Mike Padden

Majority is using a “felony budget gimmick,” which the State Treasurer calls a “dangerous precedent” and has urged the Legislature to reject. We received some particularly alarming news late last night, when the Senate majority unveiled a last-minute, secret plan to do an “end run” around the state constitution in order to...

We have just two more days to wrap up our work for this year’s regular session. Friday was the final “cut-off” to approve bills that originated in the House of Representatives. Final votes are still ahead on the budget and bills that are necessary to implement the budget, which are...

The Senate Friday adopted a resolution introduced by Sen. Mike Padden, R-Spokane Valley, honoring Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, SEL President Edmund O. Schweitzer and his wife, Beatriz, for their dedication to the community and philanthropy. “Edmund and Beatriz have consistently demonstrated both the resilience of America’s ingenuity and the strength of...

Thursday, in a vote of 95-2, the Washington State House of Representatives approved Senate Bill 6408, aimed at clarifying the rules surrounding the use of police body cameras. The measure is sponsored by Sen. Mike Padden, R-Spokane Valley. Legislation approved in 2016 established public-disclosure and other requirements relating to body-worn...

We are now less than two weeks away from the end of the 60-day legislative session. The Senate approved its supplemental budget proposal late last week, and the House passed its corresponding budget last night. The Senate proposal did not receive a single vote from our side of the aisle –...

On Thursday we received an updated revenue forecast, and projected revenue is much higher than expected – to the point that many described it as “raining money in Olympia.” When the numbers are all added up, budget writers now expect (over the next three years) to have more than $2.4...

Emma Bowman, a freshman at West Valley High School, spent a week working as a page for the Washington State Senate at the Capitol in Olympia. Emma was one of 21 students who served as Senate pages for the fifth week of the 2018 legislative session. She was sponsored by...

Today the Senate voted unanimously to pass Senate Bill 6410, concerning school safety. Under the measure, sponsored by Sen. Mike Padden, first-responders would be required to notify both public and private schools during any situation in their vicinity that would warrant an evacuation or lockdown. The bill would also create...

Week five was spent on the Senate floor voting on bills previously approved by their assigned committees. Below I highlight several good bills that are still in play, so please keep reading. Tomorrow is the final day for us to consider “house of origin” bills; in other words, it’s the...