Podcasts about washington state house

Send us a textSenator Slatter helped pass state funding for a Washington State immigrant entrepreneur program, one of a handful in the entire country. Tahmina sits down to speak with her. Senator Vandana Slatter (D–WA 48th District) is a pharmacist, biotech professional, and trailblazing lawmaker who brings science, compassion, and equity to public service. Currently Vice Chair of the Senate Environment, Energy & Technology Committee, she also serves on the Health and Higher Education committees. A former Bellevue City Councilmember and four-term State House Representative, Vandana was the first Indian-American elected to the Washington State House. Her work has championed climate policy, healthcare privacy, education access, and innovation. A naturalized citizen, community leader, and public school parent, Vandana's journey from pharmacy to policy is grounded in service, representation, and creating opportunity for all.You can learn more about Senator Slatter at Vandana Slatter for State Senate | Meet VandanaTahmina Talks Immigration and The Startup Visa podcast series are produced and edited by Tamanna Jahan. Check out Tahmina's books at www.tahminawatson.com and our startup visa series which is intended to be your toolbox for the success of your immigration journey.  And if the world is feeling heavy right now, cultivate joy in your life with Tahmina's journal Finding Joy series. Here's a link to her best selling new coloring book: Color Your Joy: Birds and Wildlife Coloring Book: Watson, Tahmina, Jahan, Tamanna, Watson, Sofia, Watson, Sarina: 9798988507239: Amazon.com: Books Be sure to follow us on our website www.watsonimmigrationlaw.com and Tahmina's author page on Amazon Amazon Author page and her author website www.tahminawatson.com. Sign to our blog- and connect with us on on social media:LinkedIn - Watson Immigration Law and Tahmina WatsonTwitter - @TahminaTalksInstagram - @TahminaTalksFacebook - Watson Immigration LawFind us at watsonimmigrationlaw.com

The Washington State House passed three tax hike bills after midnight, including a revised property tax proposal and new surcharges on large businesses. Read the full story at https://www.clarkcountytoday.com/news/in-the-dead-of-night-wa-house-passes-trio-of-tax-hike-bills/ #ClarkCountyWa #localnews #WAhousetaxbills #TeslaTax #propertytax #Washingtonstate #statebudget #SharonWylie #EdOrcutt

Roland H. Hartley was a prominent politician and lumberman who was elected mayor of Everett in 1910–1911, served as a member of the Washington State House of Representatives in 1915–1916, and then as the 10th governor of the State of Washington from 1925–1933.  Despite his small frame, he was a political showman and a fiery orator whose colorful words were frequently removed from the official record.  His fight to remove what he called waste and luxury in government characterized his political career as a conservative Republican.  He regularly exploited his veto power to impose his political agenda and detested taxation, government spending, and unions.  He fought with the majority of his elected colleagues on labor, education, and the lumber business during his two turbulent terms as governor.Listen now to learn more about this lumber baron turned State Governor!This episode is part of the ongoing monthly series highlighting Evergreen State Governors

ORIGINAL EPISODE DESCRIPTION: Speaker emeritus Frank Chopp, who voluntarily switched his role to Rep. Frank Chopp at the end of the 2019 session, is the special guest on this episode of Capitol Ideas. The good things he's done for the Evergreen State are too numerous to list here, but if you listen to today's conversation, you'll notice a promise to include some items in the show notes. Here, in no particular order, are some of the things that he played a pivotal role in: the state Housing Trust fund; the best minimum wage in the U.S.; paid family and medical leave; free college and university tuition for those who need it most; the Marriage Equality Act; the Dream Act; the Voting Rights Act; the Long-term Care Trust Act; the Education Legacy Fund; The College Bound Scholarship program; Apple Health for All Kids; Apple Health and Homes; and 20 years of state budgets that put people first.

The Washington State House passed a bill aimed at cracking down on speeding. Kirkland residents voiced their frustrations with the city’s plans to open a new homeless hotel. Florida spent over $600 million on illegal aliens last year. // Canada issued retaliatory tariffs against the United States. What is Donald Trump’s end game in the trade war? // Guest: INRIX CEO Bryan Mistele on his decision to leave Kirkland due to a new homeless hotel near their office.

Rep. John Ley's House Bill 1857 aims to lower construction costs by easing regulations on asphalt, concrete, and commercial aggregates. The bill, which received strong bipartisan support, now heads to the Senate for consideration. If passed, it could benefit infrastructure projects and affordable housing across Washington.Read the full story at https://www.clarkcountytoday.com/news/rep-john-leys-bill-to-assist-the-construction-industry-receives-approval-from-washington-state-house-of-representatives/ www.ClarkCountyToday.com#JohnLey #HouseBill1857 #ConstructionIndustry #Asphalt #Concrete #BuildingMaterials #Infrastructure #AffordableHousing #RoadConstruction #ClarkCountyWa #WashingtonState #LocalNews

In Episode 71 of The Kershner Files, Dave provides updates for PMs, Survival Realty, and Gun Shows. After the assorted updates, he discusses five articles. The first three articles deal with the erosion of your Second Amendment rights. Dave closes the show with some usual faire by discussing composting and signs martial law is coming. Articles/topics discussed:Spot Prices for Gold (Au) and Silver (Ag) - from the davidjkershner.com websiteSurvival Realty - featured properties and new listingsState-by-State Gun Shows - from the davidjkershner.com websiteSecond Amendment Permission Slip for Firearm Purchases Approved by Washington State House by Cam Edwards from Bearing ArmsColorado Dems Advance Semi-Auto Ban in Late Night Committee Vote by Cam Edwards from Bearing ArmsSeventh Circuit Panel: SBRs Aren't 'Arms' Protected by the Second Amendment by Tom Knighton from Bearing ArmsHow Do You Speed Up Composting by Sunny M from Self-Sufficient Projects7 Hidden Signs That Martial Law Will Be Declared by Eric Beuning from Ask a PrepperSupport Dave by visiting his Etsy shop at DesignsbyDandTStoreAvailable for Purchase - Fiction:When Rome Stumbles | Hannibal is at the Gates | By the Dawn's Early Light | Colder Weather | A Time for Reckoning (paperback versions) | Fiction Series (paperback) | Fiction Series (audio)Available for Purchase - Non-Fiction:Preparing to Prepare (electronic/paperback) | Home Remedies (electronic/paperback) | Just a Small Gathering (paperback) | Just a Small Gathering (electronic)

In Episode 71 of The Kershner Files, Dave provides updates for PMs, Survival Realty, and Gun Shows. After the assorted updates, he discusses five articles. The first three articles deal with the erosion of your Second Amendment rights. Dave closes the show with some usual faire by discussing composting and signs martial law is coming. Articles/topics discussed: Spot Prices for Gold (Au) and Silver (Ag) - from the davidjkershner.com website Survival Realty - featured properties and new listings State-by-State Gun Shows - from the davidjkershner.com website Second Amendment Permission Slip for Firearm Purchases Approved by Washington State House by Cam Edwards from Bearing Arms Colorado Dems Advance Semi-Auto Ban in Late Night Committee Vote by Cam Edwards from Bearing Arms Seventh Circuit Panel: SBRs Aren't 'Arms' Protected by the Second Amendment by Tom Knighton from Bearing Arms How Do You Speed Up Composting by Sunny M from Self-Sufficient Projects 7 Hidden Signs That Martial Law Will Be Declared by Eric Beuning from Ask a Prepper Support Dave by visiting his Etsy shop at DesignsbyDandTStore Available for Purchase - Fiction: When Rome Stumbles | Hannibal is at the Gates | By the Dawn's Early Light | Colder Weather | A Time for Reckoning (paperback versions) | Fiction Series (paperback) | Fiction Series (audio) Available for Purchase - Non-Fiction: Preparing to Prepare (electronic/paperback) | Home Remedies (electronic/paperback) | Just a Small Gathering (paperback) | Just a Small Gathering (electronic)

The Washington State House unanimously passed two bills from Rep. Kevin Waters, including one clarifying alcohol server permit laws and another modernizing museum unclaimed property notifications. Read more at https://www.clarkcountytoday.com/news/house-unanimously-passes-two-bills-from-rep-kevin-waters-including-one-to-clarify-alcohol-server-permit-statutes/ #ClarkCountyWa #VancouverWA #WashingtonState #LocalNews #LegislativeUpdate #RepKevinWaters #AlcoholLaws #MuseumPolicy #StatePolicy #WAHouse

WAGOP Chairman Jim Walsh calls out Olympia Democrats for limiting debate and restricting free speech in the Washington State House. Read more at https://www.clarkcountytoday.com/news/wagop-statement-olympia-democrats-trash-130-years-of-tradition-in-state-house-to-restrict-free-speech #WAGOP #JimWalsh #FreeSpeech #LegislativeTransparency #WashingtonPolitics #GovernmentAccountability #ClarkCountyWa #WashingtonState #LocalNews

State Rep. David Stuebe of Washougal begins his first term in the Washington State House of Representatives, focusing on housing, safety, and economic issues while serving on four key committees. Read the full story at https://www.clarkcountytoday.com/news/state-rep-david-stuebe-sworn-into-washington-state-house-of-representatives-announces-committee-assignments on www.ClarkCountyToday.com #LocalNews #ClarkCountyWa #DavidStuebe #WashingtonState

In this compelling episode, Dr. Philip Lindholm sits down with Rep. Travis Couture, a dedicated legislator and advocate for public safety, to discuss one of the most pressing issues facing our communities: the fentanyl crisis. Drawing from his experience in the Washington State House of Representatives, Rep. Couture provides a candid and insightful look into the multifaceted challenges posed by this epidemic. Episode Highlights: - **Introduction to the Fentanyl Crisis**: The episode opens with a deep dive into the alarming rise of fentanyl-related deaths and its impact on communities across Washington State. Rep. Couture underscores the urgent need for robust legislative action to address this growing epidemic. - **Policy and Advocacy**: Rep. Couture discusses his efforts to push forward meaningful policies aimed at curbing fentanyl distribution, supporting affected families, and increasing access to treatment for addiction. He shares firsthand accounts from his time in office that highlight the complexity of the issue. - **The Human Cost of Fentanyl**: We explore the devastating effects of fentanyl on families and communities. Rep. Couture shares powerful stories that illustrate the personal toll this crisis takes on his constituents and the broader public. - **Collaborative Solutions**: Rep. Couture emphasizes the importance of bipartisan collaboration in tackling the crisis, showcasing examples of successful initiatives and underscoring the need for unity among lawmakers, law enforcement, and health professionals. - **Call to Action**: In his concluding remarks, Rep. Couture calls on listeners to get involved by supporting prevention programs, educating others, and advocating for effective policies to combat fentanyl abuse. Takeaways: This episode is essential listening for anyone passionate about making a difference in the fight against the fentanyl epidemic. Rep. Couture's insights and dedication provide a roadmap for both policy changes and grassroots efforts. Listen and Subscribe to the Podcast: - **Spotify**: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/the-informed-citizen - **Apple Podcasts**: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-informed-citizen/id1738680188 Connect with Us: - **Website**: https://theinformedcitizen.com/ - **Instagram**: https://www.instagram.com/drphiliplindholm/ - **Facebook**: https://www.facebook.com/drphiliplindholm - **YouTube Playlist**: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLdscEVf-gjkiNh9YK-0yYiTZN7usLZ4CR Credits: - **Produced in Partnership with**: Terry Wise & Associates - **Music**: Sound and Vision, “This Party Bussin” - **Editing & Post-Production**: Tony Wise at Wise Videography This podcast is for informational purposes only and not professional advice.

Rep. Drew Stokesbary re-elected as Leader of Washington State House Republicans, with Rep. Chris Corry named Deputy Leader. Learn about their priorities for the upcoming legislative session. Read the full story at https://www.clarkcountytoday.com/news/rep-drew-stokesbary-re-elected-as-leader-of-the-washington-state-house-republicans on www.ClarkCountyToday.com #HouseRepublicans #WashingtonPolitics #LocalNews

Sister Melannie, also known as Peace Queen, is solo on the mic as Sister Audrey continues her radical healing journey! Please send your prayers and good vibes! In this episode, Peace Queen delves into what...

Opinion: Protect Energy Choice – sign I-2066 this June. Nancy Churchill points out that while Democrats control the Washington State House and Senate, they do not control the initiative process. https://www.clarkcountytoday.com/opinion/opinion-protect-energy-choice-sign-i-2066-this-june/ #opinion #columns #commentary #NancyChurchill #DangerousRhetoric #Initiative2066 #WashingtonStateLegislature #WashingtonStateSenate #WashingtonStateHouseofRepresentatives #initiativeprocess #Democrats #WashingtonState #VancouverWa #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyNews #ClarkCountyToday

Rhythm & News Podcast interview with attorney James Bible discussing the Washington State House's overwhelmingly approved legislation that would ban police from hog-tying suspects, a restraint technique that has long drawn concern because of the risk of suffocation. Interview by Chris B. Bennett.

