Mike Padden

Note: The following e-newsletter was sent to Sen. Padden’s subscribers March 16, 2023. To subscribe to Sen. Padden’s newsletter, click here. The 2023 legislative session is now in its 10th week, with five weeks to go. April 23 is the scheduled last day. As the Legislature approaches the home stretch...

Note: The following e-newsletter was sent to Sen. Padden’s subscribers March 10, 2023. To subscribe to Sen. Padden’s newsletter, click here. The Senate just passed a milestone for the 2023 legislative session. Wednesday was the “floor cutoff,” the last day for the Senate to vote on Senate bills, except measures...

Following a 20-year high in traffic deaths in Washington, the Senate today again approved an anti-impaired driving bill sponsored by 4th District Sen. Mike Padden. Senate Bill 5032, which was passed 48-1, would expand the period for reviewing prior convictions of impaired driving to 15 years, from the 10 years...

The Senate last night voted 28-21 to pass Senate Bill 5536, which aims to provide a long-term solution to the state’s drug laws after the state Supreme Court overturned the state’s drug-possession law in 2021. The bill declares that possession of fentanyl, cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine would be charged as...

Note: The following e-newsletter was sent to Sen. Padden’s subscribers March 3, 2023. To subscribe to Sen. Padden’s newsletter, click here. The Legislature is halfway through its 2023 session. This is Day 54, and Washington’s constitution allows our “long” session to run for no more than 105 days. On Monday,...

The Senate today unanimously passed Senate Bill 5096, a bipartisan proposal introduced by 4th District Sen. Mike Padden that would aid businesses looking to adopt an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) corporate structure. During his floor speech on SB 5096, Padden mentioned the many benefits to employee ownership. “This bill...

The Senate today voted 48-0 to pass a bipartisan bill that aims to impose longer sentences on sexually abusive jail and prison guards. Senate Bill 5033 would reclassify the crime of first-degree custodial sexual misconduct as a Class B felony, allowing a prison term of 10 years instead of the...

Note: The following e-newsletter was sent to Sen. Padden’s subscribers Feb. 22, 2023. To subscribe to Sen. Padden’s newsletter, click here. Dear friends and neighbors, This year’s legislative session is reaching a key transition point. During the previous six weeks, the Senate devoted much of its time to committee meetings...

Note: The following e-newsletter was sent to Sen. Padden’s subscribers Feb. 17, 2023. To subscribe to Sen. Padden’s newsletter, click here. In 2008, Washington voters approved Initiative 1000, which established the so-called “Death with Dignity Act.” Opponents call it “Assisted Suicide Expansion.”  Efforts have been made the last two years...