The political climate of Canada’s oil producing province is being upstaged by Mother Nature. Prolonged heat and lightning have produced a natural climate emergency with fires blackening the skies and consuming more than 2.3 million acres in a not-so-merry month of May.
Category: Policy Topics
Posted inPolicy Topics
Housing policy leaders discuss ways to get people into homes at 2023 YDWA Convention
Read a recap of the 2023 Young Democrats of Washington Convention’s housing-focused panel, which brought together local and state leaders in Spokane for a conversation moderated by NPI’s Kamil Zaidi.
Posted inCivil Liberties, Events, Policy Topics
Issues facing LGBTQ+ community take center stage at 2023 YDWA Convention in Spokane
Though Washington has historically been one of the safer states to be queer, the LGBTQ+ experience east of the Cascades is a very different one due to the Republican-leaning local governments. After all, it wasn’t that long ago that it wasn’t very safe to be out in Spokane, the biggest city in the region.
Posted inPolicy Topics
Amazon has a big opportunity to be a leader in plastic packaging reduction
In 2022, Amazon stopped packing products in single-use plastic delivery bags shipped from their European fulfillment centers, and stopped using plastic air pillows in Europe and Australia. Yet, Amazon has not made similar commitments in the United States, its largest market.
Posted inLegislative Advocacy
Washington State Legislature swiftly agrees on a Blake fix after going into special session
“This bill recognizes the harm that public use causes our communities by creating the crime of public use,” said Representative Jamila Taylor. “More importantly, it focuses on the most up-to-date science on recovery, working to connect people to treatment, housing, services, and employment opportunities.”
Posted inGuest Posts
Expansion of access to Working Connections Child Care will help Washington families
In this guest post for NPI’s Cascadia Advocate, Senator Claire Wilson explains how Senate Bill 5225 will help reduce the cost of childcare for many families and support Washington’s youngest learners.
Posted inGuest Posts
Washington is making important, long overdue investments in environmental equity
In this guest post for NPI, Senators Joe Nguyễn and Rebecca Saldaña explain how the Evergreen State is prioritizing equity in our response to the climate crisis.
Posted inCivil Liberties
Several Proud Boys convicted of seditious conspiracy in January 6th insurrection
These convictions are more than just a victory for the Department of Justice — they are an encouraging sign for the future of American democracy. For our republic to endure, attempts to overturn a free and fair election by force must be thwarted and their perpetrators held accountable.
Posted inCivil Liberties, Policy Topics
Oregon Republicans flee the Capitol to block gun safety and reproductive justice bills
Republicans in Oregon are once again holding up the business of the Oregon State Legislature by refusing to show up for work, which is preventing the Senate from taking up critical gun safety and reproductive justice bills.
Posted inPolicy Topics
Disney sues Ron DeSantis, seeking to have retaliatory laws declared unconstitutional
Of DeSantis’ actions, the Disney brief declares: “This government action was patently retaliatory, patently anti-business and patently unconstitutional. But the Governor and his allies have made clear they do not care and will not stop.”
Posted inLegislative Advocacy
DONE! Governor Inslee signs assault weapons ban and two more gun safety bills into law
On April 25th, Governor Jay Inslee signed into law three pivotal new gun safety laws: a ban on assault weapons, a permit-to-purchase requirement, and a duty to impose reasonable controls law that gun manufacturers, distributors, and sellers must abide by.
Posted inPolicy Topics
“Blake fix” bill fails in State House, prompting calls for special session on drug policy
Several Democrats joined the chamber’s forty Republicans in casting nay votes, creating a potent obstacle to the bill’s passage that leadership determined could not be surmounted before the clock ran out on the 2023 legislative session.
Posted inPolicy Topics
VICTORY! Assault weapons ban clears Legislature, heads to Governor Inslee’s desk
On April 19th, the state House of Representatives and Senate came to an agreement on mutually acceptable final language for House Bill 1240, which prohibits the manufacture, importation, distribution, selling, and offering for sale of assault weapons.
Posted inLegislative Advocacy
VICTORY! My Health, My Data Act heads to Governor Inslee after House concurrence vote
By a vote of 57–40, the House voted to concur in the Senate amendments to House Bill 1155, prime sponsored by Representative Vandana Slatter (D‑48th District: Bellevue, Redmond, Kirkland, Medina, the Points communities).