In a recent interview on the "Hacks & Wonks" podcast, Tacoma City Councilmember Olgy Diaz provided an insider's guide on how to prepare and run for elected office. Drawing from over a decade of experience in political campaigns and advocacy, Diaz offered detailed advice for prospective candidates. Diaz stressed knowing your "why" for running as a motivating force. "Think about what problems you're trying to solve or what communities you're trying to represent," she said. Align your passion with the appropriate position, whether school board, city council, or state legislature. Assembling the right team is critical, according to Diaz. This includes identifying trusted people to handle key roles like communications, field operations, fundraising, and campaign compliance. Diaz advised being intentional about building a team that reflects the diversity you want to see.  Once committed, assemble a "kitchen cabinet" of trusted family, friends, and community leaders to comprise your core team, Diaz advised. "You need to figure out who's going to help with what, and be really comfortable asking for help." Budgeting is crucial, and Diaz recommended using unionized vendors and allocating at least two-thirds of funds for direct voter communication like mailings and advertising. "Yard signs don't actually vote," she quipped. On fundraising, Diaz's top tip was simple: "You don't get any money that you don't ask for, so ask everybody unabashedly." This includes calling personal contacts like friends, current and former colleagues, as well as adversaries of your opponent. Authenticity in messaging is paramount. "Be authentically who you are all of the time and be willing to own where you might disagree with people because I think that matters as much in governing as it does always agreeing with people. People respect you more.” But running for office is just the first step – Diaz also offered advice for translating campaign advocacy into tangible policy actions through ordinances and legislation. She recommended focusing first on achievable goals to start delivering wins while getting accustomed to the new role. Throughout, Diaz emphasized building bridges and bringing more people from underrepresented communities into the process as future leaders. Diaz also emphasized building a diverse campaign team that creates opportunities for mentorship. "The more of us there are … the better our policies can become."   Resources Public Disclosure Commission | Training and Resources   National Political Women's Caucus of Washington   Emerge Washington   Washington Institute for a Democratic Future   Build the Bench WA   Transcript [00:00:00] Crystal Fincher: Welcome to Hacks & Wonks. I'm Crystal Fincher, and I'm a political consultant and your host. On this show, we talk with policy wonks and political hacks to gather insight into local politics and policy in Washington state through the lens of those doing the work with behind-the-scenes perspectives on what's happening, why it's happening, and what you can do about it. Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get the full versions of our Friday week-in-review show and our Tuesday topical show delivered to your podcast feed. If you like us, the most helpful thing you can do is leave a review wherever you listen to Hacks & Wonks. Full transcripts and resources referenced in the show are always available at officialhacksandwonks.com and in our episode notes. The Washington legislative session for this year just ended and we've received news about several legislators who are not running for re-election. This opens up opportunities for new candidates to run this year to represent their communities in the legislature, in addition to hundreds of local elected positions across every community in our state. So we thought this was a great time to talk with Tacoma City Councilmember Olgy Diaz about how to run for office. Olgy was born and raised in Pierce County to parents who immigrated from Guatemala. Throughout her career, she has worked to foster a more reflective democracy and expand access to power through work with local nonprofits like One America and Planned Parenthood, in the Washington State Legislature, and in candidate campaigns across Pierce County. Over the last 13 years, she has talked to voters in English and Spanish all over Washington. Olgy is passionate about conservation, tribal sovereignty, and wildlife, and serves as the vice chair of the Washington Wildlife and Recreation Coalition. She served on the City of Tacoma's Human Rights Commission, worked in the Washington State House of Representatives and Senate for five years, and is the Immediate Past President of the National Women's Political Caucus of Washington. She spends most of her spare time building up future civic leaders through key leadership roles and has trained hundreds of political candidates across our state. We both serve on the board of the Washington Institute for a Democratic Future, an organization that does just that. Olgy has been effective in advocacy, productive in governing, and successful at winning elections, which is why I'm so thrilled to welcome her to this show about how to prepare for a successful run for office. Welcome back to the show, Councilmember Olgy Diaz. [00:02:38] Councilmember Olgy Diaz: Hi, Crystal. How's it going? [00:02:40] Crystal Fincher: It is going well because I'm talking with you this morning - thought this would be a good opportunity to talk about how to prepare to run for office, what the most important things are to consider - because a lot of people don't have any exposure to this - the things that are visible about campaigns aren't necessarily the most important things. Lot of times when people think about running, they think about yard signs and parades and delivering speeches, or they have this picture of the West Wing in their head, or Parks and Recs, or Veep or whatever it may be. But a lot of times it's just not reflective of what running a campaign, particularly a state or local campaign, a local government or legislative campaign looks like. So just starting out, Olgy, what do people need to do to prepare to run for office? [00:03:33] Councilmember Olgy Diaz: I think the biggest things that folks can do to prepare are really sort of reflect - think inward - and think about what problems you're trying to solve, or what communities you're trying to represent, and where that is needed. So the thing that's going to get you through the hard days - the days where you feel betrayed or left behind or just generally out of energy on a campaign - your why is what's going to get you through. And so you've got to really think about - if I am deeply passionate about making sure that kids have access to classrooms that don't have moldy walls or leaky ceilings, and that they've got a curriculum that makes sense, and that they've got maybe some access to after-school services, that's probably someone who's deeply passionate about running for school board, not Congress. So making sure that your interests align with what you're wanting to govern over - I think is the deepest and hardest part of getting ready to run for office - because a lot of people will gravitate towards some of those offices that look shiny or feel like they are name in lights, really sexy. But really, if you're deeply passionate about climate change, you might be the best fire commissioner and not the best state legislator. And that's not to push people out of some of the bigger races, but it's also helpful to start at the ground level and work your way up - makes it much easier to have been elected to something else before you go and run for governor. It really is a nine, ten month, however month long you're running for office job interview. And actually in any good job interview you're doing, you're going to want to see what this job actually does - read the job description, read the budget, read the minutes, read the notes of what the people who are doing this job already do - so you can prepare yourself for that work. A lot of offices, I would say more offices than not, in Washington state don't have staff. So you're going to be the expert in your thing - so be prepared to be savvy, be researching. And get ready - so think about, if I've never served on a board, even my little PTA board or my nonprofit board - go sign up. I don't know of a single government who doesn't have a board or commission that they're looking for volunteers who are passionate about work. And that's where you can meet people in the community, it's where you can build a network, it's where you can learn about different topics. Sure, a lot of these positions are unpaid, so you've got to find the volunteer time to do it. But running for office is also unpaid, unfortunately. So at some point, you do have to be wanting to serve the public - so I think it's really helpful to try to start serving on boards or commissions at any level of government to try to just get that - How do we work together? Understanding - How does this governing body work? How do you organize? It can be one of those early tools of learning how you put your teams together and how you build coalitions. [00:06:30] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, I think you raise a number of important points. I really do want to underscore you talking about - just know why you want to run, what is motivating you. It's always a bit dismaying to have someone come and be like, Yeah, I really want to run. I really want to be on the city council. Then you asked, Okay, so what do you want to do? What do you want to accomplish? What do you want to do to help the community? And they haven't thought that far yet. All they have thought about is that they want to be elected. That is a red flag for me. It's a red flag for a lot of people. Know how you want to help. And like you said, it should be something you're passionate about. And then you have to align that with different positions. There are so many jurisdictions and positions up for election - city councils, school boards, parks districts, port commission, state legislature, county council, all of these different things - and they're very different positions at different levels of government. So are you interested in public and community safety and want to do that? That's probably going to happen more at the local level. Are you interested in intervening with climate change? That may be something you can impact a lot at the port. Or like you said, it doesn't have to be statewide lands commissioner - could also be fire commissioners, different things like that. Know if the role is a legislative position or an executive position - those are two very different types of roles. Are you going to be making decisions together with a team? Are you the one who the buck stops with and you're doing that yourself? Those are all things to consider and you have to think about - do your interests and skills align with that particular position? So for someone who has thought about - Okay, I am really fired up about this specific set of issues, I have identified what positions seem like they match best for me. I think I do want to run. I think I do want to do this. What's the next step that they should take? [00:08:32] Councilmember Olgy Diaz: They should absolutely get sign-off from family and friends - whoever that chosen family is, whoever that internal family is - because it's going to take everyone. And sometimes, especially in smaller races, you don't have the ability to get a high-paid consultant. And so your mom might also end up being your speechwriter. I think oftentimes folks do the best when they have someone who is closer to a normal voter as opposed to a political junkie actually listen to their speeches, listen to their answers, really listen to whether or not you're giving jargon or whether or not you're giving something that really resonates with the average person. And so your kitchen cabinet of folks that you assemble is going to be some mix of family and friends, plus people in the community - prominent folks and leaders and activists - I think those are some of the best assets that you can have, especially in these smaller races where you're not going to have a bunch of paid staff. Because somebody might have a friend of a friend who knows how to do graphic design and they can do all your Canva stuff for you. You're starting something very grassroots, very deep and passionate, and you need to figure out who your people are so that you have them with you in the trenches. And sometimes if you're busy, like a lot of us are working and running for office, you need to figure out who's just going to do the laundry - just the little things that make sure that you're able to keep going through the campaign cycle really, really matters. And so start assembling that list of who's going to help with what, and be really comfortable and ready to ask for help. I think that's one of the things that I have seen really knock down candidates - is an unwillingness to either ask for help, ask for what they need, or say no. And any mix of those things can really tank your campaign, so you got to be really secure in what you need, where you're trying to go, and how you're going to get there. [00:10:18] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely - think you're 100% correct - you do need to sign off and negotiate how all of the people in your life are going to function during the time that you're running. And also with work - really important - for most of the people who are probably going to be listening to this who would be considering running - probably are working. And running for office is a significant time commitment - much more of a time commitment as things get closer to the election. But it's something that you do want to talk with your job about, talk with who you're reporting to about - make sure that they understand that you may need some flexibility, or figure that out as time goes on. It is really tough for someone to run while working an inflexible job. Unfortunately, there are things that both happen during the day, that happen during the evening - lots of demands on your time and resources at different times. And so understand what the road looks like - certainly something you're going to have to negotiate with and contend with and plan for. I want to talk about putting together the actual campaign team, which is one of the first things that someone, once they do make a decision to run, is going to do. What should their considerations be as they look to put together a team? [00:11:40] Councilmember Olgy Diaz: Yeah, so as I mentioned, there are a lot of races - say you're running for city council in a small city or you're running for port commissioner - there might not be enough resources either in terms of your own fundraising capacity to bring in a high paid consultant. Or there might not be, frankly, consultants - there's not enough consultants for how many candidates we have in this state. One of the places where we're running really low actually is fundraisers. And so you got to think about what the major roles are in a campaign. And those are - traditionally - someone to help you, organize you, or keep you on task with fundraising. Someone to help you make sure that you can reach voters in a way that will actually reach them - and so that is either a communications professional or a general consultant who will do different kinds of mailings, or text messaging, or help you figure out which folks you want to talk to at the doors or on the phones. That can bleed into a little bit with what's called a field director, so that's someone who can look at the lay of the land, look at who traditionally votes, and figure out who you need to talk to and how many times you need to talk to them to make sure they hear your message. And I would say a lot of times folks often want some sort of a social media director or some sort of a comms professional who's not just deciding how they meet voters where they're at with the message and how they develop that message, but also who is actually just trying to help drum up support and excitement about your campaign with your followers and with potential new voters. And those are two different lanes from a similar - it all works very closely together - better communications can help you get more fundraising, more money, more volunteers. But it's really pivotal that you identify who can take those roles, whether or not it's people who you actually pay and hire to do that. All of those roles are jobs that exist in the political ecosystem, but they're all also jobs that someone who maybe just does social media work on their own can help you with if they're a volunteer. So making sure that you have a time when you're coordinating all these folks if you're doing it all with volunteers, or maybe you have money to pay a fundraiser, but not a general consultant, or vice versa - those are the two major roles that people will often pay people for. And then the big one that is, I think, the most worth money - because if you're doing illegal things, it's hard to win a race - is compliance. We have a state that has one of the best transparency in campaigns and elections. So you've got to make sure you have someone who's willing to go to the trainings or who just knows that work because they're a professional in that work, who's willing to file your stuff in a timely fashion, make sure that all your disclosures are done, make sure that everything that you're raising and spending is reported above board because that's something that can really ding you in a campaign by either your opposition or just by the public. You're not trustworthy if you can't be bothered to do the homework of telling people what you're up to in a state where that's really required of you. So I think those are the four major roles is comms, field, treasury, consulting, and fundraising. [00:14:37] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, absolutely. And that treasury piece is so important - just fundamentally - and would be one of the first people I locked down and put together. This is something that I often advocate, regardless of the size of the campaign - even if it's a small town or a big legislative or congressional campaign - have a professional paid treasury and compliance person. A lot of people don't realize that the campaign calls for a treasurer - you have to declare that when you file for office. And so a lot of times they think it is purely a financial thing. And so I have a friend who's a bookkeeper, I have a friend who's CPA who can totally do that - but that's actually the easier and simpler part. Alongside with treasury and built-in when we talk about treasury in a campaign context is that compliance - is the having to file all the required disclosures and reports, to follow the many campaign and spending regulations - everything from how you can accept money, maximum amounts that you can accept, how you track that, how you keep track of and collect cash and deal with that, the information you have to collect from all of the donors to report, how long before an election you can accept gifts of a certain size. All of that is a ton of rules and regulations. The PDC does a very good job in providing classes for people who are not professionals. So if you did want to have someone in that role who wasn't already doing it - start early, have them prepare by going to those trainings and doing that. But the compliance part is the most important part of that - I just cannot underscore that enough. Also, it's probably good to talk about the difference between people here, these positions - okay, so campaign manager and consultant - What is the difference? What do they do? In the campaign context, usually a general consultant is handling strategy and communications usually. The details of that can vary based on what your needs are, who's on your team, what is contracted - but make it a point to be clear on what those roles and responsibilities are, have a contract so that there's no confusion about who is responsible for what. Sometimes a consultant is just going to do paid communications like mail, or digital video, or ads, or things like that. Sometimes they're very involved in strategy and day-to-day preparation for interviews, or helping with endorsements, or all of that - those are pretty normal things that come with professional political consultants, at least. What I would say most of all is that whether or not you officially hire someone in that role or not - usually if you can, I advocate hiring that - of course, I am a political consultant, but I don't work with candidates, so it's not self-interest - it's important to have someone who has navigated campaigns and races like yours. There's lots of stuff that is specific to the campaign world. It is not just like marketing. There's a whole different cadence. There's lots of intricacies and relationships that are useful and valuable - and they know how to negotiate through that. They know how to put together a campaign plan, how to target voters. You want someone who has experience doing that - if it's not a paid consultant, someone who has shepherded, successfully, candidates through that whole thing before. And usually consultants are more on the strategy end of things - so helping to construct what the messaging is, helping to construct what the plan is. Campaign managers are usually more on the operational side of things - so implementing the campaign plan, putting the field plan into work, working with other volunteers, working with the rest of the team, and leading the crew there - from everything administrative to all of that. Sometimes in small local races, all you can afford is - and a very valuable thing in addition to a treasurer - is a campaign manager. And then you're working with your team of people to handle the rest and to do the strategy. It's helpful to look at what people who have run in that jurisdiction before and who have been successful have done - how they've constructed their campaign - you can see what people have spent and kind of reconstruct what their teams look like through public disclosure reports through the PDC - make use of that information. This doesn't mean you have to mimic that, but it is useful to know so that if you are deviating from it for a reason, you understand what the pros and cons of that are and what the implications of that are. What other considerations would you suggest? [00:19:16] Councilmember Olgy Diaz: Yeah, I would say the Public Disclosure Commission website has some of the best free information that you can get for your campaign just by looking through it - because you can find both what past campaigns have done, what they've paid for, what kind of budgets that they've had in the past based on how much they've raised. You can also see lists of lobbyists. So if you're really interested in doing health care reform, you might call through all the health care lobbyists and they might be a good pot of money for you, once you start thinking through what your lens is on that - are you going to call the folks who are interested in it in the way that you are interested in it? Probably. I think sometimes lobbyist is a bad word, but more often than not - there are good ones and bad ones. So making sure that you call the ones who are lobbying for the things that you care about - I think those are great ways to build your network and build more allies in the work that you're trying to achieve by running for these offices. [00:20:06] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, definitely. And that's a good point that you raise - just the alignment with the team, which sometimes is underrated. And unfortunately, there's a shortage of political professionals in the state in many areas - we're working on that. It can be hard when there's a limited pool of people available, but it is critical to have people who are generally aligned with who you are, what your priorities are - and who back that, and who are consistent. Otherwise, we get to a situation - and unfortunately, we've seen quite a bit of this lately - where one, someone may not know how to really communicate with voters about who you are, what you care for, and what you believe. If someone is used to messaging the opposite - if someone has advocated against renter protections, has advocated against more housing, has worked for interests that you traditionally have opposed or competed with - they're going to be more used to and skilled to working with and messaging things in that characterization. They oftentimes struggle to communicate outside of their own alignment and their own experience. And there's also the problem of consultants working with multiple candidates who have one candidate positioned in one way - hey, there's a progressive here, but there's a more moderate or conservative over there. And unfortunately, the messaging that they're pumping into the environment, into the community is directly refuting what you're doing. We've seen that a few times- [00:21:38] Councilmember Olgy Diaz: Too many times. [00:21:38] Crystal Fincher: -in the very recent past. It's a problem. Or someone just doesn't have the types of networks or connections in the community that are useful to you, that are relevant to who you are, and are not able to put together and really understand and communicate with the coalition that you need to build in order to be successful - that may look different than coalitions that they've successfully built before. Do they generally work with candidates like you? Are they generally communicating and really making the vision clear, and being successful reaching voters with candidates like you? Those are very important considerations. And I think people ignore that and - Oh, well, they're the only person available, or just they were cheaper. - that backfires all of the time. [00:22:26] Councilmember Olgy Diaz: Way too many times to count. [00:22:28] Crystal Fincher: Yes, yes. So the alignment is really important, and I think it's getting more important as we go on in years here. So, okay - they're putting together the campaign team - a couple of tips and things to look out for when it comes to some of the general areas of the campaign. When it comes to a budget, how should they approach a budget? [00:22:51] Councilmember Olgy Diaz: I like to say - you should approach your budget of your campaign the way, if you've ever run a small business, you might think about it like that. Because you are mostly seeking donations - unless for some reason someone here is wealthy enough to self-fund their campaign - you want to be a good steward of money that's coming into you, either from friends and family or from organizations that value your values and want to see you in. Because all those resources are finite, you want to make sure your budget reflects your values. So if you're running as a progressive person who values workers, you're going to want to make sure that you use union printed materials, union workplaces. Or if you're doing an event in a hotel for some reason, use a union hotel - don't use a non-union hotel. Those kinds of things that really make sure that what you're doing and what you're paying for aligns with the kind of values of your campaign really, really matters - both because it sets the tone for your values and for how you might govern, and it helps put money back into that same ecosystem that's helping support you. You also want to make sure that you've got enough money for the essentials. So we all tend to know that using labor materials - because we're paying people what they're worth - is a little bit more expensive than non-union materials. It's worth it, but you just got to make sure your budget reflects that if you're going to spend a bunch of money on printed mail pieces that you've got the money to do so. And that might mean less yard signs. Yard signs are one of the most visible things that people love to spend money on, but they're really expensive and they don't actually really equate to votes. Most people who see yard signs driving by - they're for visibility, they're for sort of creating the buzz - and they're for donors, I like to say. But they're not really for getting out any votes - yard signs don't actually vote. But mail pieces are much more likely to land in a mailbox with someone's ballot - they're more likely to see it as they're filling out their ballot. Digital is huge and important, and it helps get your name out there. General advertising rules say that you should probably see someone's name or see someone's face seven or eight times before it sort of sticks, especially in a big campaign year when everybody else is also doing the same thing. So the more touches you can get on a voter, the more likely they are to remember your name. So your budget should reflect how you're going to try to reach the voters - it should be very heavy on direct voter contact opportunities and possibilities. And some of that will be if you're able to fund a campaign staffer - because they'll help you get to more voters, or help you get through more endorsement questionnaires, or maybe help you schedule if your schedule is really busy. And your budget should make sure that it reflects, like we mentioned earlier, that priority of having someone who can do the compliance. Even if you're giving your friend 50 bucks to make sure they're up on whatever rules are coming out of the PDC, I think it's really important to make sure you fund that. And like governing, budgets are our values documents. You want to make sure that it just reflects what you're trying to accomplish and how you're trying to accomplish it. And make sure that it is scaled for roughly how much of a budget people have spent on your race in the past. It helps, as you're shopping for a consultant, to know that - Hey, I'm running for school board. I've seen people in the past spent between $40k and $80k on this kind of race and this kind of school board size so that when the consultant says, Oh, your budget should be $200k, you kind of have a sniff test of whether or not that's real or not, so you know whether or not you want to hire that person. So you have done a little bit of your own research to know what kind of ballpark - because when something costs you $40k versus $120k, that's literally money that you're going to have to help find. So you got to be sure that you're willing to bite off what you can actually chew in terms of the kind of race you want to run. [00:26:27] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, absolutely - that all makes sense. I also want to caution people against spending too much, especially on people, too early. This is about being a good steward of resources. And unfortunately, what I have seen happen too many times from afar is running out of money basically mid-campaign or spending way too much money on staff and overhead. And then when it comes time to communicate with voters - which is basically the most important thing that you're going to be doing - not having enough money to do that, which is basically just sabotaging your own campaign. A good rule of thumb is that at least two-thirds of what you raise should be going towards direct voter contact. So that's not going towards just paying the salary of your campaign manager or the retainer of your consultant, your fundraiser retainer - those can all add up really quick. Or as you go to assemble a team, you're like - Okay, I've got the best team of people. Yes, it's going to cost me $8,000 a month, but I'm sure we'll get it. You've got to go beyond just the hope and vibes to - is that really a level of expense that you can sustain and build on top of to have the war chest needed to communicate with voters? I see that wind up really backwards - people spend 75% on staff sometimes - and that's when we're talking behind the scenes, months before the end of the election, going, This actually is not possible for them to do. They don't have any money to do that communication that's so necessary because voters - most voters just don't pay attention, which is also just a really good thing for people to generally know. People generally don't read news articles - most people don't read them at all. The 20% who do mostly just read headlines. People don't pay attention to politics. Most people learn that there's an election coming because they get their ballot in the mail. People like us are in the middle of campaigns for months and months and months, and it seems like everyone in our circle knows, so this must be things that most of the community is paying attention to and aware of. That is so not the case - you have to communicate with people. And unfortunately, so much of that is paid. Like you said, the mail, the advertisements that you see in newspapers, the digital ads, the videos, social media pushes - which are somewhat limited politically in Washington state - but just doing all of that is critical to winning a race. And you're doing that the heaviest late in your campaign, which is why we see all of the ads and the stuff generally happen around the time you get your ballot until Election Day. So have enough money for that. Fund that stuff first - that's always been my rule. Fund communication, direct voter communication first - and then as you can afford other things, when you get money in the door, it's looking pretty consistent, then you can add on to there. But be very realistic about that. And be realistic about your fundraising and take those early cues seriously. If you start fundraising and you're pulling in $3,000 a month and you're spending $5,000 a month, you need to quickly reorient things, reorganize things in your campaign, redo your budget so that it fits with what you're doing. And you either need to trim expenses or see how maybe you can fundraise more. But that's also going to rely on you, and your discipline with fundraising is another thing that's going to be really important. When it comes to raising those funds, what are the biggest tips that you have? [00:30:05] Councilmember Olgy Diaz: Ask. Ask everyone you know - your pastor, your second grade teacher, your former intern colleague three jobs ago. I like to joke that your phone is your best weapon in a campaign - it's where your list is going to come from, it's who you're going to be calling and texting and asking for help and money and all of the things. Anybody who you don't ask and knows you're running - quite frankly, might be a little bit offended that you didn't ask if they're a political person. I have run years and years and years of candidate trainings. And every year I tell the people in our cohorts, call me for money - if you're running and you didn't call me for money, I don't know that you actually listened to the training I gave you. And I think in the time that I've been doing it - of the hundreds of women and people of color I've trained to run for office - I think 10 tops have actually asked me for money. And I give them my cell phone and my email. Make sure that you actually ask everyone in your life. Anybody who sends you a birthday text - those are people to ask for money, they're thinking of you. Anybody who puts on your Facebook wall - Happy Birthday - those are people who are thinking of you. Anybody who you've had a meaningful relationship with, who knows your values, knows your heart, knows your drive, is someone you should ask. And those are the first people you should ask. And then you start building out from there to some of the other folks you should ask. There might be folks who are diametrically opposed on values or otherwise to whoever you're running against, and those are also people who you should ask for money - much later in the campaign. There's also oftentimes people who are really interested in seeing folks who look or have your values run for the seat that you're running for, and there's oftentimes people who are interested in just changing the way democracy looks - and so those are also sometimes people who you might ask for money from. But really, really, really make sure that you're talking to your folks that are closest to you first - that includes your parents, if you have them, that includes your grandparents, your kids, your cousins. Everybody who's closest to you and loves you probably is going to give you at least 50 bucks or something - because they love you. Even if you have a parent who is deeply opposed to your politics, they care about you, they love you - if you still have that relationship, you should ask. Let them say no. And I think that's the number one rule for fundraising is - You don't get any money that you don't ask for, so ask everybody unabashedly. I found this last campaign cycle that texts were actually a really great way of getting people to give, as opposed to - we used to call it call time. We still call it call time, but you don't have to make as many phone calls as we did in the past. You definitely have to make phone calls, but it can also be text time, it can also be Facebook Messenger time. And be really detail-orientated - keep a list or keep track of who you're asking so you're not asking the same person five times that are ghosting you. Let them ghost you, but make sure you do ask once. And then I would say also make sure that you're asking for an amount - it's really helpful if you're calling your uncle who's very wealthy, ask him for a max. And if you're calling your cousin who delivers pizza, maybe ask him for 20 bucks. Make your ask appropriate for who the person is, but don't try to undersell anybody - it's kind of a difficult science to finding the right amount to ask people. [00:33:11] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, and the better you do with the people who you do have an existing relationship, the people who do love and care about you, the easier it's going to be later on down the line when you're talking to people who you don't yet know - people who you may just know that you're politically aligned with or they're passionate about an issue that you plan to take action on. It's going to make you look more credible if you start out with a solid fundraising performance, and that's going to build momentum down the line. I think those are great tips. One I would add would be - Don't make excuses for people. Let them say no to you. A lot of times, and I think even more with women and people of color - as the trainings we've done have really illuminated this - there's different relationships with money among many communities, People from communities who traditionally haven't grown up with as much wealth as we see in most of the political class. And that obviously impacts the approach to things, and the way we think about things, and even the way we prioritize - Oh, they have so much more important things going on, I don't want to bother them with that. And that feeling is coming from a place of caring, but it is also an act of caring - and people are happy to support someone who they are confident is the right person for the job and who's going to help people in their community and people like them. And so sometimes - I've sat in call time with a number of people, and they'll be like, Oh, this person's never, never going to give, or they don't have anything, or they're in this tough position. And a lot of times, those are the people who are happiest to give. Now, you don't ever want to break anyone - like you said, asking for an amount that is doable and appropriate - you don't want someone to wind up in a bad financial position. But also, they're the ones who know their financial position best. And it's real easy to get presumptive about that - you may not know. And people have money set aside to give to various causes - they might have that money already available to do that. So don't ever assume someone can't give. It's okay if they say no, but you should absolutely ask. And you should make a strong case and ask with confidence. Sometimes people are much more confident in raising money for a different cause, but it's much more complicated and there's a lot of self-consciousness around asking for it for yourself. But that's a very important thing, and we have to get better people into these elected positions, people who are more aligned with their communities. And the only way that happens is by going through this. I wish we were in a political system where money did not matter. Unfortunately, we are - and so we do have to deal with this and contend with it. And it would be a shame to put all of the time and energy into running a campaign without doing all you can to fundraise and give yourself the resources necessary to win. I also want to talk about just tips for messaging and how people can be authentic. I think sometimes people feel conflicted - they're used to seeing politicians give non-answers, avoid taking stances and positions on a wide variety of things - that being authentic is risky. What advice do you give to someone who is passionate about issues, who really wants to help, but is questioning - How do I communicate with people in an authentic way? [00:36:49] Councilmember Olgy Diaz: I think really being yourself matters. I have seen, especially I think with candidates of color or first gen candidates, this want to sort of cosplay white, or do a thing that isn't really authentic, or be a Leslie Knope when you're really not Leslie Knope - you're probably more like somebody else who is more uncouth. Be that person. People really appreciate the authenticity of how you show up, what you look like, in addition to what you're saying. If you're not comfortable in a suit jacket all the time - unless it says that you're required to wear that, don't wear that. Wear what makes you comfortable. Be confident in who you are. And that's all going to come out in your answers and in your voice. And really be willing to own and accept that you don't know everything. You're not an expert in everything yet. Most elected officials aren't an expert in anything, quite frankly, before they get there. And then they get there and they learn a lot and they grow and they do more. But even if you are an expert in something, accept that there's going to be things that you're not an expert in and be willing to own that as well. If somebody can ask you a really tough political question that makes you uncomfortable, just be honest with people about - Hey, I might step in this a little bit, but here's my answer. Or, be willing to say - You know what? I don't know the answer to that right now. Let me do some research and get back to you. And just make sure that you do actually follow up with people - follow up matters - no one expects you to have every answer. I can't tell you the amount of times I would knock on a door and talk to someone who's deeply concerned about some minutia of city government that I was like - I have been in government for decades and I don't know what you're talking about. I'm going to have to go research that, come back with an opinion on it - because I don't know what my opinion is on it yet because I just learned what this issue is. And so just be willing to do the follow-up when people ask you things - I think that really matters, it really helps. And be ready to be brazen and be standing who you are and what your values are - it's going to make you a better candidate, it's going to make you more authentic, and it's going to make you more relatable. Because even if you are not what you think a candidate or politician should be or look like, you are because you're doing it. So just be that person. And especially if you have an opinion that is different from what you think the room wants - I've also seen candidates fall into the trap of showing up at an endorsement meeting for an organization where they're only loosely aligned with the issues - be authentic to that. Because you don't want to lie to people and tell them what they want to hear, and then go and tell a different room of people the opposite - that also messes with your authenticity. Be authentically who you are all of the time and be willing to own where you might disagree with people because I think that matters as much in governing as it does always agreeing with people. People respect you more. [00:39:24] Crystal Fincher: Yes. My approach in advising candidates has followed that path. And really, it's because you're running in order to govern. And if you don't run as who you are and authentic to who you are - just trying to give the right answers and not give the wrong answers - when you do get elected, people don't know what you stand for, people have different impressions of what you would do, and you basically paint yourself into a box when you govern. You didn't run on anything, so you don't have a mandate for what you're going to do, which makes you afraid to do something because then people might get mad at you - because what you spent your campaign doing was trying to prevent people from getting mad at you. No one has a good time with that. No one is served with that. You don't govern effectively like that. And there are many examples we can look around at right now and look at how people who avoided taking stances on issues are now struggling to deal with those issues when they're elected. And so you have to be authentic to yourself in order to give yourself a shot when you are elected at accomplishing the things that are so important to you for the community. Another thing on the point of governing, one thing that I see electeds struggle with - specifically sometimes those who come from more of an advocacy or an activism background - is how to translate that advocacy, the energy into policy. What tips would you have on navigating through that? [00:41:01] Councilmember Olgy Diaz: I would say - as much as being authentic on the campaign trails, you've got to be authentic as an elected official. So if you have made a lot of promises on the campaign trail, you got to make sure you follow through. I think when you're just starting out, there's a big learning curve. You got to figure out sort of where the bathrooms are, how this thing works - but take some of the low hanging fruit that is a little bit easier and start working on that. Start trying to figure out how you can deliver some wins that are doable so that you can start learning how to pass bills, and how to legislate, and how to govern on the easy things before you start biting off the hard stuff later. And really be ready to deliver for the folks who you made promises to if you did - otherwise, you're not really doing a service to the people who helped get you there, the people who are depending on you. And it might be something that you'll got to go back and say - Hey, this is going to take some time. Especially if you're from an advocacy position and you've got the ear of the folks who are asking for stuff - talk to them about what it looks like on the inside and how they can be helpful. Something that I learned working both at Planned Parenthood and One America organizing advocacy is that sometimes the push from the outside is as helpful for the elected official on the inside. It's not always adversarial. Sometimes it's just they need that extra nudge, and see how you can make your friends who helped get you there as helpful to help you pass things and be more effective for the exact communities we're all trying to help. [00:42:20] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, that's great advice. And then also just the nuts and bolts of - governing is action-based. People make a lot of promises on the campaign trail - really campaigning is talking, it's making a lot of promises, making a speech and saying that you care about something. Where really, once you're elected, it's the action that is the proof of the caring. So you're going to have to learn how to write that ordinance about the issue that you said you wanted to address. You're going to have to learn how to turn that into policy, how to speak to different impacted parties in your community, how to talk to people who you disagree with and who you may not placate as you develop your policy and write your ordinances or write your bills. But it's important to hear from them just to make sure that you understand what their perspective is, that you understand what the challenges they're having with it. You may not disagree with them, or you may learn something that - Hey, they're saying this is a concern. I can make this tweak without fundamentally altering the thing that I'm doing, and maybe I avoid some unintended consequences. That's all a really important process. But really it is now action-based - it's about what are you doing, whether it's allocating funding, writing an ordinance - but those are also things that are not intuitive and not easy to do. So people better work on getting familiar with what that process is, talk to people who are doing it, and learn how to get that done. Because you really should hit the ground running as much as possible and work on crafting that policy. [00:44:02] Councilmember Olgy Diaz: Yep, there's a reason the president comes in with a first 100-day plan. You don't have to have 100 things you do in your first 100 days, but you should definitely have one thing - seems doable. When I first got appointed, no one asked me to do it, but because of my background in choice and reproductive justice, the first thing I did was make sure that folks who were trying to get gender-affirming care and abortions were protected in our city. No one asked for that, but that was my value set - I came in, I did it, and we keep it pushing. We do the next thing that matters to us. So have a thing that you're ready to do if you get there, because then you can be talking about that on the campaign trail. [00:44:36] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely. Great advice. So that is number one with authenticity. And number two, over the past 15 years - have heard so many times from consultants or political people - Oh, this person is the ideal candidate. And so many times people who look like me, people who look like several people I've helped to elect, people who look like you, or have a background like people like us are not at all what people envision when they're saying - They're the ideal candidate. There is no ideal candidate. The ideal candidate is just someone who really cares about and is willing to serve their community. And that comes in so many different packages. And also what we see, which a lot of people are not aware of, is that when someone doesn't look like what they think of oftentimes as the standard politician - if they do have a different background, that's more exciting to voters, that turns out more people, and they are more successful on average than someone who is like the traditional candidates. So don't let people's expectations, don't let the current composition of whatever body you're looking to get elected to intimidate you from doing that. Like you said before, you are qualified. People are qualified in many different ways. For some people, that looks like a bunch of degrees or owning a business. For other people, that looks like having personal lived experience with the issues that you're trying to make a difference with and having a perspective that is missing but desperately needed in the body. I do think it's important to have been working in the community, to be able to demonstrate that you care about and are credible in the issues that you're talking about, that there is a connection with people in your community. If you run and people are like, Who the heck is that? And no one from anywhere knows where you are, I would suggest there should be more groundwork put into what you're doing. You should have a lot of people who do know who you are and can attest to what you have done, how you've helped in your community and all that. But don't let you feeling like you don't fit be what stops you. On the flip side of that, I will also say - be aware of when a body has excluded people like you. And that has to be a consideration that sometimes people are hesitant to talk about or it's - Oh, it's great. We need someone like that in that body. - and everyone's excited to get them there, without understanding that that there might be a hostile place currently, that that there may come with a lot of challenges for that candidate that other people may not have had to face. Also being realistic about what the history of the body that you're joining is, what the current composition is, why different people may not be there - and be prepared to contend with that, knowing that that may be a challenge when you get there. I think that's something we don't talk about enough that we need to talk about more. [00:47:40] Councilmember Olgy Diaz: Absolutely. It's funny you say that - that was actually my lived experience. So I ran for Tacoma City Council in 2013 - I didn't win. I did try to take out a very popular incumbent - we have a lot of political dynasties in Pierce County, so he was a son of somebody, like a lot of them are. But at the time, I would have been the first Latina elected to Tacoma City Council. I didn't win, and then 10 years went by and we got an open seat. And I was calling around to folks - because my favorite thing to do is help people run for office - and I was like, Who are we going to get to run for this appointment? And multiple people were like, You, man, what are you talking about? So I applied and then got the appointment and then ran for the seat. And now I'm actually the first Latina elected to the Tacoma City Council 10 years later because now was actually the moment that the city was ready for that, that people were pushing for that. And 10 years ago, that was less the case, even though it shouldn't have been - our Latino population hasn't skyrocketed in that time - but it's just what's for you hits you, what doesn't misses you. But it's also a matter of - I was willing to answer that call because it was still a need. And I think that that's part of it - is knowing what these environments are. And I am so grateful that I'm on the council I'm on now, as opposed to the one that was there 10 years ago - that would have been miserable. And now we have a majority women council, we have a majority BIPOC council - it's just such a better place to be a part of now. Not to say anything disparaging about prior council, because we had a great mayor who's now a congresswoman, but it's just a different time and it's a more fun time for me to be in office. Also, it's just a different place in my career, so I think making sure that you've got that conviction to keep following through because you may not make it the first time is also a big part about thinking how you run for office. [00:49:21] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, that's a really good point. There are so many people who run, unsuccessfully, their first time. And it's important to define what success looks like for you, even if you aren't elected. You were smart about that, there are a number of people I see being smart about that - and others not being so smart. There are so many people who are successful on their second run, and that's because of how they set themselves up in their first run. Are they building relationships? Are they growing their network and their coalition? Are they working together with people in positive ways? Are they finding ways to build with different people in different ways? I see things backfire and people set themselves back if they're bitter and negative. Politics is all coalition based - you may disagree with someone on something here and agree with them on something else. You work together on the something else, and then you just build a coalition with different people on the other thing that you're working for that you care about. You can do that while being true to yourself, while not doing things that are philosophically disagreeable to you. But it is about building bridges, maintaining lines of communication, building relationships, people being able to trust that they can count on you, that you are true to your word, that you are who you say you are, you'll do what you say you'll do. Or if that changes, that you clearly communicate that and why. Building those relationships throughout the campaign is important - it will help you if you are elected to govern. And if you aren't elected, it helps you to run again if you so choose. And even if you don't run again, they help you to make the type of change - even in an unelected capacity - that you were trying to make in an elected capacity. So really look at how you're setting yourself up, regardless of what the outcome is. Run the kind of race that you will not have regrets if you don't win - that has been a piece of advice that I've given, that I strongly believe. Do things that you can live with throughout the whole thing. If you sell yourself out - whatever that looks like to you - and do things you're uncomfortable with in the name of winning, and you don't, there's so much regret tied to that. And then you're looking to the community like someone who you aren't and nothing good comes from that. So again, being authentic, running a race that's true to you is very important. Any closing piece of advice that we haven't gotten to, or that you would want to leave people with? [00:51:54] Councilmember Olgy Diaz: Regardless of whether or not you're paying a campaign team, or you're getting volunteers, or truly anybody with a pulse who exists and is willing to help - make sure you're setting yourself up with a team of people you trust, you can depend on, and that you quite frankly want to spend a lot of time with because you're going to spend a lot of time with them - either checking in on them or actually literally with them. And really, I like to take it the step further and say, Try to build the team that reflects the kind of workplace that you want to have. So sometimes that means having unionized campaign workers. Sometimes that means having an all-BIPOC or an all-woman staff or team. Make sure that you're intentionally seeking out the folks who are going to round out your opinion. So you might not have everyone be of the same demographic - it might be helpful depending on what you're up to, what you're doing - you don't want any gaps in who's in the room helping you make decisions so that you're not making decisions that don't make sense for a big part of the community. And then mentoring and leadership building is a big part of what I've done before getting to office and to get to office. So I like to be mindful of bringing people in who can learn this stuff so that maybe they then want to go be a consultant, because we need more BIPOC consultants. Or maybe they want to go later on and be a policy writer. They want to run for office themselves. I like to try to make sure that we spread the wealth and keep giving back and pulling forward with people. I like to say - I'm the first one, but I'm not going to be the last one in Tacoma. And so making sure that we're building those bridges and opportunities for mentorship is really helpful and important. And keeping your eyes open for who the next leaders are and bringing them in and lifting them up - I don't think having more of us in the world, in the politics, in the progressive movement is detrimental. This is not a crabs in a pot mentality - the more of us there are, the better it is and the better our policies can become. I'm going to want somebody to the left of me as much as I deal with those on the right of me. And it really all helps push and pull and help us all be better and get us to better policy solutions, ultimately, in the end, which is what we want. So I think that those are the big things is - how you build stuff that's going to build and outlive and outlast you. [00:53:56] Crystal Fincher: Wise words from someone who has walked that path and helped many other people walk it. Thank you so much for spending the time with us today, Councilmember Olgy Diaz. [00:54:07] Councilmember Olgy Diaz: Thank you. [00:54:09] Crystal Fincher: Thank you for listening to Hacks & Wonks, which is produced by Shannon Cheng. You can follow Hacks & Wonks on Twitter @HacksWonks. You can catch Hacks & Wonks on every podcast service and app - just type "Hacks and Wonks" into the search bar. Be sure to subscribe to get the full versions of our Friday week-in-review shows and our Tuesday topical show delivered to your podcast feed. If you like us, leave a review wherever you listen. You can also get a full transcript of this episode and links to the resources referenced in the show at officialhacksandwonks.com and in the podcast episode notes. Thanks for tuning in - talk to you next time.

