Advocacy

2017 Washington State Legislative Priorities

Urge compliance with the McCleary decision through the levying of a state capital gains tax, the repeal of tax breaks not in the public interest, and the adoption of a tax expenditure budget;
Lay the groundwork for the repeal of Tim Eyman’s draconian, destructive I-747 and the implementation of a homestead exemption or other property tax reform;
Bring greater transparency to Washington’s initiative process by supporting legislation that subjects the paid petitioning industry to oversight and accountability;
Protect our environment and mitigate damage to our climate by advocating for:
- investments in infrastructure to address toxic runoff,
- funding to empower the University of Washington to research climate impacts;
- new policies to protect fisheries against recreational mining;
- credits and incentives to accelerate deployment of solar energy.

Ballot Measure Endorsements for 2017

Washington (statewide measures gathering signatures)

Tim Eyman’s I-1550: NO/Decline to sign
Kristi Haley Triller’s I-1552: NO/Decline to sign

Statehouse Bill Tracker

A tool for monitoring the Washington State Legislature

The Statehouse Bill Tracker is an NPI project that makes tracking priority legislation simple and easy. The Tracker aggregates feeds for bills “with legs”, providing an up-to-date view of what’s moving in the statehouse at any given time during session. Bills are sorted by activity. The most recently active bills appear at the top and the least active bills appear at the bottom.

When something happens to a bill, we call that an action.

An action could be a bill’s introduction, public hearing in committee, vote on the floor, proposed amendment, or referral to another committee; all these are examples of steps in the legislative process. (See this page for a visual explanation of how a bill becomes a law). Actions affect the placement of bills in the tracker. Here’s a longer explanation:

Bills are sorted in reverse chronological order. The most active bills will always appear at the top. Bills with little activity will sink to the bottom like a heavy stone settling at the bottom of a creek bed after being washed downstream by a flood.
A green dot next to a bill number update indicates the bill reflects progressive values and enjoys our support. Conversely, red octagon (stop sign) indicates that we oppose the bill because it would implement policies that are contrary to progressive values. Finally, a yellow triangle means we have concerns about a bill, but are not working for its defeat.
Assessments of bills are provided by NPI and organizations that we work with, such as the Washington State Labor Council or the Environmental Priorities Coalition. The person/entity that analyzed the bill and provided the wording is always listed to the left of the assessment.
It is possible to view a bill’s full history without clicking away, as long as JavaScript is enabled. Simply click on the blue link that says “Click to view” and the bill history will slide out for easy viewing. (It can be hidden again using the same link, which will change to say “Click to hide”). If JavaScript is not enabled, the bill history may still be viewed, either by clicking the bill number to go to the Legislature’s website or by viewing the source of this page.

Now, let’s find out what’s moving in the statehouse!