February 16, 2017

Longer sentences for habitual property offenders approved by Senate committee

OLYMPIA – A bill allowing longer sentences for habitual property offenders cleared the Senate Law and Justice Committee Thursday, giving prosecutors tools to crack down on rising burglaries, thefts and similar crimes. Senate Bill 5703, sponsored by committee chair Mike Padden, R-Spokane Valley, allows sentences to be extended by up...
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February 13, 2017

Bill prompted by Corrections scandal set for Thursday vote in Senate committee

OLYMPIA – A bill prompted by deadly prisoner releases by the state Department of Corrections is set for a vote Thursday in the Senate Law and Justice Committee, a year after the agency revealed it turned loose some 3,000 violent and dangerous prisoners ahead of schedule. Senate Bill 5294, sponsored...
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February 03, 2017

Freedom the theme at town hall meeting

 The following newsletter was sent to subscribers to Sen. Padden’s newsletter, Feb. 3, 2017. To subscribe to Sen. Padden’s newsletters, click here. Last weekend it was my pleasure to join my 4th District seatmates, Reps. Matt Shea and Bob McCaslin, for a town hall meeting at the New Life Church...
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January 18, 2017

Remembering Judge Sam Cozza, reforming DUI laws

The following newsletter was sent to subscribers to Sen. Padden’s newsletter Jan. 18, 2017. To subscribe to Sen. Padden’s newsletters, click here. Dear friends and neighbors, On Saturday, the people of our area will pay tribute to one of our best-respected jurists, Sam Cozza, presiding judge of the Spokane County Superior Court. Cozza...
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January 13, 2017

An out-of-bounds court casts shadow over Legislature

  By Sen. Mike Padden, R-Spokane Valley Note: This op-ed originally appeared in the Valley News Herald, Spokane Valley, Jan. 13, 2017. In Olympia this year we’re going to be talking about a number of specific issues that have a direct impact on the people of the Spokane Valley and...
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January 12, 2017

Off and running in Olympia

The following newsletter was sent to subscribers to Sen. Padden’s newsletter Jan. 12, 2017. To subscribe to Sen. Padden’s newsletters, click here. Dear friends and neighbors, We’re off and running on our 2017 legislative session. The Legislature opened Monday for what is supposed to be 105 days at the state...
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January 10, 2017

Coroners’ inquests, investigations of police fatalities, subject of committee hearing Wednesday

OLYMPIA – The Senate Law and Justice Committee will hold a work session Wednesday, Jan. 11, on coroners’ investigations of police use of deadly force – a topic that has garnered much comment during the run-up to the 2017 legislative session. The hearing begins at 8 a.m. in Senate Hearing...
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January 09, 2017

2017 shaping up as busy year for Legislature

Taxes, other key issues for Spokane Valley, are on the table By Sen. Mike Padden, R-Spokane Valley Note: This op-ed was originally published in the January 2017 editions of the Liberty Lake Splash and the Valley Current. The buzz about next year’s legislative session is all about education funding, proposals...
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December 16, 2016

Breaking the bank in 2017

The following newsletter was sent to subscribers to Sen. Padden’s newsletter Dec. 16, 2016. To subscribe to Sen. Padden’s newsletters, click here. Dear friends and neighbors, We’re getting ready again for another legislative session in Olympia, and it is looking like this will be one of the hardest-fought sessions in...
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