The Washington State House of Representatives unanimously approved the state's 2024-25 supplemental capital budget Wednesday (March 6). https://tinyurl.com/bdhtcjck #WashingtonStateHouseofRepresentatives #states202425supplementalcapitalbudget #18thDistrictlawmakers #districtprojects #construction #repair #infrastructurefundingplan #SenateBill5949 #RepGregCheney #RepStephanieMcClintock #WashingtonStateHouseRepublicans #WashingtonState #VancouverWa #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyNews #ClarkCountyToday

The Washington State House of Representatives unanimously approved the state's 2024-25 supplemental capital budget Wednesday (March 6). https://tinyurl.com/msyb67ne #WashingtonStateHouseofRepresentatives #202425SupplementalCapitalAndTransportationBudgets #17thDistrictLawmakers #SenateBill5949 #RepPaulHarris #RepKevinWaters #WashingtonStateHouseRepublicans #DistrictProjects #WashingtonState #VancouverWa #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyNews #ClarkCountyToday

My-Linh Thai contains multitudes. She's a state representative. An education leader. A pharmacist. Deputy Majority Leader of the Washington State House of Representatives. A parent. A refugee, the first ever elected to the state House. Most of all, she's someone who cares about others, and that becomes clear when you look at the the legislation she's authored during her six years in Olympia, and when you hear her speak. You'll get the chance to do both in today's Capitol Ideas.

