Report from Olympia | Sine Die Edition | March 10, 2022
  Though the session is ending, Team Padden will continue to serve you, back in our district office.
Dear Friends and Neighbors,
The end is near. If all goes as planned the regular 2022 legislative session will reach its scheduled conclusion later today.
In 1866, as Surrogate of New York County, Gideon John Tucker famously wrote: "No man's life, liberty or property is safe while the Legislature is in session." Well, soon you will be able to breathe a sigh of relief.
This session was a paradox in many ways. On one hand, we had small-business owners, parents, students, and commuters facing the anxiety-inducing confluence of a pandemic, executive overreach, worker shortages, supply-chain problems, inflation and the Russian invasion of freedom-loving Ukraine. On the other hand, we saw consumers desperate to get back to normal, which led to increased spending, and the continued pouring of revenue into state coffers, along with a massive influx of federal dollars.
Our state saw in real time that past policy decisions had consequences. Anti-police bills passed by the majority last session have led to increased criminal activity, as members of law enforcement had de-escalation tools removed from their toolboxes. Those policies reduced law enforcement’s ability to protect the public from crime.
Many opportunities were missed by the majority, starting with its failure to give families any meaningful tax relief in spite of a $15 billion budget surplus Our Democratic colleagues also wrongfully continued to cede the legislative branch’s authority to the executive branch (meaning the governor) when it comes to a state of emergency. He has refused to relinquish the emergency powers he has wielded for more than 725 days of this never-ending state of emergency.
You can read about many of these issues in the legislative wrap up below.
I will be returning from Olympia soon and look forward to reconnecting with many of you back in our district. In the meantime, please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.
As always, it’s an honor to serve as your state senator.
Best Regards,
Senator
Mike Padden
Audio Update:
Senate Republicans push police use-of-force reform across the finish line
 Senate Republicans push police use-of-force reform across the finish line. Kimberly Wirtz has more on this story.
LISTEN NOW: Click here or on the image above to listen now!
Inslee fails to explain never-ending emergency powers, even after offering to do so
 My fellow Freedom Caucus members and I continue our efforts to hold Governor Inslee accountable and end his state of emergency.
Washington has been under a state of emergency for the last two years, giving the governor sweeping authority to suspend laws and issue life-controlling orders. Most states already have rescinded their COVID emergency declarations, but Washington is one of just four states that still allow their governors to have total say when emergencies begin and end. Inslee so far has declined to say when or under what conditions he will give up this extra power.
Questioned by reporters about the growing criticism from lawmakers, Gov. Inslee at his Feb. 28 news conference declared that he would meet with Republicans to show them statistics about COVID hospitalizations and infection rates that lead him to believe his emergency authority should be maintained. “I will be happy to talk to them about the numbers,” the governor stated.
In our letter to the governor, we wrote: “We agree with you, there really ought to be some sort of justification for this continued assumption of power and authority by the governor’s office, and we are excited that you are willing to share it with us.”
But the excitement has waned, and here we are on the final day of the session, more than a week after we sent a formal letter to the governor accepting his offer, and we are still waiting to hear back from him.
Unfortunately, the governor has had very little to fear from keeping lawmakers and the public in the dark. Democrat lawmakers have once again failed to take action to rein in the governor’s emergency authority, and they have rejected proposals from Republicans that would have required legislative consent to extend emergencies beyond 30 or 60 days. Instead, legislative Democrats offered a weak proposal. Even that did not pass.
Majority fail to moves Safe Washington plan
 Click on the image above to watch the Republican Safe Washington Plan press conference.
During the 2021 legislative session, the majority dropped the ball on public safety. It removed critical tools from police, reduced punishment for criminals, missed opportunities to protect the public from repeat DUI offenders, and flat-out surrendered on the war on drugs.
The impacts of those decisions on the lives of Washingtonians were devastating and immediate. Violent gang- and drug-related crimes are on the rise, as property crimes are impacting families and businesses alike. Instead of criminals being handcuffed, it is members of law enforcement who are hindered from doing their job. Even after receiving pushback from the public, the majority was back at it again this year, introducing new measures to reduce the punishment for drive-by shootings and impaired drivers.
To address these critical issues, Washington’s House and Senate Republicans unveiled a package of common-sense solutions to the public-safety crisis ravaging communities and destroying lives across the state.
Unfortunately, the majority dropped the ball again this session, failing to act on many key components of the Safe Washington plan.
 Out of the 47 bills in our Safe Washington package, only 3 are going to pass into law. The majority has shown a lack of resolve to fix many of last year’s mistakes through inaction on many important public-safety bills this year. There were some improvements made in three areas: use of force, detaining because of mental health and the removal of the prohibition on the use of non-lethal items like “bean bags."
But this is still much work to be done.
