD has only been able to answer a small share of calls from people with questions about their unemployment insurance.
- ESD and other states were targeted with imposter fraud schemes that took advantage of new provisions in emergency federal legislation that did not require states to verify people filing unemployment-insurance claims were eligible for benefits.
According to the audit, even prior to the pandemic, ESD lacked a proactive anti-fraud unit, and in early 2020 some of its supposed fraud-prevention tools were not working, for example, checking identities against state prison registers before issuing payments.
Have the failures and $1.1 billion fraud of the Employment Security Department hurt you and your family? Late payments? Unable to get through to a person? Wrongly billed for overpayments? Tell us your story.
Click here to learn more.
Video Update:
Drug-possession law ‘fix’ debated in Senate
 Click the image above to watch video of my comments on Senate Bill 5476 — the bill concerning the state Supreme Court’s Blake decision, decriminalizing drug possession.
AUDIO: Sen. Mike Padden pushes for action on Blake decision decriminalizing drugs.
In the News:
Senate OKs bills on use of force standard, officer investigations
By Angelica Relente, Columbia Basin Herald | April 12, 2021
Sen. Mike Padden, R-Spokane Valley, said during the virtual legislative debate Friday law enforcement officers want justice just as much as others. But HB 1267 will have “political pressures” because the investigation office will operate under the governor.
“I think we could have come up with a bill … that could have more broad bipartisan support,” Padden said. “I don't think this is it.”
Click here to read more.
Legislation Update:
Legislature approves bill to accommodate the hearing-impaired
 On April 14, the Senate voted 48-0 to accept simple changes made by the House of Representatives to our measure to help people with hearing impairments by increasing the availability of closed captioning on televisions in public places. The bill, which passed the House unanimously earlier this month, now heads to the governor’s desk.
The unanimous support for Senate Bill 5027 highlights how important the issue is for the 20% of Washingtonians who suffer from some level of hearing loss.
Click here to read more.
Audio Update:
New bill from state Republican ‘should help everybody interested in free speech’
The Jason Rantz Show, KTTH 770 | April 16, 2021
 Click on the image above to listen to Sen. Padden on the Jason Rantz radio show discussing a big free speech win, tear gas being reintroduced into police use of force bill, and the felony DUI bill.
Sen. Mike Padden’s (R-Spokane Valley) measure to help protect citizens and whistleblowers and members of the press from frivolous lawsuits will become law, a measure which many believe bolsters free speech rights. The bill essentially reinstates Anti-SLAPP protections, SLAPP standing for Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation.
“Well, the state Supreme Court in a case called Davis v. Cox ruled our previous Anti-SLAPP law unconstitutional, and that was about four years ago. And we’ve been trying ever since to get something through,” Padden told the Jason Rantz Show on KTTH.
Click here to read the full story.
In Memoriam:
Former legislator, Spokane Board of Realtors director Dick Barrett dies at 91
By Jim Camden, Spokesman-Review | April 14, 2021
As a legislator, Dick Barrett had a reputation of being able to get along with everyone.
“He just didn’t acquire enemies,” former House Speaker Bill Polk said Wednesday of Barrett, who died Monday at 91. “He was willing to laugh and talk with people and discuss their problems with them.”
He won a state House of Representatives seat in northwest Spokane’s old 5th District in 1980, part of the Republican tide that rode Ronald Reagan’s presidential election and gave the GOP control of the Legislature.
Spokane Valley Sen. Mike Padden, who was elected to the House that same year, said Barrett quickly became a floor leader, helping shepherd legislation through the chamber.
“He had the look and was very articulate. He was a good guy,” Padden said. “He had an infectious personality.”
Click here to read more.
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Focus on Life:
Bill expanding assisted suicide fails to advance
By Kathi O'Shea, KGMI 790 | April 14, 2021
 Source: The Associated Press
A bill that would have made it easier for terminally ill patients to take their own lives is dead for now in the Washington Legislature.
HB 1141 passed the House in late February. It would have shortened the waiting period to receive lethal drugs from 15 days to 72 hours and eliminated the waiting period when life expectancy is less than 72 hours.
Republican Senator Mike Padden of Spokane Valley says a variety of groups lined up in opposition, including the developmentally disabled community.
Click here to read more.
Focus on Life:
Washington lawmakers advance bill mandating abortion coverage in student health plans
By Matthew Wilson, Princeton University, for College Fix | April 15, 2021
A bill that would require Washington state colleges and universities to cover abortions in student health plans recently passed both chambers of the state legislature and appears likely to be signed into law.
“It’s just another attempt to force insurance providers to cover abortions regardless of the religious, social or other objections of institutions and individuals,” Sen. Mike Padden told The Fix.
“I am concerned that HB 1009 violates the religious liberty of Washingtonians,” Padden said. He said the bill, along with another law passed two years ago called the Reproductive Parity Act, “are about as far away from being pro-choice as any mandate could be, in that they force private insurers to offer coverage for abortions.”
Click here to read more.
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If you have a question or concern about state government, please do not hesitate to contact our office. We are here to serve you!
Phone: (360) 786-7606
Street address: 106 Irv Newhouse Building, Capitol Campus, Olympia, WA 98504
Postal address: PO Box 40404, Olympia, WA 98504
Email address: Mike.Padden@leg.wa.gov
PLEASE NOTE: Any email or documents you provide to this office may be subject to disclosure under RCW 42.56. If you would prefer to communicate by phone, please contact Sen. Padden's Olympia office, which will be open starting Jan. 6, at (360) 786-7606.
To request public records from Sen. Padden, please contact Randi Stratton who is the designated public records officer for the Secretary of the Senate and Senate members.
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