Rep. Greg Cheney, R-Battle Ground, successfully guided five bills through the Washington State House of Representatives. Each of these bills garnered overwhelming bipartisan support, highlighting their significance in shaping the future of Washington state. http://tinyurl.com/36dsudjj #RepGregCheney #BattleGroundRepublican #WashingtonStateHouseofRepresentatives #bipartisansupport #WashingtonStateLegislature #2024legislativesession #HouseBill2032 #HouseBill2371 #HouseBill2034 #HouseBill2213 #HouseBill2216 #WashingtonStateHouseRepublicans #Washingtonstate #VancouverWa #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyNews #ClarkCountyToday

The Washington State House of Representatives passed a bill on Tuesday that limits rent increases statewide to 7% annually. http://tinyurl.com/yp36uftk #TheCenterSquareWashington #WashingtonStateHouseofRepresentatives #WashingtonStateLegislature #2024legislativesession #rentincreaselimit #HouseBill2114 #Washingtonstate #VancouverWa #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyNews #ClarkCountyToday

Legislation that would improve the state's efforts to remove fish barriers received overwhelming support from the Washington State House of Representatives on Wednesday, passing with a 95-2 vote. http://tinyurl.com/bdz23pz2 #WashingtonStateHouseRepublicans #RepKevinWaters #WashingtonStateLegislature #2024legislativesession #HouseBill2045 #fishbarriers #WashingtonStateHouseofRepresentatives #AdoptaFishBarrierprogram #WashingtonState #VancouverWa #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyNews #ClarkCountyToday

Meet Rep. Greg Nance. He's a native Kitsapian, if that's a word, lives on Bainbridge Island, is a non-profit leader with deep experience in youth-mentoring, education, and mental health care. He's a conservationist, an athlete, and now . . . a state lawmaker.

The Washington State House of Representatives on Wednesday unanimously passed legislation from Rep. Paul Harris that would give educators with a reprimand an opportunity for redemption. http://tinyurl.com/bdtk6trx #WashingtonStateLegislature #2024LegislativeSession #RepPaulHarris #HouseBill1113 #ProfessionalEducatorStandardsBoard #ReviewingAndVacatingReprimands #CertifiedProfessionalEducators #OpportunityForRedemption #Teachers #Students #VancouverWa #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyNews #ClarkCountyToday

Ah, Sweet 16. If Capitol Ideas were a person and not a podcast, it would be ready for a driver's license. This experiment kicked off in 2009 and it's been here ever since. Today's conversation features House Majority Floor Leader Monica Stonier, who's been a guest more than once over the years. Today she'll talk about her leadership position, working across the party aisle, and sponsoring groundbreaking legislation to make Washington a better place to live, work, and raise a family..

Washington State House Republicans elect Rep. Drew Stokesbary as their new leader following the resignation of Rep. J.T. Wilcox. https://bit.ly/444Z3f7 #TheCenterSquareWashington #RepDrewStokesbary #RepJTWilcox #WashingtonStateHouseRepublicans #NewLeaderElected #WashingtonStateLegislature #WashingtonState #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyNews #ClarkCountyToday

Washington State House of Representatives passed a bill that would allow tolling on the Interstate 5 Bridge replacement project between Vancouver and Portland, but some lawmakers are concerned about the potential toll burden on Washington residents who already pay Oregon income taxes. https://bit.ly/3KROdjL #WashingtonStateHouseOfRepresentatives #SenateBill5765 #SB5765 #2023LegislativeSession #TransportationCommissions #Interstate5BridgeReplacementProject #IBRP #I5Bridge #RepGregCheney #RepStephanieMcClintock #RepPaulHarris #RepKevinWaters #RepEdOrcutt #RepPeterAbbarno #Tolling #VancouverWa #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyNews #ClarkCountyToday

