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Dear Friends and Neighbors,
It's hard to believe we are already two-thirds of the way through the legislative session. Tuesday was house of origin cutoff, meaning bills needed to pass out of the House or Senate or they are considered “dead.” A complete list of bills that have passed both chambers can be found here. We also continue to update this shorter “dead or alive” list that breaks certain legislation down by House committees. For more information on individual bills, please visit this website, enter the four-digit bill number and click on “Search.” From there, you can comment on measures by clicking on, “Comment on this bill.”
Like the last half of this week, next week will include a lot of committee hearings in the House and Senate. You can find the House schedule here. Please know you are welcome to come to Olympia to testify on a bill or just listen in on committee hearings.
A constituent contacted me recently about a measure in the Senate that she opposed. I encouraged her to come testify on the legislation and share why it would hurt her small business. She came to the Capitol and testified against the bill. Her input provided me a different perspective on the issue and I appreciate it. This is a great example of how easy it is to get involved in your citizen Legislature.
Capitol Report Podcast
Every two weeks, I participate in a Capitol Report Podcast to discuss current legislative issues. In my most recent podcast, I talked about deadlines in the Legislature, the transportation tax package, health care, and how the public can get involved. You can listen to it here.
TVW interview
I sat down with Anita Kissée, host of TVW's The Impact, and House Democratic Majority Leader Pat Sullivan on Tuesday to talk about the legislative session. We discussed various issues, including cutoff, K-12 education funding, a transportation tax package and minimum wage. To watch the interview, please click here.
Profile piece in The Seattle Times
I'm not sure how many of you subscribe to The Seattle Times. If you do, you may have seen the profile piece they had on me on February 17. If not, you can find it here. I enjoyed talking to the reporter, but the photo shoot was a little awkward for me. Let's just say modeling is not in my future.
Help around the House
One of my favorite parts of being a state representative is hosting House pages. I had an opportunity to sponsor Jake LaSalle (pictured right) as a House page during the third week of the legislative session. Jake is from Sedro-Woolley and attends Cascade Middle School. Learn more about his experience at the Legislature here.
Legislative pages play an important role in the efficient operation of the Legislature, including delivering messages and documents to state lawmakers in their offices, committee meetings and the House and Senate chambers. To learn more about the House Page Program, click here or feel free to contact me.
I hope you have a restful weekend.
In your service,
Dan Kristiansen
