Report from Olympia

Alarm bells still ringing at Department of Corrections
September 22, 2021
More than five years ago I stood at a podium before a room full of reporters to announce the findings of a detailed Senate investigation into systematic failures at the Department of Corrections, and what could be done to fix them. A lot can change in 5 years, but apparently... Read More...
Dangerous anti-police policies put public at risk
August 09, 2021
One of the big issues we face is dealing with the ramifications of the majority’s war on law enforcement, and the impact it is already having on the safety of our communities. As we mentioned in the previous Report from Olympia, time is running out if you wish to opt... Read More...
To avoid long-term care tax, Washington residents must opt out now
July 13, 2021
Washington residents must enroll in private insurance by Nov. 1 to escape new payroll tax Dear friends and neighbors, A new payroll tax for a state long-term care insurance program will soon go into effect, the result of legislation approved by the Legislature’s majority party. I strongly opposed this new... Read More...
Olympia Protest for Vaccine Choice
New rules cause employees to be treated different than customers!
June 22, 2021
One of the other challenges we have is making sure that there is much-needed oversight of the executive branch. Despite plans to reopen the state no later than June 30, the governor still refuses to relinquish his unilateral control by ending the state of emergency. Some agencies, such as the... Read More...
Vaccine passports, income tax and unconstitutional vetoes draw fire
June 01, 2021
The pushback from the legislative session that concluded on April 25 continues to pour in for Governor Inslee. Taxpayers, Republicans, tribal leaders and even traditional allies like legislative Democrat leaders have called the governor out for overstepping his legal authority. You can read more about that below. It has been... Read More...
Special session coming soon?
May 12, 2021
We continue to see the fallout from the 2021 legislative session that adjourned on April 25. Less than two weeks after leaving Olympia, without addressing the governor’s emergency powers and one-person rule, members of the majority party from Pierce County are lamenting the fact that the governor has wielded his... Read More...
‘We all live in Seattle now!’
April 29, 2021
Conservatives tend to be positive people, trying to see the best in every situation, but the most positive thing that can be said about the 2021 regular legislative session is that it is finally over. Beyond that, the news is not good. While this session clearly reflected the values of... Read More...
Shocking audit findings at ESD
April 19, 2021
We received disturbing news from our state auditor’s office last week: its findings in an audit of the state Employment Security Department. It now appears that ESD downplayed the extent of the unemployment-insurance fraud it allowed, and repeatedly failed to properly respond to Washingtonians who needed the agency to deliver... Read More...
A victory for the culture of life!
April 13, 2021
Sometimes, the bills that survive the deadlines are not the best indicator of our state’s values – instead, you look at what fails to gain enough support to move forward. An example is the life-affirming defeat of legislation that would have expanded access to assisted suicide in our state. Due... Read More...
Government on steroids
April 05, 2021
State government has never seemed to grow so much, so quickly. Last week, the House and Senate majorities adopted budgets that would spend record amounts of money. Besides draining the rainy-day fund, burning through billions in federal relief dollars, and exhausting enormous budget surpluses, they STILL raise taxes! This is... Read More...