On this week-in-review, Crystal is joined by Chair of Sierra Club Seattle, long time communications and political strategist, Robert Cruickshank! They start with updates on legislation covering housing, education funding, repeals of Eyman initiatives, and gender affirming care and the budget. They continue with a chat about the upcoming end of the Department of Justice consent decree with the Seattle Police Department and the context surrounding it, as well as contention between Seattle City Council members over a proposal to limit late fees to $10.  Crystal and Robert finish with a discussion of how confusion and contention within and between organizations and a mismanaged budget may lead to hundreds of people being ousted from shelter.  As always, a full text transcript of the show is available below and at officialhacksandwonks.com. Find the host, Crystal Fincher, on Twitter at @finchfrii and find today's co-host, Robert Cruickshank, at @cruickshank.   Resources Standing Up to the Status Quo with Bothell Mayor Mason Thompson from Hacks & Wonks   “Final steps for Washington state's middle housing bill” by Joshua McNichols from KUOW   “Proposed property tax cap hike angers Washington Senate GOP” by Spencer Pauley from The Center Square   “VICTORY! Washington State House passes NPI's bill to repeal Tim Eyman's push polls” by Andrew Villeneuve from The Cascadia Advocate   “Washington lawmakers buck trend of anti-trans bills” by Melissa Santos from Axios   “Abolitionists and Reformers Agree on Something!” by Ashley Nerbovig from The Stranger   “Council Committee Waters Down Bill to Cap Late Fees at $10 for Renters” by Hannah Krieg from The Stranger   “As Homeless Agencies Bicker Over Blame, Time Runs Out for Hundreds Living in Hotels” by Erica C. Barnett from PubliCola   “No Clear Solution for Hotel Evictions After Chaotic Homelessness Board Meeting; Budget Decision Postponed” by Erica C. Barnett from PubliCola   Transcript [00:00:00] Crystal Fincher: Welcome to Hacks & Wonks. I'm Crystal Fincher, and I'm a political consultant and your host. On this show, we talk with policy wonks and political hacks to gather insight into local politics and policy in Washington state through the lens of those doing the work with behind-the-scenes perspectives on what's happening, why it's happening, and what you can do about it. Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get the full versions of our Friday almost-live shows and our midweek show delivered to your podcast feed. If you like us, the most helpful thing you can do is leave a review wherever you listen to Hacks & Wonks. Full transcripts and resources referenced in the show are always available at officialhacksandwonks.com and in our episode notes. If you missed our Tuesday midweek show, I chatted with Bothell Mayor Mason Thompson about what got him engaged in public service, what issues are top of mind in Bothell, and how he approaches making meaningful change when the system is biased to keep things the same. Today, we're continuing our Friday almost-live shows where we review the news of the week with a co-host. Welcome back to the program, friend of the show, today's co-host: Chair of Sierra Club Seattle, longtime communications and political strategist, Robert Cruickshank. [00:01:22] Robert Cruickshank: Thank you Crystal for having me back - it's always a pleasure to review the week in Seattle with you. [00:01:28] Crystal Fincher: Always a pleasure to have you on - very insightful and always on it. So we have a number of developments in the Legislature this week. We just passed another major cutoff. There are a lot of bills that survived, a lot of them that died - but we do have major news in a lot of different areas, including housing. What are the housing bill updates for the week? [00:01:50] Robert Cruickshank: I think the big news this week is the Senate passed the missing middle housing bill, HB 1110. This is the bill that notoriously died last year, thanks in large part to the work of Representative Gerry Pollet. But ahead of this year's session, a pretty big coalition came together led by Representative Jessica Bateman in the House and Senator Yasmin Trudeau over on the State Senate side. They brought together a big coalition of people - from Amazon to the State Labor council, from builders to the Sierra Club, and a lot of people in between - to get this bill done. And focusing on the missing middle bill, it made it out of both chambers - House and Senate. They're gonna have to reconcile the versions, which aren't that different. It only took a few amendments that whittled down some of the scope, but not in any dramatic way. And so getting the missing middle housing bill out, which will allow duplexes, quadplexes, even more to be built around the Puget Sound region and around the state is a huge win for housing because it'll help address the housing shortage. It also helps begin to roll back the exclusionary racist zoning policies that have been created over the decades in the state. They create a lot of residential segregation and have fueled gentrification and displacement across the state. So getting HB 1110 out of the Senate is a big deal. There's hopefulness that it will sail through the concurrence process in the House and get signed by the governor soon. So that's the good news on housing. But there's other news that is maybe less - anytime you deal with the Legislature, you get half a loaf at best, unfortunately. And Democrats started the session by talking about what they call the three S's of housing - supply, stability, and subsidy. So supply - building new housing - they've done some of that. HB 1110, like we talked about, passing out of the House and Senate is good news. But some other bills got whittled down. The House Housing Committee, for example, loaded down a transit-oriented development bill with a bunch of poison pill amendments to the point where that bill's probably not gonna pass. It might, but if it did, it would be under very weakened circumstances. But at least supply is moving forward in some degree. Stability - the ability to make sure people don't lose their housing due to rent increases - that's gone. California and Oregon in the last few years have both passed statewide caps on rent increases, but once again that bill died in Washington. And then subsidy. In order to get the most affordable housing, you have to subsidize it and you need government to do that. And Jay Inslee, the governor, came in at the beginning of the session with a bold proposal - a smart one - to have voters approve a $4 billion bond for affordable housing. Senate Democrats have said - No, we don't wanna do that. And they're left with a couple hundred million to build affordable homes, which is better than nothing, but in a era of high inflation and high land values, labor shortages - that's not gonna buy as much as $4 billion would. So while there was a lot to celebrate in this session around housing, especially the missing middle bill, there's also a lot to look at and say - It should have been even better and the promises made at the beginning of the session, especially around stability and subsidy, were broken. And that's gonna hurt a lot of people. And so we need this Legislature to do better when they come back next year. [00:04:59] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely - completely agree with everything you just said. And I guess I am holding out a little bit of hope that there's still action that will be taken. You mention that $4 billion proposal, which would really accelerate the building of housing - really badly needed housing - to help us catch up on the units that we're behind to help keep housing affordable. Both kind of a housing and revenue issue with - the Real Estate Excise Tax is still up in the air, having a bit of a tough time, but they're still battling through that. So two opportunities where they can still take action, I hope. And certainly middle housing is worthy of celebrating it passing - this has been a long road bringing together big broad coalition - we've spoken with Representative Bateman on this show about this before. Your point about there being disappointment, about there not being more done - certainly missing middle housing was necessary, needed to happen, but so are these other things. And so is catching up on our housing supply, and on these protections, and on really feeling like we not only have the technical ability to build these units, but there's the funding and the resources there available to do that. That is a piece we are still missing. And if we do really consider housing to be a crisis, if we do really want to say we have taken action that matches the scale and scope of this crisis, there's gotta be more. We're not done yet. And there is the opportunity more this session that I hope they take advantage of. [00:06:41] Robert Cruickshank: I agree. And I think it's going to be interesting to see what the governor decides to do. Jay Inslee, in his 10+ years in office, has usually not been willing to confront the Legislature. He rarely vetoes anything. But I think this is a situation where he's gonna have to make a decision. Does he allow the Senate Democratic Caucus to basically abandon his $4 billion housing bond? Or does he make them do it? Does he veto a capital budget? Does he veto the operating budget? Does he say - I am the final voice here with my veto pen and I will use it if we don't get these things - we may need to see something like that. Inslee hasn't issued exactly a veto threat, but he has issued a very strongly worded public statement criticizing the Senate Democrats for rejecting his affordable housing bond. So I think you're right that that's not dead yet, but it's going to come down to a question of - what is Inslee willing to do to try to get it done? Is he willing to really put the screws to the Legislature in a way he hasn't traditionally done to try to get this through? And I think the rest of us who are advocates have to look at this overall session and ask ourselves - why did it turn out this way? We have some wins and we should celebrate those. But we also had, as you mentioned, things that didn't get through - whether it's transit oriented development, whether it's rent stabilization, and of course, a question about the affordable housing bond. This is a Legislature with strong, stable, large Democratic majorities. They don't have two-thirds majorities, but they've got pretty sizable majorities - they're not in any danger of losing those anytime soon. So this isn't a matter of having to cut deals with the Republicans. It's a matter of having divisions and dissensions within the Democratic caucus. And this is where one of the reasons we wish we had more of a journalism core in Olympia - it's all been whittled down over the last few decades - we don't have great insight as to what exactly goes on in these caucuses. We don't really know where things stand and who - we have a sense of who the power players are, we have a sense of who the movers and shakers are, but we don't have as much as we would like. We certainly don't have as much as we do, for example, insight into Congress. We don't really have it here in the Legislature. And so those of us who are the advocates and observers, we need to sit down after the session and figure out - okay, why did it turn out this way? How do we get better outcomes next time? Just as we did after 2022 - the reason why a missing middle bill looks set to pass and be signed into law is because that work was done. People evaluated where pressure needed to be put and did it. Now I think we need to do that more systematically, especially when it comes to stability and subsidy - those two legs of the housing stool. [00:09:22] Crystal Fincher: Now what's happening when it comes to education funding? [00:09:26] Robert Cruickshank: Something very interesting has happened this week and so far it's only the right wing that's noticed this - and the Republicans - it hasn't made it through anywhere else. But Senate Democrats proposed this week, SB 5770, which would eliminate one of Tim Eyman's signature initiatives, which is a 1% property tax cap. Now let's go back to the mid-2000s when Bush was president - voters approved this initiative, the Supreme Court of Washington threw it out - said it's unconstitutional - but led by Frank Chopp, a panicky Democratic majority put it into law themselves. They were afraid that if the court's ruling were to stand, Democrats would lose seats at the 2008 election - which we can look back and see that was a pretty ridiculous fear, but they did it. So Democrats put into place Tim Eyman's 1% property tax cap and that's gutted funding for schools, it's gutted funding for cities and counties. And there's been pressure ever since to try to relax that. There's also been a lot of pressure over the years - and one of the hats I wear is President of Washington's Paramount Duty - we try to advocate for education funding using new progressive revenue rather than rely on a property tax, which is regressive. And the state has a regressive system anyway - let's use a wealth tax. And we know that Senator Noel Frame and others have been pushing a wealth tax in the Legislature to fund education. This week, State Senator Jamie Pedersen and a group of Senate Democrats come out with a bill, 5770, that would help address education funding by eliminating Eyman's property tax cap. And say instead of a 1% cap, there'll be a 3% cap on annual property tax growth year-to-year. What they're essentially saying is - Yes, we recognize we aren't doing enough to fund public education. Yes, we need to do more. Yes, we need a new revenue source. But rather than tax the rich, we're gonna raise the property taxes again. And it puts education advocates in a really interesting spot because at least 50 districts across the state - large and small, urban and rural, east and west - are facing enormous budget cuts, even school closures. And these are really dire cuts that will significantly undermine the quality of public education in our state. And now we have Senate Democrats saying - Here's your funding, it's a property tax. Are you going to accept it or not? And that's a tough call. In 2017, to address the McCleary case, the Legislature passed the largest property tax increase in state history and it still wasn't enough. And coming out of that, we said - we need a capital gains tax and we need a wealth tax. Capital gains tax, of course, upheld by the Supreme Court. The wealth tax proposal would have essentially restored taxes on intangible property, which we used to have until the 1990s. So that's a pretty straightforward thing - 70% public support, widespread support in both caucuses. But this is an interesting move by some more centrist Democrats to say - Let's not do a wealth tax, let's go back to the property tax one more time for schools. [00:12:20] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, and in this conversation about how regressive our state is overall when it comes to taxation, there were certainly a lot of people hoping that we would move closer to a wealth tax, especially with the bill that Representative Frame has in the Legislature ready to go. This was a great opportunity that they didn't take advantage of. And so we'll see how this turns out. But interesting to note that - we're talking about the repeal of one Tim Eyman initiative - he had a hard enough time getting them just to stand. So many of the initiatives that he passed were ultimately ruled unconstitutional. But one that did pass and that we've been living with the results of on every ballot is the Advisory Vote initiative that he ran, where we see all these votes on our ballots that don't count. And really just - if the Legislature basically authorizes any revenue, it lands on our ballots as a referendum Advisory Vote - hey, would you want this upheld or not? It's really just a poll, but a really wasteful and really poorly done poll that really makes our ballot a lot longer, more confusing. And especially with long ballots, there's a lot of people who don't flip the ballot over. So if the first page is dominated by these questions that don't have anything to do with the current election, we are actually hurting ourselves voting-wise because we know people are just going to miss votes that actually matter because we're putting votes that don't matter on the front of the ballot. So happy to see that being overturned. [00:14:07] Robert Cruickshank: Yeah, that's great news that the Advisory Votes appear to be gone - that bill still needs to be signed by the governor but that's, I think, a foregone conclusion. And kudos to folks at the Northwest Progressive Institute who've been working on this for years. And what that shows me - along with the repeal of the Advisory Votes and repealing potentially 747, which is the initiative that did the 1% property tax cap - it reminds us that we blame Tim Eyman for a lot of this, but his enabler all along - his biggest enabler - has been the Democratic majority in the State Legislature. Way back in 2000 when his first initiative, the $30 car tabs, which gutted funding for transit and the ferry system - Supreme Court threw that out too. And it was a Democratic Legislature who said - No, actually we're going to put that back in ourselves. And a governor, Gary Locke, who - probably worried about reelection that year, though he didn't need to - put it back into place. Same thing with a 1% property tax cap. The Advisory Votes - the Democratic majority could have repealed that at any time, but only this year were they willing to do so. But I think the biggest way in which the Legislature has enabled Tim Eyman is by failing to fix the overall tax system. And while Eyman himself is a shady character at best and while his initiatives are appalling, he taps into a very real anger in the electorate with our regressive tax system. And that is the thing that has kept him going all this way - finally, he seems to be genuinely out of business - bankrupt, done, a spent political force. And that's partly because of his own mistakes. It's also partly because progressives in the state and in the Legislature finally have figured out how to push the caucus in a better direction on taxes. There's still a long way to go. And I think if Democrats say no to a wealth tax and yes to another property tax increase - I'm shocked that they would do that, worrying about swing seats in the 2024 election, but we'll see what they decide to do. But hopefully we see a Democratic majority start to take tax reform even more seriously and the ruling on the capital gains tax last month should give them a green light to go quite a lot further. [00:16:17] Crystal Fincher: I certainly hope so. Now there is definitely a bright spot this year in my view and a lot of people's view - especially with the backdrop in this country, with all of the hate-fueled bills, the anti-trans bills banning gender-affirming care, essentially banning gender-affirming care - there've been over a hundred bills passed in legislatures across the country that have been tearing apart, taking away rights for gender-affirming care, rights for trans people to exist basically. But we've done better here in Washington state and I'm actually proud of this. I wanna see more of this and I'm glad that we are showing that we can move in the other direction and that we're codifying protections. What did we see this year in the Legislature? [00:17:11] Robert Cruickshank: This year, the State Legislature - both houses have passed a bill SB5599, which would provide significant new protections for kids who are questioning changing their gender identity, who can do that and receive services and treatment and housing without having to notify their parents from a certain age - I believe it's 13 or 14. And this is a really important bill because what it does - it provides protections for these kids from families who may be hostile or unwelcoming to their very existence. And it's an excellent response and a necessary response to problems we see - even before the right wing decided that they're going to wage war on trans people - there's many stories that many of us know of young kids or teenagers who have questioned their gender identity, changed their gender identity, recognize that they were misassigned all along, and families either not responding well or being outright abusive. So there's been pressure for a while for the Legislature to do something about that. And now as we're seeing right wing states, red states, pass all sorts of awful bills restricting healthy care for trans people - Missouri just yesterday passed a bill making it extremely difficult to give proper care to trans kids - Washington's Legislature has gone in the right direction and withstood a barrage of awful hateful attacks coming from Republican legislators and coming from right wing media outlets. And they've stayed the course on that. One thing I notice about this Democratic majority in the Legislature - whenever it comes to finances or economics, they can be unreliable. But when it comes to our basic human rights, they're pretty strong. And I think the passage of this bill to protect trans kids is another example of when the Legislature gets it right. And they have to withstand a lot to get it right. I look forward to this bill making it out of the Legislature for good - it's pretty much there - and getting signed by the governor because I think this will be a big win. [00:19:11] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely a big win. Another big win that I just really learned about over the past year is another bill that allows trans people, or refugees, victims of intimate partner violence to be able to change their name while protecting their privacy and safety. The regulations for doing that in many places, including here before, were really onerous. Oftentimes you had to publicly publish in a paper that you intended to do that, there are lots of fees, jumping through hoops, going to court - just really unnecessary for what essentially is just some paperwork that needs to be filed. And so we did that. This is on top of a law passed a couple of years ago that requires insurers to cover gender affirming surgeries that are prescribed by a person's doctor and deemed medically necessary. You just talked about that Missouri bill - and they're not just going after kids - that law that was just signed - have a friend who is trans - trans adults who - they would not be able to get gender affirming care under that law now. They're really going after the right of trans people to exist. This is genocidal activity that we're seeing, and it's really important for everyone to speak up no matter where we are, especially in our own spheres. And when we come up against transphobia or any kind of bigotry, really, including, especially transphobia. But it's important to show that we can move in the other direction, that we're not putting up with this hate, that we don't have to go along with it, that we can hold leaders accountable, that we can hold corporations accountable. And even with Governor Inslee purchasing our own stash of mifepristone, which was a great move by the way - thank you, Governor Inslee for that. And when we talk about - hey, we wanna see some action taken in the face of this fascist march against women, against trans people, against everyone who's not a Christian straight white male almost - we have to have more of this. We have to keep doing this. And I'm glad we're doing it. I appreciate our Legislature and Governor Inslee for doing this, and I just wanna continue to see more. [00:21:34] Robert Cruickshank: Absolutely. I think Inslee's leadership on this has been significant and going out and buying a supply of the abortion pill was a huge deal. And I saw people in California asking Gavin Newsom, the governor there - Why aren't you doing the same thing? He announced that now he will. And so it's great to see Inslee leading on that. I think it comes back, also in my head, to the housing question earlier. We are recognizing that we're in a moment right now where it is becoming difficult to live in a lot of these red states - where people's rights to exist are under significant threat and we're starting to build out here on the West Coast, and especially here in Washington, a haven - where you can get the abortion pill, where your right to exist as a trans person is protected under state law. We should be inviting people to come move here, come live here, come join us - and that's hard to do if housing is hard to find and expensive. So I think it should all be connected. We are unfortunately in this place in American history right now where we need to build havens for a lot of people, and the West Coast should be a haven and we need to take every step we can - whether it's passing legislation to protect trans kids, buying up stockpiles of the abortion pill, and making it easy for people to live and afford to stay here. I think these are all connected things that we need to be doing. [00:22:52] Crystal Fincher: All right - we will continue to follow what is happening in the Legislature in these final weeks of the session. Big event happening in the City of Seattle that is going to change the status quo of things over the past 10 years - and that is the DOJ saying they're ready to move to end the consent decree with the Seattle Police Department. What's happening? What's the background and context around this? [00:23:18] Robert Cruickshank: Yeah, so 2012 is when the City of Seattle and the Department of Justice entered into a consent decree to allow a federal judge to oversee badly needed reforms to the Seattle Police Department. And so fast forward to 2023, and I think a lot of people quite understandably react to news about ending a consent decree with - Well now, wait a minute. Why would we do that? The department hasn't been reformed. And I think there's a great article in The Stranger yesterday by Ashley Nerbovig who explains why. A lot of advocates who are strong police reformers have all along understood that bringing in the Department of Justice is a double-edged sword. You bring in the Department of Justice to get reforms done that couldn't be done at the local level, but at the same time you lose community control over the department. And we saw that, I think, most clearly in 2020 when the federal judge who oversees the case came in and told the City that they could not ban the use of pepper spray or blast balls in protest management, which we saw SPD doing regularly in the Black Lives Matter protests on Capitol Hill - including City councilmembers getting pepper sprayed, people in their homes with babies getting pepper sprayed, blast balls injuring people left and right. And the City said - We don't want this anymore. We're passing an ordinance. And the judge came in and said - You can't do that. Efforts to defund the police department in 2020, which obviously have faded for political reasons, but the judge also said - You can't do that. And I think those are two examples that really brought home to people the other edge of the sword with a consent decree, which is that you lose a lot of that community control. And so what's happening now is a recognition that the legal boxes have been checked in terms of reforming SPD. This isn't to say that SPD is fixed by any means, 'cause it's not - but that the Department of Justice has done about all it can do. And that the work of lasting, substantial, and fundamental reforms to the police department have to come from us in the community. It has to be led by the community. It has to be led by the people of Seattle for it to stick and for it to work. And that's what the advocates have been saying for a while. And now there's consensus that we need to move beyond the consent decree. And what I liked about Ashley's article is she really did a good job of explaining that and quoting the advocates who talk about why we need to move beyond it. And I think what that does is hopefully shows to people that the end of the consent decree should not and cannot be the end of police reform in Seattle. I mentioned defund earlier - we're almost three years out now from the George Floyd protests, three years out from the summer of 2020, where it looked like we might actually defund the police. I think that the - while there may be still be people in Seattle who want that, I think the political momentum for that is gone. What that means now is to fix this police department, which still has many problems, we have to turn to other solutions. So they're gonna have to come from the community and we're gonna need an ordinance over how the police are managed. We're going to need a new SPOG contract. And without the Department of Justice and without a federal judge, which is the key piece involved, maybe we do better than we did in 2018. Because in 2018, the contract that the City did with SPOG was terrible. It's up to us now - and it always has been really - to make sure that we're doing the work to fix this police department. Because there's a lot of people out there and there'll be a lot of candidates running for city council who are already saying - the answer to whatever problems we have in the City is let the police off the hook, let the police off the leash, step back from reform. And that's of course what SPOG wants all along. And we have to fight that, we have to resist that. And I think not being able to rely on a federal judge means we have to do it ourselves, which hopefully makes reform more lasting. [00:27:05] Crystal Fincher: I hope so. I think the way you worded it - really this is about the DOJ has done all they can do. Does it mean that the issue is fixed? Does it mean that this is a mission accomplished moment? It means that, as you said, there were boxes checked, the list was all checked off, and they have done all they can do - which in many situations that we've seen with consent decrees across the country, ultimately doesn't really amount to much. And that is a lesson I think a lot of people are taking away from this too - this external federal oversight that is removed from the community is problematic. The Community Police Commission was meant from the outset to have much more power and authority than it currently has, than it wound up having. There were lots of people who did not want a voice from the community really impacting policing, and there were definitely moves made to neuter the CPC throughout this process. So I think that we do have to, at minimum, demand that there is a process put into place to where there is true accountability to the community and input from the community in this. And what's gonna be possible will largely depend on the council that we wind up with, but you named some really significant markers that are coming up, including this SPOG contract - that is currently being negotiated that'll have to come before the council to be approved - that's going to lay the foundation for any kind of change that's going to be able to happen in the future. There are so many times where we talk about something happening and really it boils down to - well, it's in the contract. The police chief says his hands are tied so often by the contract. The mayor - well, the contract. So we really do have to hold those leaders accountable to negotiating a good and accountable contract, and see what happens from there. But this is a definite step in the progression of public safety in Seattle. And it'll be interesting to see what happens from here. [00:29:17] Robert Cruickshank: It will. And with that SPOG contract, we have to keep in mind that the contract that was approved in 2018 - even some of the progressive folks on the city council voted for that contract and they got a lot of pressure from the County Labor Council to do it. Of course, two years later, the County Labor Council did the right thing and ejected SPOG from their membership ranks. And so hopefully a discussion about approving the contract goes differently this time. That's a reminder that even if we elect what we think are the right people to the city council, there's no guarantee that they'll do the right thing with a SPOG contract. It's gonna take a lot of public organizing, mobilization, and advocacy to make sure that City Hall knows this has to be a strong contract and that we expect City Hall to stand up to SPOG on this - to not just roll over for whatever demands they make. [00:30:02] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely. I also wanna talk about an issue this week at the Seattle City Council about late fees for late rent from renters. What is happening with this? [00:30:15] Robert Cruickshank: Yeah so Kshama Sawant who - champion of workers and renters - came out with an ordinance that would cap late fees on paying your rent at $10. So if you're paying your rent late, you get charged a $10 fee - no more. And people who are renting in the City will pay much more than that in late fees - we've heard stories of $100 fees, $500 fees, just absurd. And a committee that heard this at the City Council whittled that down and said - well, we'll base it on a percentage of your rent, but it could - you might be charged a minimum of $50 late fee or higher, basically to neuter the effect of what Sawant had proposed. And at a time when rent continues to be high in the City, rising inflation, and more and more people losing their jobs as maybe recession looms - it definitely seems like a moment to do all we can to ensure that we have affordable housing and to prevent people from getting evicted. And missing a rent payment and not paying a late fee are often things landlords use to evict people. So there's plenty of reasons why we should make it easy to pay your rent and make it hard to get to lose your home because of rent. And so to watch members of the City Council whittle this down was really disappointing and frustrating. Sawant isn't giving up - she's putting a lot of pressure on the rest of the City Council to go back to $10 an hour - or sorry - to go back to $10 cap on late fees. And I think it's a sensible thing to do. The Stranger article on this singled out Andrew Lewis, someone who is running for reelection, and he may be making a political calculation that he needs to keep landlords happy, but you're not gonna get reelected by keeping landlords happy. Nobody gets reelected by keeping landlords happy. You have a ton of renters in the 7th Council District. You have a ton of renters across the City. It's not only the right thing to do in terms of preventing homelessness and keeping people in their homes, it's also the right thing to do politically. There's no upside to undermining this bill for capping late fees on rent at $10. So we'll see what the council does. We'll see if they take what I think is a sensible thing to do from a policy and political perspective, or whether they are terrified of cranky landlords picketing their offices - I don't know - but we'll see what happens. [00:32:36] Crystal Fincher: We will see what happens. This is yet another issue where, really, the concerns of landlords and tenants are at odds and the council is having to make a call here. And once again, if we are really serious about calling our housing crisis a crisis, our homelessness crisis a crisis, and understanding that preventing people from getting evicted and keeping people in their homes is absolutely critical to addressing - we have to do that if we're gonna address homelessness. It is the most effective way to address homelessness - is to prevent people from becoming, from losing their housing in the first place. And so needing to intervene in these situations is there. And you have some landlords basically just making a market argument - let the market sort it - we can charge, we can charge. If they can't afford it, other people can - the law allows this, so we should be able to do it. And what the law has allowed is what has landed us in this crisis. It has created this crisis. There is too much of an imbalance and we need to bring that back into alignment. And this seems like a reasonable way to do it. And really we're here because we have endured so many fights and so much opposition towards everything else that has also been suggested, while facing limitations on what's possible overall. So there aren't that many levers that we can use. And I do think it's important to use the ones that we have. [00:34:06] Robert Cruickshank: Yep, I fully agree. I just wanna add one thing - that this is one of the things I'm gonna miss about Kshama Sawant. She has a reputation of being this dogmatic ideologue and she cares very deeply about her socialist values, as well as she should. She's also really clever and keeps coming up with different ways to achieve the goals she wants to achieve - fighting for rent control has been one of her core political values ever since she got elected in 2013. We all know that the State Legislature prevents local governments from enacting rent control, and so what she's systematically done is tried to find every possible way to limit the amount that landlords can charge renters - to limit those increases, to protect renters any way she can. And I think that that's something that not enough people understand - certainly the media's not gonna tell that story. But I think it's one thing that I'm really gonna miss when she's not on the council - is that really clever persistence that she has to find yet another way to protect renters. And you don't have to be Kshama Sawant to do that - any democratic elected official can champion renters' rights. And not only are you doing the right thing for renters and the right thing to fight homelessness, you're also doing something that's politically popular. So I would love to see more people follow that lead. [00:35:25] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely. And unfortunately we got some weird bad news in the realm of homelessness policy and implementation this week - in there is currently a situation with the King County Regional Homelessness Authority and other agencies bickering over a million-plus dollars shortfall to fund temporary housing for homeless people. What is going on? [00:35:57] Robert Cruickshank: So as a result of federal stimulus funds during the height of the pandemic, a group called the Lived Experience Coalition was able to get a one-year federal grant to house people who were living on the streets in hotels. Smart policy - get people off the streets and into safe, secure housing with a door that locks, with a roof over your head, with heat and running water - it's exactly what we need and what we want. But that grant is running out. There's questions about how the grant has been administered and where the money is. And if money isn't found - at least a million dollars - to keep this going, then nearly 250 people who are currently housed in these hotels will be evicted and most likely go back out on the streets. And this is something nobody should want to see happen. And yet there's a bunch of bickering and finger pointing over who's responsible for this rather than solutions. The King County Regional Homelessness Authority had a meeting earlier this week where they basically said - Well, this isn't really our thing. It's not our fault. It's not our responsibility. We don't want to spend a million dollars on this because then that takes away from other things we want to do. City council, King County Council are pointing fingers at other people saying - It's not our responsibility. And it's just sad to see that bureaucratic bickering is leaving nearly 250 people hanging in the balance who might lose their home, might get put back out on the streets again. And that's something that theoretically this authority was created to prevent from happening - the whole argument about creating a regional homelessness authority was to provide coordination at a regional level. And instead they seem to be heading down the same path of bureaucratic inertia and bureaucratic turf defense - and it's exactly what this was all designed to prevent, and yet that's right where we are again. And so it's pretty frustrating to see this happen and a lack of leadership at all levels of government to come in and ensure that these people and others can stay in the housing that's been found for them. Because I think this is one of the things that makes it hard to get people into housing in the first place is - a sense that it's temporary, a sense that it's uncertain. We want to offer people housing and many people who live on the streets want housing. They want to be housed. This right wing narrative that people are out there by choice and refusing all offers of shelter is absurd, but they want quality shelter - no one wants to live in a place that's unsafe. And so putting folks in a hotel room is a really smart thing to do, it makes a ton of sense. You'd think that would be something that we would want to continue and promote. When that becomes unstable - another form of unstable housing - when people living there are like - Well, I don't know if I'm going to be here next month. That's not great. That doesn't help anyone. That doesn't help people hold down a job. It doesn't help people stay in a treatment program. And so we need leadership, whether it's from the Regional Homelessness Authority or from the City or County Council to come in and say - No, we're going to fund this. We're going to make sure these people stay in a hotel with a roof over their head and a door that locks. [00:38:49] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, I think I have a meta-takeaway on this. This is such a dysfunctional situation. I think you diagnosed it correctly as a turf defense situation. There does seem to be some - and not just from the three parties named in this thing, but also from the mayor's office is involved in this and others - and each seeming to want their own kind of stake and - Hey, leave the Lived Experience Coalition alone, you worry about other stuff, they can worry about this kind of thing going on - which is weird. But the nature of a lot of service work in government is they're contracting organizations. It's not like government is standing this up themselves and these are people directly employed and paid by the City or County. They contract with a lot of nonprofit organizations, service providers who have various levels of experience and expertise, who have different - some lived experience, some professional experience - obviously lived experience is absolutely necessary to serve any population correctly, a familiarity with them in the system. But it feels like sometimes we set ourselves up for these disasters by not doing a good job in the implementation of policy to deliver on what its true and original intention was. And if we don't clearly define and help manage and implement these contracts, these arrangements, then it can get away from you like this. If you aren't paying attention to, or overseeing, or staying in contact with, or whatever the case may be - these situations - you can wind up with a million dollar plus hole in your budget because you just weren't paying attention. And we still aren't sure exactly what happened to those funds. And that is a question I think many people are working on getting answers to and really clear answers on how we wound up in this situation - 'cause it seemed like there were red flags there throughout the process and things kept getting worse. But I do think that as progressives, as Democrats, we have to pay as much attention to the implementation as we do with the passage. The victory is not in the signing of legislation, the passage of a bill or law - the victory is in it delivering on its promise and helping people in the community. And so the work really begins when a law is passed - and there's administration that needs to be built and stood up and funds that need to be dispersed - you're building little organizations, sometimes big mega-organizations. It's like a startup and you have lots of these organizations doing this at the same time. And you have to pay attention to the coordination, to the implementation, to the contracts, to the management. We have to do a better job with that across the board, so we don't have situations like this where this is a - they're actually using evidence-based practices that are best practices, but risking everything going wrong because of a lack of oversight and management. That just makes the policy look like it's not working. That gives ammunition to Republicans, to reactionaries who just say that - Oh, these policies failed, it was always gonna fail. These people are irresponsible, they don't know how to run this. We have to be responsible for this too. We have to prioritize this. And I think sometimes there is an inclination to be - Okay, we meant well. No, it's not going well. We're just gonna ignore it, cover it up. Let's not talk about that. Let's not make it look bad. And we really need to get away from it not looking bad. And really this is not delivering on what we need it to do to help the residents. This is not addressing the problem we passed this and funded this to address. We have to pay more attention, get more focused on, and demand more when it comes to implementation and management and accountability for these projects. [00:43:11] Robert Cruickshank: I agree. And I think you made a really good point about the fact that there are consequences to failure. And one of the consequences obviously is more people living out on the streets, which we don't want. These are our neighbors. We want our neighbors to be housed and taken care of. The other consequence is it just provides ammunition to reactionaries. They are out there and there are some of these people running for City Council who are saying - We need to just scoop everybody up and put them in Auburn. KOMO's idea from right before the pandemic started of Homeless Island - they want to take Anderson Island, which used to house sex offenders and house homeless people there. This is - it's what they want. They're very adamant that they think the solution is not housing. The solution is basically prison-style treatment. And if we, who are more progressive and actually care about the wellbeing of people who are unhoused, are unable to get good policy passed and implemented, then the answer isn't that folks are going to be out on the streets for awhile. The answer is a much worse solution will come from the right. And so I think that should provide a spur to action along with the desire to help our neighbors. And I think it's really important to emphasize these folks are our neighbors. I once heard the head of DESC point out that most of the people they serve were born within 10 miles of their facility in downtown Seattle. These are our neighbors. And even if they weren't, we should be helping them. But they are our neighbors and we absolutely should be helping them. [00:44:45] Crystal Fincher: Couldn't say that any better. Absolutely agree. And with that, we thank you for listening to Hacks & Wonks on this Friday, April 14th, 2023. The producer of Hacks & Wonks is Shannon Cheng. Our insightful co-host today is Chair of Sierra Club Seattle, long time communications and political strategist, Robert Cruickshank. You can find Robert on Twitter @cruickshank - that's C-R-U-I-C-K S-H-A-N-K. You can follow Hacks & Wonks on Twitter @HacksWonks and find me on Twitter @finchfrii, with two I's at the end. You can catch Hacks & Wonks on iTunes, Spotify, or wherever else you get your podcasts - just type "Hacks and Wonks" into the search bar. Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get the full versions of our Friday almost-live week-in-review and our midweek show delivered to your podcast feed. If you like us, leave a review wherever you listen. You can also get a full transcript of this episode and links to the resources referenced in the show at officialhacksandwonks.com and in the episode notes. Thanks for tuning in - talk to you next time.

