Measures preparing for and preventing wildfires made great progress this session.
Combined with bills from the 2018 session, there has been strong progress towards wildfire preparation in integrated training and deployment among the various Department of Natural Resources (DNR) firefighters, National Guard members and Correctional Department prisoners. More DNR firefighters, helicopters and other equipment have been secured, and on the ground pre-planning included.
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League Goal: reduce greenhouse gas emissions, put a price on carbon, and enact measures to promote climate resiliency.
Climate change is having a significant effect on Washington State’s natural and economic landscape. Addressing climate change impacts will require a sustained commitment to integrating climate information into legislation and government programs and services.
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Education bills came down to the wire!
SB 5091, which increases funding for Special Education, but not fully – according to most school districts – passed on the last day. A last-minute bill, HB 2163, which transfers money from the Budget Stabilization Act for K-12 hold-harmless payments in the 2019-20 and 2020-21 school years, passed on the final day.
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The LWV’s major legislative agenda was to restrict large capacity magazines and ban so-called “ghost guns” as well as empowering law enforcement to remove weapons in domestic violence and Extreme Risk Protection order cases.
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With the passage of 2SHB 1087, Washington State is the first in the nation establish a Long-term Care Trust Act.
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The LWV legislative agenda this year was to support legislation instituting criminal justice reforms for those both in and out of custody;
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The LWV advocated for Initiative 1000 which would overturn the 20 year ban on Affirmative Action and close the Opportunity Gap for women, veterans, minorities and disabled persons seeking opportunities in public education, employment, or public contracting. We will continue to monitor and rally against any ballot measure to reverse this hard won success.
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