From the District:
Hutton Settlement youth, Filipe DeAndrade overcame obstacles, learned from National Geographic, great outdoors
By Treva Lind, Spokesman-Review | March 7, 2022
 Filipe DeAndrade, the star of Nat Geo Wild’s “Untamed,” is set to talk about finding his life’s passions at Martin Woldson Theater at the Fox on Wednesday evening. DeAndrade was born in Brazil into poverty and surrounded by addiction and abuse. (Hannah Pietrick/National Geographic)
A rainforest became a refuge for a young boy in Brazil fleeing abuse at home. Today, Filipe DeAndrade is a National Geographic filmmaker who credits animals with saving his life. He wants to preserve their wild spaces.
…DeAndrade has shared his story in publications that he was born in Brazil into poverty and surrounded by addiction and abuse. He spent those early years dodging the blows of a violent, drug-addicted father.
Click here to read the full story.
Budget & Taxes:
Legislature approves $64.1 billion supplemental operating budget
Despite billions of dollars in surplus revenue, the majority missed a great opportunity to provide the people with substantial tax relief. Inflation is at a 40-year high, resulting in higher prices for gas, food, housing, and electricity. Washington families need and deserve a break.
And of all years, this would have been the year to do it. On top of increased revenue and an infusion of federal dollars, the state saw a savings of more than $1 billion due primarily to declining caseloads in K-12 education and its correctional institutions.
Instead of using this surplus to provide some relief, majority budget writers saw it as opportunity to grow government. The supplemental budget increases policy spending by $6.2 billion with more than 1,300 individual policy additions.
With this additional spending, the budget has grown by 22% (or a whopping $11.7 billion) from the 2019-21 biennium.
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Budget & Taxes:
Funding secured for local projects in supplemental capital budget
 Yesterday the Legislature approved mid-cycle updates to the state’s 2021-23 capital budget, which will fund several projects important to the 4th Legislative District.
Senate Bill 5651 was passed by the House of Representatives on Tuesday by a vote of 98-0 and cleared the Senate unanimously. In the supplemental plan, there is $397,000 for a renovation of the lodge at Mount Spokane, $100,000 for the Newman Lake Milfoil Reduction plan and $200,000 for continued improvements at Felts Field airport.
Fourth District taxpayers send a lot of their money to Olympia. The capital budget brings some of that money back home to help fund important projects in our community, which also creates and preserves jobs.
Click here to learn more.
Legislation Update:
Partisan session leads to several missed opportunities
Even in some of the most contentious years, lawmakers will still come together to advance common-sense bipartisan legislation to help the people of Washington. Not this year. This session, the majority pushed through their agenda and not only iced out the public but refused to move several important bills that we offered this year.
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Senate Bill 5710 is aimed at reducing contamination in the state toxicology laboratory. This bill would require testing for contamination at the lab, as well as require that the lab produce an annual report on its findings and submit it to the Washington State Forensic Investigations Council, the Senate Law and Justice Committee and the House Public Safety Committee. It passed the Senate 49-0, only to die in the House.
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Senate Bill 5332, which would clarify equipment requirements for wheeled all-terrain vehicles. The bill is technical in nature and would add a definition of required equipment to the law that covers ORV and WATVs. It got a late start last session and didn’t have time for a final House vote. This year it passed the Senate 49-0, only to die in the House again.
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Senate Bill 5781, a measure to deal with organized retail theft – a crime you may have seen featured in recent news reports – is one of the bills included in our Republican “Safe Washington” package. It passed the Senate 46-3, only to die in the House.
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Senate Bill 5054 is a bill dealing with impaired drivers, which would increase the “lookback” period in determining if an offense qualifies under the state’s felony-DUI law. Even though the bill was combined with a alternative-treatment option recommended by Democrat Sen. John Lovick and passed the Senate 48-0; it died in the House.
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Senate Bill 5839 would create the crime of interfering with a firefighter or emergency medical services provider. The bill passed the Senate 48-1; yet it also died in the House.
I think the pattern is clear. Bills that were clearly bipartisan and have statewide benefit were rejected by a House majority pushing a Seattle-centric agenda.
You can find all of my bills at the Washington Legislature website.
Get your copy of the 2022 Government Guide
Limited number of hardcopies are now available at our district office at
5105 E 3rd Ave, Ste 102 Spokane Valley, WA 99212
The 2022 Government Guide in now available for downloading. To see the contents, click here.
This 4th Legislative District guide to government provides information on how to contact federal, state and local government offices and services. It also has some great information about our legislative district and some of the institutions and people that make it such a great place to live, visit or start a business.
A limited number of printed copies are also available. If you would like to have a hard copy of the guide mailed to you, please contact our district office at 509-921-2460 or contact my legislative assistant Jacob Clark by email at Jacob.Clark@leg.wa.gov.
You can also pick up a hard copy of the guide at our district office and at most public libraries in the district, while supplies last.
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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
District Office: 5105 E 3rd Ave, Ste 102 Spokane Valley, WA 99212
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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