The Washington State House of Representatives has passed a bill that would classify possession of controlled substances as a misdemeanor instead of a gross misdemeanor, with provisions for pretrial diversion programs and treatment for substance abuse disorder. https://bit.ly/3zYre1s #TheCenterSquareWashington #SB5536 #DrugPossession #Misdemeanor #GrossMisdemeanor #WashingtonStateLegislature #2023LegislativeSession #Fentanyl #EngrossedSecondSubstituteSenateBill5536 #WashingtonState #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyNews #ClarkCountyToday

Donald Trump joined Tucker Carlson for an exclusive interview last night. He made headlines by calling Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley an ‘idiot'. NPR will no longer be on Twitter after being falsely labeled a part of ‘state-affiliated media'.  A bill has been passed through the House to lower the threshold for police to pursue a suspect from probable cause to reasonable suspicion, but only for limited crimes. Racism is running rampant in Tunisia…but isn't America the only racist country. // Joe Biden is in Northern Ireland for the anniversary of the Good Friday agreement.  A body has been found in connection with the Mariners game disappearance. // At least we are not Portland! The Louisville Police Department has spoken publicly after the bank murder there. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Demand for badly needed housing has triggered another ban on single-family zoning. Lawmakers in Arlington County, Virginia, approved a controversial plan to eliminate single-family exclusivity, and allow as many as six homes on one property. The decision came after a contentious three-year debate, and is part of a growing trend to dismantle the long-standing concept for single-family communities.    Hi, I'm Kathy Fettke and this is Real Estate News for Investors. Please remember to subscribe to this podcast and leave us a review.   The policy was unanimously approved by a five-member county board after a battle that included a so-called “Missing Middle Housing Study.” The missing middle is a phrase that refers to housing that falls between apartments and single-family homes. It covers several kinds of housing including townhomes, duplexes, and triplexes with more space than apartments. It could also include backyard cottages or in-law units which are more officially known as accessory dwelling units or ADUs.   Divisive Debate Over Single-Family Zoning Ban   As reported by the Washington Post, some Arlington County residents supported the idea, saying a ban on exclusive single-family neighborhoods would increase affordable housing options and diversify their communities. Other residents argued that it would lead to overcrowding, lower property values, and the destruction of their lifestyle and neighborhoods. (1)   Arlington County is a desirable part of the greater Washington, D.C. metro with a growing population and a growing demand for more housing. The county's board chair, Christian Dorsey, said the ban will help the county address population growth, and move past the “discriminatory noise” within zoning rules.   He says: “Growth and change are not good or bad, they just are.” And, he says: “It's our responsibility to make sure we accommodate that – to make sure that it works well for as many people as it possibly can.”   New Rules Among the Most Permissive in the Country   The new rules are some of the most permissive in the country. Contractors will be allowed to put up to five or six homes on lots that range in size from 6 to 7,000 square feet. Smaller lots will have a limit of 4 units. Height, lot coverage, floor area, and setbacks will remain the same.    According to Wikipedia, single-family zoning has been around since 1916, and began in the Elmwood neighborhood of Berkeley, California. The story goes that a real estate developer in the Elmwood district pushed for single-family zoning rules to prevent a dance company owned by a Black resident from moving into homes that he was trying to sell. He apparently pushed for single-family zoning with the help of other developers who were also trying to keep certain groups of people out of the neighborhood.   Growing Opposition to Single-Family Zoning   More than one hundred years later, the concept is now wavering under the weight of the housing crisis, and the idea of banning this kind of exclusive zoning is gaining momentum across the country. According to BisNow, at least three states and eight municipalities have passed bans on single-family-only zoning.   The city of Minneapolis was the first to implement a ban in 2018. The state of Oregon followed in 2019. Several cities in California banned that kind of zoning, but state lawmakers approved a bill in 2019 called Senate Bill 9. That legislation makes it legal to have two units on a single-family property, and in some cases, four units.   The state of Maine adopted a ban last year. The Washington State House of Representatives just recently passed a bill that would ban single-family zoning statewide, but it still needs approval from the state senate and the governor. (2)   The policy in Arlington, Virginia, goes into effect on July 1st and will be phased in over five years. During those first five years, only 58 permits a year will be approved. The cap will be lifted in 2028.   This kind of ban opens up opportunities for homeowners to be coincidental landlords if they build additional housing on their properties, and rent them out. You'll find links to the Washington Post story in the show notes at newsforinvestors.com.   Please remember to join RealWealth by clicking on the “join for free” button. As a member, you'll have greater access to investing opportunities in desirable rental markets across the country. That includes our investor portal, our market data, and our experienced investment counselors. You can also find out more about our spring real estate tours in metros that are popular among single-family rental investors, and our mastermind events to help get you on the path to long-term wealth.   If you haven't subscribed to the podcast, please do so! And leave us a review!   Thank you! And thanks for listening, Kathy Show Notes link:  https://www.newsforinvestors.com   Join link: https://join.realwealth.com/?utm_content=Real%20Estate%20News%20Podcast&utm_campaign=Join%20for%20Free&utm_term=Description%20Text%20Link   Subscribe link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/real-estate-news-real-estate-investing-podcast/id1079952715   Links:   1 - https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2023/03/22/arlington-missing-middle-vote-zoning/   2 -  https://www.housingwire.com/articles/wa-house-passes-bill-that-would-ban-single-family-zoning/  

A Washington State House of Representatives committee gave a do-pass recommendation on a 6-3 vote during executive session to an amended version of legislation that would reclassify possession of a controlled substance as a misdemeanor rather than a gross misdemeanor. A misdemeanor is punishable by up to 90 days in jail and a fine of up to $1,000, while the maximum punishment for a gross misdemeanor is 364 days in jail and a fine of up to $5,000. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/washington-in-focus/support

The Washington State House of Representatives has rolled out its proposed $69.5 billion operating budget for the 2023-25 biennium that makes investments in housing, education and behavioral health. https://bit.ly/3KhZw5L #TheCenterSquareWashington #WashingtonStateHouseOfRepresentatives #WashingtonStateSenate #ProposedOperatingBudget #GovJayInslee #Housing #Education #BehavioralHealth #WashingtonState #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyNews #ClarkCountyToday

In honor of Women's History Month, Keith sits down with Rep. Sharlett Mena - the first CHLI alumna elected into public office at the state level. Rep. Mena represents Washington's 29th district in the Washington State House of Representatives. She shares her story of the path to public service, her humble beginnings through CHLI's internship program, and what she hopes to succeed during her tenure.Learn more about Rep. Mena and her agenda: https://www.sharlettmena.org/

This episode of The Jason Cavness Experience is a replay of my talk with Renee Radcliff Sinclair - President/CEO of TVW, Washington's national award-winning public affairs media network  Go www.thejasoncavnessexperience.com for the full episode and other episodes of The Jason Cavness Experience on your favorite platforms. Our Affiliates Close.com - If you hate your sales CRM or know that you inevitably need to make a change because what you have is not working, certainly check out Close. It's quick and easy to set up and sales rep adoption is extremely high! Give their trial a shot PeopleKeep - If your company has 49 or fewer employees a PeopleKeep personalized benefits advisor can evaluate whether a health reimbursement arrangement (HRA) is right for your business. Reach out today to get your questions answered. https://www.peoplekeep.com/cavnesshr Everee Payroll - Run payroll or contractor payments from anywhere in seconds with just one swipe on a mobile app. Focus on growing your business instead of on compliance. We remit, file and report on federal, state, local and unemployment insurance taxes, as well as handle your W2s and 1099s. https://offers.everee.com/cavness-hr CavnessHR - CavnessHR delivers HR companies with 49 or fewer people with our HR platform and by providing you access to your own HRBP. www.CavnessHR.com Renee's Bio Renee Radcliff Sinclair is president and CEO of TVW, Washington's national award-winning public affairs media network. TVW provides unfiltered, unedited gavel-to-gavel cable television and web-streaming coverage of the Washington State Legislature, Supreme Court, executive branch, state boards and commissions, elections, and public policy events of statewide significance as well as a variety of award-winning produced programs and documentaries. Prior to joining TVW, Renee spent 14 years as a journalist, followed by four successful elections to the Washington State House of Representatives. While serving in the Legislature she garnered a number of prestigious awards and honors, including being named to the American Council of Young Political Leaders and as a fellow to the George Washington University Elliott School of International Affairs. Since retiring from public office, Renee has served in policy leadership roles with the American Electronics Association, the US Chamber of Commerce, and Apple. She is a regularly featured speaker at national and international events and has published numerous policy opinions in local, regional and national publications.  Renee has served as a volunteer with a number of local government, humanitarian and workforce efforts over the years and continues to serve her community through a variety of policy-related, community-based activities. We talk about the following among a few other subjects TVW Her time in the Washington State of Representatives How to become a journalist Career politicians Sunshine week Renee's Social Media Renee's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/reneer2/ Renee's Email: renee@tvw.org Renee's Twitter: https://twitter.com/Sinclair_R TVW Website: https://tvw.org/ TVW  YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJfdBErVr7q8xoeYanwdniA TVW Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tvwnews/ Renee's Advice It's hard to run for public office. But I encourage people if you really have an interest in policy and moving your communities forward and positive ways to look at it. I'm always happy to talk with anybody about what it takes to run.  I've given you all my social media connections, feel free to reach out. I'm happy to talk about that. If you really want to make a difference in your community. Step up and do it.        

Legislation passed the Washington State House of Representatives yesterday that would make it easier for licensed or registered real estate appraisers to do evaluations for financial institutions. https://bit.ly/41Ai5J3 #WashingtonStateHouseRepublicans #WashingtonStatelegislature #RepGregCheny #2023LegislativeSession #HB1797 #RealEstate #Appraisers #EvalulationsOfRealEstate #FinancialInstitutions #HouseOfRepresentatives #WashingtonState #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyNews #ClarkCountyToday

The Washington State House of Representatives passed a bill from Rep. Kevin Waters on Tuesday that would prohibit the sale of products combining alcohol and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). https://bit.ly/3KMR9zG #RepKevinWaters #WashingtonStateHouseRepublicans #WashingtonStateLegislature #WashingtonStateHouseOfRepresentatives #HB1772 #HouseBill1772 #Cannabis #Tetrahydrocannabinol #WashingtonState #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyToday

A bipartisan bill from Rep. Paul Harris that would help increase access to certain medical care and procedures is one step closer to becoming law after a unanimous “yes” vote from the Washington State House of Representatives Wednesday. https://bit.ly/3YBbw79 #RepPaulHarris #HouseBill1073 #HB1073 #MedicalAssitants #WashingtonStateLegislature #HouseOfRepresentatives #MedicalAssistantCertifiedInterimPermit #2023LegislativeSession #WashingtonState #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyNews #ClarkCountyToday

From 1957 through 1962, John E. Goldmark, an Okanogan-born state representative, spent three terms in the Washington State House of Representatives. He advanced to positions of leadership within the Democratic Party and was regarded as one of the most significant figures in the liberal movement. However, a number of right-wing political rivals launched an effort to portray Goldmark and his wife, Sally Goldmark, as communists or sympathizers, and as a result he was soundly defeated in the 1962 primary election. The Goldmarks filed a libel lawsuit and prevailed in a widely publicized trial, receiving a $40,000 award. Following a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in a case involving related concerns, the judgment was later overturned. John Goldmark left his position in government and returned to his ranch in the Okanagan. He passed away from cancer in Seattle in 1979.Many thought the Goldmark story to be done by this point in time, but Right-wing fanatic David Lewis Rice viciously murdered civil rights lawyer Charles Goldmark, his wife Annie Goldmark, and their two boys, Colin, 10, and Derek, 12, in their Madrona home on Christmas Eve of 1985. Rice incorrectly thought that Goldmark was both Jewish and a high ranking member of the Communist Party.Rice later pleaded guilty and was to receive the death penalty. In 1997, his conviction was reversed, and he received a life sentence without the chance for parole.Listen now to learn more about this political intrigue of the Evergreen State and its tragic ending.A special thank you goes out to Al Hirsch for providing the music for the podcast, check him out on YouTube.Find merchandise for the podcast now available at:     https://washington-history-by-jon-c.creator-spring.comIf you enjoy the podcast and would like to contribute, please visit: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/EvergreenpodIf you have any questions, episode ideas you'd like to see explored, or just have a general comment, please reach out at Historyoftheevergreenstatepod@gmail.comTo keep up on news for the podcast and other related announcements, please like and follow:https://www.facebook.com/HistoryoftheevergreenstatepodcastThank you for listening!

The Washington State House of Representatives on Monday unanimously passed legislation from Rep. Paul Harris that would give educators with a reprimand an opportunity for redemption. https://bit.ly/3YbxqOf #WashingtonStateHouseRepublicans #WashingtonStateLegislature #RepPaulharris #HouseBill1113 #HB1113 #ProfessionalEducatorStandardsBoard #CertifiedProfessionalEducators #Legislation #Teachers #ReviewingAndVacatingReprimands #WashingtonState #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyNews #ClarkCountyToday

Join Cole McNeely and The Center Square's Washington reporters Brett Davis and Spencer Pauley as they discuss police officers, law enforcement representatives and mayors urged members of the Washington State House of Representatives to pass legislation restoring the reasonable suspicion threshold for police to engage in vehicular pursuits. The thing currently propping up Washington state's controversial police pursuit law, which makes high-speed chases difficult for police to justify legally, is the belief that it is saving a great number of lives of innocent parties, either bystanders or passengers, who get hurt in such chases. The Pierce County Council along with the Nisqually and Puyallup Indian tribes are continuing their push to halt the construction on a future airport in the region. --- Listen to Other ATN Productions: America in Focus: A weekly feature of the top TheCenterSquare.com stories of the week out of Washington D.C. with commentary from The Center Square editors and more! America's Talking: An interview podcast hosted by Austin Berg. Guests include professors, journalists, artists, business and nonprofit leaders, authors, and more. Everyday Economics: Join economist Dr. Orphe Divounguy and Chris Krug as they discuss global markets, inflation, and everything else that will help you understand the economic world around you. Future of Freedom: Future of Freedom is a bi-weekly podcast highlighting the work of the non-profits which are shaping the future of the freedom movement. Listeners will hear civil, intellectual conversations about why the organizations exist, what their mission is, and how they work to achieve it. Hosted by Scot Bertram. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/washington-in-focus/support

On this week's Inside Olympia we go in-depth with legislative leaders: House Democratic Majority Leader Joe Fitzgibbon, and House Republican Minority Leader JT Wilcox. Their perspectives on, and priorities for, the 2023 legislative session.

McClintock is taking the seat of former Rep. Brandon Vick who decided not to seek reelection. https://bit.ly/3CyOHrN #WashingtonStateLegislature #2023LegislativeSession #RepStephanieMcClintock #RepBrandonVick #HouseOfRepresentatives #18thLegislativeDistrict #StateRepresentative #VancouverWa #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyNews #ClarkCountyToday

A debate between the candidates for Washington State House of Representatives 42nd District Position 2 - Democrat Joe Timmons and Republican Dan Johnson

Full transcription available at http://heartsofgoldpodcast.com/ Chris submitted a bill to their state representatives to create protections for children who are shown on family vlogs. Chris found out the lack of privacy protection to these children, created awareness in their community, connected with a representative to draft the bill and get it presented to the Washington State House with Emily Wicks, and has presented to Oregon's state legislature. Chris also shares their progression from Bronze Award to Silver Award to their Girl Scout Gold Award and experience during the Gold Award process. More from Chris: I have been a Girl Scout from 3rd grade through to my senior year in high school, and have recently become a lifetime member. I earned my bronze award by creating informational booklets about the Seattle Locks with my troop, my silver award by leading an art workshop for Brownie Scouts and creating a toy drive for Seattle Children's Hospital with two fellow scouts, and my gold award by introducing legislation to the Washington State House of Representatives. Aside from Girl Scouts, I have been a member of Sustainability Ambassadors from 6th grade through senior year in high school, leading projects on water sustainability, teaching teachers about how to incorporate sustainability into all aspects of their curriculum (from history to art to science to math), and writing sustainability blogs for the Sustainability Ambassadors Writers Group (SAWG). HB 2032: https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?BillNumber=2032&Initiative=false&Year=2021 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/quit_clicking_kids/ Website: https://quitclickingkids.wixsite.com/website Geekwire: https://www.geekwire.com/2022/kids-are-non-consenting-stars-of-some-family-vlogs-and-a-high-schooler-wants-to-change-that/ TechCrunch: https://techcrunch.com/2022/04/12/family-vlogs-child-influencers-exploitation-youtube-laws/ HerCampus: https://www.hercampus.com/school/cwu/this-bill-could-protect-young-children-in-family-vlogs/ Share this show with your friends on Twitter. Click to have an editable already written tweet! https://ctt.ac/33zKe Join our Facebook Community https://www.facebook.com/sherylmrobinson/ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/sherylmrobinson/?hl=en Please subscribe to Hearts of Gold on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/sherylmrobinsonor on your favorite podcast app. Support future Hearts of Gold episodes at https://www.patreon.com/heartsofgold Editing by https://www.offthewalter.com/ Walter's YouTube channel is https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCt0wFZRVaOpUd_nXc_8-4yQ

Assemblyman Wineberry sits down with St. Nick and Mr. McGlover to discuss current events. Jesse Wineberry served five terms in the Washington State House of Representatives from 1985 to 1995. He was first elected at age 29 while still attending law school. He later became the state's first African American to be selected as House majority whip. A Democrat serving districts that included central and south Seattle, he was a self-described "advocate for the under-represented," working to provide jobs, job training, workplace childcare, and small-business loans for minorities, and pushing for reduction of youth violence. He was instrumental in the creation of Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a state holiday and was a regularly featured speaker at Seattle observances honoring the late civil rights leader. Wineberry's greatest political victory came in the 1992 Democratic primary when he unseated John L. O'Brien (1911-2007), the nation's longest-serving state legislator. Jessie Wineberry : https://www.historylink.org/File/11147St. Nick : https://bit.ly/3voTM36Mr. McGlover : https://bit.ly/3K5eNnvShot, Edited, Engineered, Mixed and Produced by Rob Nova : https://bit.ly/3BYJpnX"On The Spot" is an informative, social, entertainment and opinionated show. Based around social commentary on current events, music, fashion, social consciousness and social issues that seem to plague our generation. We welcome various guest appearances from entertainers, athletes, comedians, theologians, and politicians. Filmed and Recorded at The Spot SoDo in Seattle, WA. A mixed media hub that offers Music Production, Recording, Mixing and Podcast Production. www.thespotsodo.com

In this episode of Office Hours, Spencer speaks with Congressman Derek Kilmer who serves as the United States Representative of Washington's 6th Congressional District. Rep. Kilmer started his career as a business consultant for McKinsey & Company, then moved on to work for the Economic Development Board for Tacoma-Pierce County. He then began a career in local government in Olympia, serving in the Washington State House from 2005 to 2007 and the state Senate from 2007 until he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2012. Rep. Kilmer is now serving his fifth term in the U.S. House and is a member of the Appropriations Committee. He currently serves as the Chair for the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress—which in this interview he dubs “The Fix Congress Committee.” The Committee was formed to develop recommendations to make Congress more effective, efficient and transparent. It looks at potential technology solutions, along with other ways to increase civility and collaboration. Kilmer was ranked the 33rd most bipartisan member of the House of Representatives during the 114th Congress by The Lugar Center's "Bipartisan Index."

Brad Benton, son of retired State Senator Don Benton, recently filed his formal candidate papers with the Clark County Elections office placing his name on the ballot for the Washington State House of Representatives, 18th Legislative District, Position 2. https://loom.ly/9P2s6g8 #BradBenton #DonBenton #CandidatePapersFiled #WashingtonStateHouseOfRepresentatives #18thLegislativeDistrict #StateHouseRace #Position2 #ClarkCountyElections #VancouverWa #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyNews #ClarkCountyToday

On this episode of the Jason Cavness Experience I talk to Renee Radcliff Sinclair - President/CEO of TVW, Washington's national award-winning public affairs media network We talk about the following among a few other subjects TVW Her time in the Washington State of Representatives How to become a journalist Career politicians Sunshine week Renee's Bio Renee Radcliff Sinclair is president and CEO of TVW, Washington's national award-winning public affairs media network. TVW provides unfiltered, unedited gavel-to-gavel cable television and web-streaming coverage of the Washington State Legislature, Supreme Court, executive branch, state boards and commissions, elections, and public policy events of statewide significance as well as a variety of award-winning produced programs and documentaries. Prior to joining TVW, Renee spent 14 years as a journalist, followed by four successful elections to the Washington State House of Representatives. While serving in the Legislature she garnered a number of prestigious awards and honors, including being named to the American Council of Young Political Leaders and as a fellow to the George Washington University Elliott School of International Affairs. Since retiring from public office, Renee has served in policy leadership roles with the American Electronics Association, the US Chamber of Commerce, and Apple. She is a regularly featured speaker at national and international events and has published numerous policy opinions in local, regional and national publications. Renee has served as a volunteer with a number of local government, humanitarian and workforce efforts over the years and continues to serve her community through a variety of policy-related, community-based activities. Renee's Social Media Renee's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/reneer2/ Renee's Email: renee@tvw.org Renee's Twitter: https://twitter.com/Sinclair_R TVW Website: https://tvw.org/ TVW YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJfdBErVr7q8xoeYanwdniA TVW Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tvwnews/ Renee's Advice It's hard to run for public office. But I encourage people if you really have an interest in policy and moving your communities forward and positive ways to look at it. I'm always happy to talk with anybody about what it takes to run. I've given you all my social media connections, feel free to reach out. I'm happy to talk about that. If you really want to make a difference in your community. Step up and do it.   Our Affiliates  Close.com - If you hate your sales CRM or know that you inevitably need to make a change because what you have is not working, certainly check out Close. It's quick and easy to set up and sales rep adoption is extremely high! Give their trial a shot. PeopleKeep - If your company has 49 or fewer employees a PeopleKeep personalized benefits advisor can evaluate whether a health reimbursement arrangement (HRA) is right for your business. Reach out today to get your questions answered. https://www.peoplekeep.com/cavnesshr Everee Payroll - Run payroll or contractor payments from anywhere in seconds with just one swipe on a mobile app. Focus on growing your business instead of on compliance. We remit, file and report on federal, state, local and unemployment insurance taxes, as well as handle your W2s and 1099s. https://offers.everee.com/cavness-hr CavnessHR - CavnessHR delivers HR companies with 49 or fewer people with our HR platform and by providing you access to your own HRBP. www.CavnessHR.com

This week on Curmudgeon's Corner, Sam is joined by his wife Brandy Donaghy, who since she last appeared on the show in 2019 ran for a couple of local offices, got appointed to the Washington State House of Representatives, had an eventful first session, and is now running to keep her State House seat. So they talk about how she got involved in local politics in the first place, her various campaigns, her thoughts about the State House, and getting back to campaigning. A bit of a switch from the usual Curmudgeon's Corner, but fun! Show Details: Recorded 2022-04-16 Length this week - 2:01:38 (0:00:11-0:06:41) Intro (0:07:31-0:53:44) Political History (0:55:44-1:34:25) WA Legislative Session (1:35:08-2:01:07) 2022 Campaign The Curmudgeon's Corner theme music is generously provided by Ray Lynch. Our intro is “The Oh of Pleasure” (Amazon MP3 link) Our outro is “Celestial Soda Pop” (Amazon MP3 link) Both are from the album “Deep Breakfast” (iTunes link) Please buy his music and support his GoFundMe.

Vick, who is in the middle of his tenth year as a member of the Washington State House of Representatives, plans to finish the remainder of his term representing the 18th Legislative District. https://loom.ly/HPoIVfs #BrandonVick #LastTerm #WashingtonStateLegislature #WashingtonStateHouseOfRepresentatives #18thDistrict #VancouverWa #JTWilcox #ReElection #ClarkCountyWa #ClarkCountyNews #ClarkCountyToday

Rep. Tina Orwall, today's guest, is a powerhouse of a legislator. She has a tendency to sponsor successful bills, and a look at those bills reveals where her priorities lie: justice for those who have suffered sexual assault or trafficking, veterans' issues, suicide prevention, jobs and economic development, safety for persons experiencing behavioral health crises, foster youth, and adoptee rights, to name just a few. Tina is also Speaker Pro Tem of the Washington State House, handling the gavel and guiding debate during most floor sessions. She makes a return visit to Capitol Ideas today.

Thursday, March 3 on Urban Forum Northwest- scheduled guests for the hour are: *Hayward Evans, Co-convener, Seattle King County Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration Committee reflects on the organizations last event were various members of the community were honored for their contributions. *Christopher Williams, Acting Superintendent, Seattle Parks Department and Board Chair, Together Washington comments on his role in managing the vast number of Seattle Parks and the employees in the organization. He is the first African American Board Chair of Together Washington and he will discuss his role in the organization. *Former Washington State Representative Peggy Joan Maxie was the first African American Female elected to the Washington State House of Representatives in 1970. She will share some of her legislative accomplishments and compare politics of the 1970's and 80's with today's politics. *Tony Butler, Business Representative and Pre-apprentice Liaison for IBEW L.U. 46 comments on his dual role. IBEW 46 worked with the Seattle MLK Commemoration Committee in providing the lights in Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Civil Rights Park for Black History Month. *TishaMarie, Founder, Legally Black of Pierce County comments on the organizations purpose. The organization recently went to the aide of a Black homeowner in Pierce County that had her property targeted with racist graffiti. *Bob Armstead, National Association of Minority Contractors (NAMC)-Washington comments on the importance of the organization as it advocates for equality for minority contractors/businesses and invites interested parties to their Thursday, March 3 meeting. Urban Forum Northwest streams live at www.1150kknw.com. Visit us at www.urbanforumnw.com for archived programs and relevant information. Like us on facebook. Twitter@Eddie_Rye. This program will also air on Saturday 7:00-8:00 am (PST).

Thursday, March 3 on Urban Forum Northwest- scheduled guests for the hour are: *Hayward Evans, Co-convener, Seattle King County Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration Committee reflects on the organizations last event were various members of the community were honored for their contributions. *Christopher Williams, Acting Superintendent, Seattle Parks Department and Board Chair, Together Washington comments on his role in managing the vast number of Seattle Parks and the employees in the organization. He is the first African American Board Chair of Together Washington and he will discuss his role in the organization. *Former Washington State Representative Peggy Joan Maxie was the first African American Female elected to the Washington State House of Representatives in 1970. She will share some of her legislative accomplishments and compare politics of the 1970's and 80's with today's politics. *Tony Butler, Business Representative and Pre-apprentice Liaison for IBEW L.U. 46 comments on his dual role. IBEW 46 worked with the Seattle MLK Commemoration Committee in providing the lights in Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Civil Rights Park for Black History Month. *TishaMarie, Founder, Legally Black of Pierce County comments on the organizations purpose. The organization recently went to the aide of a Black homeowner in Pierce County that had her property targeted with racist graffiti. *Bob Armstead, National Association of Minority Contractors (NAMC)-Washington comments on the importance of the organization as it advocates for equality for minority contractors/businesses and invites interested parties to their Thursday, March 3 meeting. Urban Forum Northwest streams live at www.1150kknw.com. Visit us at www.urbanforumnw.com for archived programs and relevant information. Like us on facebook. Twitter@Eddie_Rye. This program will also air on Saturday 7:00-8:00 am (PST).

Today on America's Town Hall with Heidi St. John, we are airing a special episode with Washington State House of Representative Jim Walsh. He joined Heidi live from Congress and together they discussed several topics, including live audience questions answered. (note: due to the nature of being in Congress live, there may be a bit of background noise on Jim Walsh's microphone)

The Washington State House of Representatives discusses a bill on musculoskeletal disorders and a Senate Committee holds public hearing on a bill to try to address overdose and suicide fatalities.

Washington State House of Representatives convenes on HB 1684 regarding fluoridation in water.

Our monthly news quiz, Sound Off! Washington, with this month's panelists: Rep. Drew Hansen represents the 23rd district, which includes northern Kitsap County and Bainbridge Island. He chairs the Civil Rights & Judiciary Committee in the Washington State House of Representatives. State Treasurer Mike Pellicciotti was elected in 2020 and is the state's 24th state treasurer. And Hillary Franz is a conservation attorney from Washington state who serves as the State Commissioner of Public Lands, a position she was elected to in 2016.

In this episode, Ian and Nique are joined by David Hackney — a Washington State Representative, Harvard Law School and Harvard Kennedy School graduate, and former attorney for the Department of Justice. Two pivotal moments during David's freshman year at Cornell changed his outlook on education inspired him to steward the opportunities in front of him. The first was advice from a recent graduate who had thrived socially on Cornell's campus but was only able to find a job as an Assistant Manager at Burger King because he did not apply himself academically: don't take a Cornell education for granted. The second was a mentorship with an older student who taught David how to balance academic pursuit with strong social connections. These experiences inspired David to work tirelessly to pursue a path that ultimately led him to Harvard Law School and an early career as an attorney for the Department of Justice. The capstone of David's career was his recent election to the Washington State House of Representatives — where he currently serves the men and women of south King County. Later, David shares the work he is doing to reform policing in Washington state and his vision for a renewed relationship between police and the communities they serve. David believes that police have lost the trust of communities with high rates of crime. Recognizing that good policing cannot happen without the consent of a community, David believes there are steps policymakers must take to reform their methods of contact with community members and build trusting relationships. However, he also argues that calls to “defund” the police are ineffective and unhelpful. Per David, we need more and better policing, not less. Tune in to the full episode to learn more about David's story and hear his words of advice for “Darryl.”

The Washington State House of Representatives debated HB1213, regarding child care and early learning.

with guest John C. Hughes, Chief Historian with Legacy Washington, Washington Secretary of State where we talk about: his new book "Julia Butler Hansen: a trailblazing Washington politician" this book and others can purchased here: https://www.sos.wa.gov/store Julia Butler Hansen was from Cathlamet, Washington and served 21 years in the Washington State House of Representatives (1939-1960) and 14 years in the United States House of Representatives (1960-1974). 

Good Morning it's Saturday December 12th, and this is The Wenatchee World's newest podcast, Slices of Wenatchee. We're excited to bring you a closer look at one of our top stories and other announcements every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. Today, we're focused on Three businesses that made their debut amid pandemic. Today's episode is brought to you by Equilus Group Incorporated. Equilus Group, Inc is a Registered Investment Advisory Firm in the states of Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. Equilus Group, Inc- Building Your Financial Success. Learn more at Equilusfinancial.com. Member SIPC and FINRA. And before we begin, do you want to share your home's holiday light display with the valley? You can add your festive decorations to our interactive map by visiting wenatcheeworld.com/holidaylights Now our feature story. Opening a new business can be a daunting, stressful and exhilarating adventure under normal circumstances. Imagine adding a pandemic and a set of debilitating and ever-changing restrictions that come with it into the mix — not exactly an ideal recipe for success. But Green Motion EBikes, My Little Valley Customs & Tattoos, and Yarn Bird were all poised to open their doors in the spring, armed with startup financing, business plans and, in some cases, lease agreements.  The shutdowns ordered in March changed their opening dates, but not their willingness to move forward. And finally, Aaron Woodhead and co-owner Kelly Delong, opened Green Motion EBikes in the spring, and then got shut down for two-and-a-half months. Woodhead said it was like the worst possible timing. But surprisingly, the e-bike industry as a whole took off. Woodhead has been a self-described YouTuber for the past 10 years, getting paid by vaping companies to promote the use of electronic cigarettes and other vaping pens as a way to quit smoking cigarettes. He felt making the transition from e-cigs to e-bikes was a natural one. Woodhead said e-bikes at other stores can run as high as $10,000, but at GreenMotion E-Bikes run from $699 to $1,500. Omar Valenzuela, the owner of My Little Valley Customs & Tattoos in Wenatchee, was forced to delay his grand opening from January to September. He also said that he scaled down his original idea and even put his wedding on hold because of the pandemic. But three months in, he's optimistic. Everything is by appointment only, and only one customer is allowed in the store at a time, but so far, business has been steady. Once they make it through the winter, if regulations allow, they hope to expand. First with the addition of a tattoo apprentice. And later, they'd like to start offering classes similar to ones done at Class with a Glass in Wenatchee. Picture yourself tattooing skin like material while drinking a beer!  Tracy Gausman also opened her business, Yarn Bird, during the pandemic. As a knitter for more than 30 years and member of the North Central Washington Knitters Guild, she had considered opening a yarn store for a few years. Even though things looked bleak, Gausman said she never hesitated when it came to opening up. She also shifted the business online and created a website where customers could look at inventory and make purchases by phone or email. Business has been slow but steady. She currently has one employee, who she hopes will get to teach knitting classes in the future. Yarn stores are common places for knitters to gather, share stories and projects and ask for help. Knitting, above all else, is a social outlet for people. And while new restrictions were put in place mid-November, Gausman believes she's now better equipped to last through another shutdown. She even produces a weekly newsletter. Just in time for the holidays - The Foothills Magazine Wine Issue. Read up on local wine ratings from the 2020 NCW Wine Awards. Pick up your free copy of the November December issue of Foothills available now at free rack locations throughout North Central Washington. Now, our weekly profile of one of the World's 30 Under 35 award recipients. Today we're highlighting Brandt Cappell, a Senior legislative assistant at the Washington State House of Representatives. After graduating from Wenatchee Valley College, Cappell went on to earn a bachelor's degree in natural resource policy, with a minor in political science, from Washington State University. He then worked as the legislative assistant for Cary Condotta and later for newly elected Representative Keith Goehner. This spring, Cappell entered the political fray in his own right, competing for an open seat on the Chelan County Commission. He narrowly missed earning a spot on the November ballot, but found himself in a position to help the community as COVID-19 turned everything upside down. He used my campaign platform to help folks find ways to help serve our community's needs.  Cappell and his wife, Brittney, have a daughter, Savannah. When he's not working, he is involved in his church's leadership team and enjoys fishing and camping with friends and family. He said that changed his outlook on life. He wants his daughter  to look back and see that her father worked hard to serve his community and citizens and did as much as he could to make his home a better place. Thanks for taking a moment today to recognize Brandt Cappell!  Finally, some local history, Wenatchee Valley History is brought to you by NABUR – your trusted neighborhood community. NABUR is a free online forum you can trust to connect with your community, focus on facts & make a difference. Join the conversation! Visit wenatcheeworld.com/nabur Wenatchee is sometimes referred to as the "Buckle of the Power Belt of the Great Northwest". It's a metaphor for the hydroelectric dams on the Columbia River. The Rock Island Dam was completed in 1933 and it was the first on the mainstem Columbia River. -Thanks for listening. Today's episode is brought to you by Equilus Group, Inc- Building Your Financial Success. Learn more at Equilusfinancial.com The Wenatchee World has been engaging, informing and inspiring North Central Washington Communities since 1905. We encourage you to subscribe today to keep your heart and mind connected to what matters most in North Central Washington. Thank you for starting your morning with us and don't forget to tune in again on Tuesday!   Support the show: https://www.wenatcheeworld.com/site/forms/subscription_services/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Eddie Rye with Co-Host Hayward Evans: *Congresswoman Elect Marilyn Strickland prevailed in Washington State's 10th Congressional District on Tuesday to become the first African American/Korean American elected to Congress from the state. *Dr. E. Faye Williams, National Chair & CEO, National Congress of Black Women, Inc. she is also a National Syndicated Columnist for Trice Edney Wire and her column is on the Editorial Page of the Seattle Medium this week. She will lend her perspective to this weeks election. *David Hackney was elected to the Washington State House of Representatives to represent the state's 11th Legislative District. He will comment on his vision for his district and the state. *Shaude' Moore, Central District Community Preservation Development Authority (CDCPDA), chair, Seattle Martin Luther King Jr. Organizing Coalition comments on the CDCPDA Board of Directors receiving the title to the building on 22nd Avenue &South Jackson Street. She will also provide an update on the MLK Celebration for January 18, 2021 MLK Holiday.

Eddie Rye with Co-Host Hayward Evans: *Congresswoman Elect Marilyn Strickland prevailed in Washington State's 10th Congressional District on Tuesday to become the first African American/Korean American elected to Congress from the state. *Dr. E. Faye Williams, National Chair & CEO, National Congress of Black Women, Inc. she is also a National Syndicated Columnist for Trice Edney Wire and her column is on the Editorial Page of the Seattle Medium this week. She will lend her perspective to this weeks election. *David Hackney was elected to the Washington State House of Representatives to represent the state's 11th Legislative District. He will comment on his vision for his district and the state. *Shaude' Moore, Central District Community Preservation Development Authority (CDCPDA), chair, Seattle Martin Luther King Jr. Organizing Coalition comments on the CDCPDA Board of Directors receiving the title to the building on 22nd Avenue &South Jackson Street. She will also provide an update on the MLK Celebration for January 18, 2021 MLK Holiday.

Eddie Rye with Co-Host Hayward Evans: ​ *Congressman Bobby Scott (D) Virginia, Chair, House Education and Labor Committee comments on the VP Debate and the importance of participating in the political process. *Carolyn Riley Payne, President, Seattle King County NAACP comments on the organizations voter registration drive. *David Hackney (D), a candidate for the 11th District, Washington State House of Representatives. He will respond to candidates forum questions emailed to him. *Erica Conway, Seattle King County NAACP Freedom Fund Chair comments on the goals and objectives of the committee that she leads.

Eddie Rye with Co-Host Hayward Evans: ? *Congressman Bobby Scott (D) Virginia, Chair, House Education and Labor Committee comments on the VP Debate and the importance of participating in the political process. *Carolyn Riley Payne, President, Seattle King County NAACP comments on the organizations voter registration drive. *David Hackney (D), a candidate for the 11th District, Washington State House of Representatives. He will respond to candidates forum questions emailed to him. *Erica Conway, Seattle King County NAACP Freedom Fund Chair comments on the goals and objectives of the committee that she leads.

Driving through Mattawa July 29, onlookers witnessed a seemingly jovial scene that sounded like a block party. But among the gritos of the mariachi and the dancing residents of Mattawa, they heard expressions of anger and frustration. It’s a labor demonstration. And a political one. In the Columbia Basin, the Democratic challenger for Washington state’s 13th Legislative District House seat has focused his message on farmworker safety and called for the boycott of fruit. It’s quite a move for a candidate in a district where the economy is dominated by agriculture. Eduardo Castañeda-Díaz made calls to boycott apples, blueberries and cherries in a series of marches held throughout small towns like Quincy, Ephrata, and Mattawa ahead of the recent August 4 primary. Fewer than 5,000 people live in Mattawa, many farm workers and immigrants from Mexico. When it comes to the pandemic, the owner of La Fina home goods store, who declined to share her name, says farmworkers here keep quiet about

This week we changed things up a bit and spoke with Glenda Breiler who is running for the Washington State House of Representatives in the 22nd district, she is a member of the Colville Tribes and would be the only member of a Native American tribe elected to public office in Washington state. We spoke to her about the importance of water and the environment as a whole, healthcare, and social unrest. Glenda is an amazing progressive candidate that we wanted to spotlight on the podcast.glendaforwa.comFB: @glendaforwa IG: @glendabreiler Twitter: @glendabreiler

The first in our series of discussions with Washington's 2020 Congressional candidates. Kristine Reeves is running for Congress in the 10th Congressional district, which includes Olympia, Puyallup, and parts of Tacoma. The seat was vacated by the retirement of Congressman Denny Heck. Previously, Reeves was the regional outreach director for Senator Patty Murray, and she's currently the director of economic development for the military and defense sector for the Washington State Department of Commerce. In 2016, she became the first African American woman elected to the Washington State House in 18 years, representing the 30th LD. She stepped down from that seat in December of last year. Links: https://kristinereeves.com/ Theme music from filmmusic.io "Pure Joy" by Otis Galloway License: CC BY (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Democratic state Rep. Melanie Morgan visits "Capitol Ideas" in this first episode of 2020 and the first of the current legislative session. Morgan, who was recently elected by her fellow Democrats to serve as deputy majority floor leader in the House, talks about rental reforms, school nutrition, the push to establish a new Office of Equity in Washington, and her efforts to designate an official state dinosaur.

West Coast Cookbook & Speakeasy is Now Open! 8am-9am PT/ 11am-Noon ET for our especially special Daily Specials; Blue Moon Spirits FridaysStarting off in the Bistro Cafe, Trump is well aware of what being impeachment means for his legacy.Then, on the rest of the menu, the House passed a union-backed trade deal one day after impeaching Trump; a GOP candidate for governor in North Carolina cited 'one lady' as the source for his lies on immigrants; and, in a report by the Washington State House that has been forwarded to the FBI, GOP state representative Matt Shea has been accused of domestic terrorism against the United States of America.After the break, we move to the Chef's Table where a Canadian court affirmed the citizenship of the sons of Russian spies who inspired the TV series, “The Americans;” and, police have arrested three hundred thirty-four people in one of the largest anti-mob operations ever seen in Italy.All that and more, on West Coast Cookbook & Speakeasy with Chef de Cuisine Justice Putnam.Bon Appétit!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~“Structural linguistics is a bitterly divided and unhappy profession, and a large number of its practitioners spend many nights drowning their sorrows in Ouisghian Zodahs.” ― Douglas Adams "The Restaurant at the End of the Universe"~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2019/12/20/1906872/-West-Coast-Cookbook-amp-Speakeasy-Daily-Special-Blue-Moon-Spirits-Fridays

Some children dream of being a firefighter or star athlete. After an early civics lesson in school, Toby Nixon knew he was interested in government. That early interest has turned into a life focused on public service and protecting the processes of government. Nixon was re-elected to the city council in Kirkland, Wash., in the fall of 2019, a position he’s held since 2012. Among the many current and former public-service roles Nixon has taken on, he has been a fire commissioner and a member of the Washington State House of Representatives from 2002-2006 where he was ranking member of the committee which has responsibility for overseeing Washington’s open government and election laws. And his day job with Microsoft includes serving as chairman of the board of directors of Bluetooth Special Interest Group, the Kirkland-based international organization that develops standards for Bluetooth technology. But of all his efforts, defending and watch-dogging open government holds a special place in Nixon’s heart. He is the 2012 inductee to “Heroes of the 50 States: The State Open Government Hall of Fame” by the National Freedom of Information Coalition and the Society of Professional Journalists. In 2006, he received the “Freedom’s Light Award” from Washington Newspaper Publishers Association in recognition of his work to protect and advance First Amendment interests in Washington and he’s a member of the Washington State Historical Records Advisory Board. And, Nixon is president of the board of the Washington Coalition for Open Government, a group that advocates for the people’s right to access government information. The independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit organization works through the courts and the Legislature to defend and strengthen Washington’s open government laws. “Washington’s public records act, Initiative 276, came into existence, by public initiative, in 1972,” Nixon says. “It got a 72 percent favorable vote, one of the highest ever for an initiative in the state.” The new law went into effect in 1973 and it was immediately attacked, Nixon says. “The original group that sponsored the initiative was called the Coalition for Open Government,” Nixon says, adding that after a few years, “That organization kind of shut down.” The original law included ten exemptions, but by 2002, there were more than 300 exemptions. “A group of folks got together and decided we needed to defend the law against the courts and the Legislature. So, the Washington Coalition for Open Government was formed,” Nixon says. “I joined the board in 2005, three years in.” Nixon says Initiative 276 came forward during the Watergate era when the public was focused on the need to ensure transparency in government. The mission of the coalition, Nixon says, is a group of people who may not have very much else in common, but they all recognize the importance of government transparency and the preservation of democracy. “People assume we are a conservative organization,” Nixon says. “It’s really just a watchdog group, no matter who is in charge. We are really very much a non-partisan group. We don’t agree on much besides transparency is important.” As busy as he is, Nixon says he’s still looking for ways to learn and grow. “I like to read about how to make government better,” Nixon says. “You have to be passionate about learning new things.” Episode length: 1:09:27 Episode links Initiative 276 voters pamphlet from 1972 Washington Public Records Act (state law) Washington Public Records Act (overview) Washington Public Disclosure Commission Washington Coalition for Open Government Toby Nixon city council campaign website Kirkland City Council Heroes of the Fifty States Award Washington Newspapers Publishers Association  

A conversation with Debra E. Lekanof. She’s Washington State House of Representative’s 40th district legislator.

Warning: Game of Thrones Spoilers! This Episode: Warning: Game of Thrones Spoilers! This One Weird Trick Lowers Suicide Rates: Spoiler, it's higher wages Fight Abortion Prohibition: We have an emotional discussion about the right wing's big play to outlaw abortion and what you can do to fight them. Sherae Lascelles: Powerhouse activist from Seattle to the Washington State House of Representatives, podcast Pal Sherae Lascelles talks about their bid for Seattle City Council's open seat, their advocacy work on behalf of sex workers in the state of Washington, we talk city zoning, and explore what's up for them next, and more! The Palette Cleanser: We get funked up on some Chinese chips. There will be crunches, sorry misophoniasts. Cast: Sarah, Jay, Troy, Corn, Bill Producers: Jay and Andres

  In this episode, Sara talks with Colleen Kerr about her epic journey from being the "Erin Brockovich of Kentucky bluegrass stubble burning" to opening a restaurant called Sweetgrass Food Company, plus everything in between. Today, Colleen is Vice President for External Affairs and Government Relations and Chief Legislative Officer for Washington State University (WSU) and founder and co-owner of Sweetgrass Food Co. restaurant, which serves 100% Good Food in an intentionally designed space in downtown Seattle. Colleen delves into why career trajectory is illusion, how to get back up after "getting punched in the face" in one's career and life, and how success requires getting comfortable with discomfort.   Want to make your own career change? Download Sara's Seven Cs of Successful Career Change Chart.   Sara and Colleen Discuss: How they got connected  Colleen's four degrees Colleen working for a private, non-profit law firm Using her negotiating skills to earn joint degrees Doing a human rights fellowship in Ireland Working on the Bloody Sunday Inquiry Working as an attorney for Preston Gates and Ellis in Seattle Moving with her boyfriend to New Orleans Evacuating for Katrina Moving back to Seattle and working for the Washington State Dept. of Commerce in Olympia Realizing her career trajectory was an illusion Working many positions in the Washington state government Being recruited by Washington State University (WSU) What land grant universities are Getting her a$$ kicked at WSU Starting Sweetgrass Food Co. Convincing her husband to open the restaurant with her Sourcing locally and organically, supporting underrepresented population-owned companies, etc. The restaurant's three top values Getting into teaching astrology, energy, shamanic work, etc. Recalling and harnessing that part of ourselves that used to take risks because "we didn't know better" The myth that there's a "path" to be on and how freeing it can be to let go of those illusions Realizing that stepping off the edge of the cliff is actually exhilarating Orienting toward her purpose and values Messages that she got from her family about career and work when she was growing up Facing gender bias, sexual discrimination and ageism in her work Having a plan, "getting punched in the face," and building and strength, in advance, to get back up The impact of meditation on her life Learning to show up as her full self in all areas of her life Using work as a way to express oneself in the world Her mentor, Lisa Brown Being a mentor to others as an act of service and what's that's like Coming up with questions in advance of meeting with a mentor The importance of actually following the advice you're given Colleen's recommended resources: Books Fierce Conversations Difficult Conversations Brené Brown's TED Talks The Power of Vulnerability Listening to Shame Podcasts Ben Greenfield Fitness Design Matters with Debbie Millman Reid Hoffman's Masters of Scale The Tim Ferriss Show His episode with model Karlie Kloss Her primary piece of advice for people breaking into new and different kinds of work The things that will change your brain more than anything: gratitude, challenging yourself and cultivating personal relationships ...and more! Colleen's Full Bio: Colleen Kerr is Vice President for External Affairs and Government Relations and Chief Legislative Officer for Washington State University (WSU) and founder and co-owner of Sweetgrass Food Co. in Seattle.   In her position at WSU, Colleen serves on the senior administrative team for Washington State’s land-grant university, reporting directly to the President. She currently serves as the co-chair of WSU’s Economic Development Council, where she is leading the efforts around the Seattle Initiative, dedicated to connecting WSU’s research, academic and service mission to the greater Seattle region. She also sits on the Executive Committee of the Seattle Chamber and the Executive Roundtable for the Washington Global Health Alliance.   Colleen serves as an institutional leader in defining external strategic priorities and conducting outreach with multiple stakeholders from the public and private sectors. Her office had the leadership role in securing legislation that launched the WSU Everett campus, in securing the federal designation and funding for the Center of Excellence designation of ASCENT, the launch of the Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine, the second publicly funded medical school in Washington.   Colleen brings a wealth of experience to WSU and her role in advancing the public policy benefits of WSU’s extensive research and educational programs. Following a human rights fellowship with Queen’s University in Belfast, Ireland, she worked on the Bloody Sunday Inquiry for Madden and Finucane Solicitors, one of the premier legal firms in the European Union and located in Belfast. After coming back to the U.S., she was an attorney with Preston Gates and Ellis, LLP in Seattle and then was a special assistant on government accountability for the state’s Office of Economic Development in the Washington State Department of Commerce. She served as legislative director for State Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown and deputy chief of staff for the Senate Democratic Caucus in Washington State. Previous work for the legislature includes being tribal counsel for the Washington State House of Representatives.   In 2015 with her husband and best friend, she opened Sweetgrass Food Co. restaurant, which serves 100% Good Food in an intentionally designed space in downtown Seattle. Sweetgrass focuses on a premier cafe experience, catering, and offers a "creative space" for the neighborhood. Reflecting the owners' values, it participates in the local food economy by prioritizing organic, local producers and paying a living wage. The menu highlights "real" food and defaults to plant-based, inviting guests to make additions or changes to suits their tastes or dietary needs—making nutritionally dense food delicious, accessible, and even chic. Indeed, the food genre—from Buddha bowls and soaked oats to matcha lattes and celery juice—is most aptly categorized as "hippie-chic".   Colleen holds a JD degree from the University of Washington, an AM in Public Policy from the University of Chicago and a MA Hons in Modern History and a MLitt in International Security Studies, earned with distinction, from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.   In her spare time (?!?), Colleen is outdoors as many days as she can with Mike and Trixie and Molly, travels extensively at home and abroad, is a 20 year student of yoga, is an avid reader, baker, and a burgeoning astrologist.   Connect with Colleen and Sweetgrass Food Co.: Sweetgrass' website: www.sweetgrassfoodco.com  Sweetgrass' Instagram: www.instagram.com/sweetgrassfoodco Colleen's Instagram: www.instagram.com/colleenaelizabeth   Connect with Sara and Women Who Went for It: Facebook: www.facebook.com/womenwhowentforit  Website: www.womenwhowentforit.com  Nominate a Podcast Guest: www.saramcardle.com/podcast-guest  Email: womenwhowentforit@gmail.com  Phone: 503.893.2043   Want to make your own career change? Download Sara's Seven Cs of Successful Career Change Chart.  

Today's "Capitol Ideas" is a relatively brief but powerful introduction to Rep. Debra Lekanoff, who became the Washington's first Native American state representative after 40th-district constituents tapped her for the job last fall. The new lawmaker from Bow, a tiny community in Skagit County, is part of the most diverse Democratic majority in state history, and her story is a good one.

Today's guests are Washington State House 14th District Position 2 candidate Noah Ramirez and Dan Spatz from Columbia Gorge Community College.

Dr. Amy Cook is a general dentist in Auburn where she has practiced since 2006. She serves as a delegate for the American Dental Association, Washington State Dental Association, and the Seattle-King County Dental Society. In addition, Dr. Cook lobbies in Olympia regarding important dental legislation and drafted the origin of a piece of legislation that passed unanimously through the Washington State House and Senate in 2015. She has served on the Executive Council for the Seattle-King County Dental Society, and currently serves on the the South King Multicare Foundation Board, and the Blue Ribbon Committee for a Healthy Auburn. Dr. Cook actively promotes access to care for our poor and vulnerable populations by treating patients thru Donated Dental Services for the Disabled, Domestic Abuse Women's Network, Medicaid patients, Alzheimer's patients, and veterans. She is currently working with the Wa State Dental Association, DEA, and NWHIDTA to raise awareness among dentists and dental patients regarding use of the PMP, safe prescribing practices, and reducing diversion in our communities. During this episode Dr. Cook talks about how Delta bullied her with the threat of placing her on Delta's focus review. Dr Cook took her frustration against Delta and helped to create legislation in the state of Washington that forces insurance carriers to be more transparent with where insurance premium dollars are spent. She's an example of how a single doctor can make a huge impact in advocating on behalf of dentists who are dealing with insurance crap day in and day out. To contact our hosts please email help@veritasdentalresources.com

We sat down with Rep. Bruce Chandler, one of the longest serving Republican members of the Washington State House of Representatives. Rep. Chandler not only represents the 15th Legislative District, he also owns an orchard there. He talks us through life in the 15th. He also shares his thoughts on some of the key legislative issues from the 2017 legislative session that will continue to be a focus in 2018, including the capital budget, Hirst, McCleary, and the urban-rural divide in Washington State.

Today's guests include Oregon State Senate 29th District candidate Barb Dickerson and Washington State House 14th District Representative Gina McCabe.

Russ Belville speaks with Stephanie Heart Viskovich, 2016 Libertarian candidate for District 46a of the Washington State House of Representatives.

(January 23, 2012) Austin Nimocks, Chris Plante, and Dr Jennifer Roback Morse travel to Washington state to testify before its House of Representatives about marriage redefinition.

We’re speaking today with state Representative Sherry Appleton. Sherry represents Washington’s 23rd legislative district, which comprises the bulk of Kitsap County, including Poulsbo, where she lives, as well as Bainbridge Island, Silverdale, Kingston and East Bremerton. She was elected to the Washington State House of Representatives in 2004 and is currently vice-chair of the House State Government and Tribal Affairs Committee, and is a member of the House Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, and Health Care and Human Services Appropriations committees.

Zack Hudgins of Tukwila represents Washington's 11th legislative district. He's floor leader for the majority Democrats in the Washington State House of Representatives, and in today's "Capitol Ideas," he reviews the 2010 session, looks forward to 2011, and talks about the diverse district he serves.

Russ Belville speaks with Stephanie Heart Viskovich, 2016 Libertarian candidate for District 46a of the Washington State House of Representatives.