(Photo Credit: Erica Hallock)

Trivia!

Republican Jeannette Hayner was the first female to serve in legislative leadership. Throughout her political career, how many elections did she lose?

Legislative Activity

Floor activity “5 o’clock bills.” Time seems to suspend during intense periods of floor activity. Each day bleeds into the next. It is hard to plan because you never know when votes will occur or what time the legislative bodies will knock off for the night (or early morning!). So far this year, the Senate wins the prize for adjourning at more humane hours while the House has frequently extended into the early morning.

The House of Origin cutoff (which hit Wednesday at 5 p.m.) is yet another point in the legislative process where bills stop advancing. Bills can be held in the Rules Committee or left to languish on the Floor calendar without action. Reasons for bills not moving forward are not always apparent, and it is frustrating to watch time run out on a bill you care about. There are situations where the minority party attaches a slew of amendments to bills on the Floor, simply to “run out the clock.”

Typically, both legislative bodies will select a controversial bill where debate is expected to run long to be their “5 o’clock bill” on the House of Origin deadline. They tend to start debate on the “5 o’clock bill” just prior to the magic hour to allow ample time for discussion. This year’s 5 o’clock bills revolved around firearms/assault weapons in the House and broadband in the Senate. On brand for the week, the Senate wrapped up by 5:15 p.m. and the House took their final vote at 8:20 p.m. (my bet was on them concluding at 11 p.m.).

Once the House of Origin deadline passed, the process quickly reverted back to policy committee meetings, with hearings beginning bright and early at 8 a.m. Thursday morning (coffee, please!). At this stage, policy committees will hear bills passed out of the opposite chamber. Sometimes, the opposite body has already heard the content of the bill if there was a “companion” bill on a similar subject. And, unlike the start of session, this policy committee review period is more abbreviated as they should (theoretically) have fewer bills to review.

The opposite chamber policy committee cutoff date is March 29 and the opposite chamber fiscal committee cutoff is quickly thereafter on April 4.

Active bills. Several early learning bills have moved on to the opposite chamber and need to have a hearing and be voted out of policy committees on or before March 29. These include:

• House Bill 1199 prohibits “common interest communities,” such as a private communities with a Home Owners Association, from banning or limiting the use of a home, building or space for a licensed child care center or family home. This bill passed the House without any amendments and has a hearing on March 9 in the Senate Law and Justice Committee.
• Second Substitute House Bill 1525 provides qualifying applicants and consumers of state registered apprenticeship programs eligibility for Working Connections Child Care subsidy. The bill was amended to ensure an individual in a state approved apprenticeship program may receive child care subsidy for the first 12 months of enrollment in a state registered apprenticeship as long as the income requirements are met. The bill will be heard in the Senate Early Learning and K12 Committee on March 13.
• Second Substitute House Bill 1550 converts the Transitional Kindergarten (TK) program to a Transition to Kindergarten (TTK) program with new standards and changes the funding source and flow. There were no amendments to the bill during the House Floor debate and vote, which can be seen on TVW starting at the 26:00 mark. The bill awaits a hearing in the Senate Early Learning and K12 Committee.
• Second Substitute Senate Bill 5225 increases access to child care by authorizing care for families involved in therapeutic court, bans immigration status discrimination for eligibility and authorizes child care subsidy eligibility for dependents of child care employees. The bill was amended to prohibit DCYF from considering immigration status when determining child care eligibility. An amendment was also added to direct DCYF to establish policies to allow child care subsidy eligibility for families with children who, in the last six months, have a parent or guardian listed as a victim in a case in a specialty or therapeutic court (learn more about therapeutic courts on TVW). The bill is scheduled for a hearing March 14 in the House Human Services, Youth, and Early Learning Committee.
• Senate Bill 5252 updates state regulations regarding background checks to meet federal regulations. These checks are for applicants and employees of entities that work with vulnerable populations, such as child care workers. The bill was not amended in the Senate and will have a hearing in the House Human Services, Youth, and Early Learning Committee on March 15.
• Senate Bill 5316 eliminates the requirement for applicants of child care and foster care entities to pay state and federal background check fees and licensing fees. The bill was not amended in the Senate and awaits a hearing in the House.
• Engrossed Second Substitute Senate Bill 5580 authorizes a post-delivery and transitional care program and updates the Maternity Support Services (MSS) program. Several changes were made to the bill by the Senate, including extending implementation deadlines by a year to Jan. 1, 2025; clarification that qualifying new mothers can stay in the transitional care program for up to five days; and makes the modifications to the MSS program subject to appropriations (funding). It awaits a hearing in the House.

Legislative Lowdown

What is a budget proviso? We are at the stage in the legislative process where the terms “proviso” or “budget proviso” are frequently used. Budget provisos are clauses in state budget documents that set out specific conditions or limitations on the use of funding appropriated in the budget.

The following is an example of a budget proviso from 2021 related to voluntary home visiting:

(20)(a) $2,771,000 of the home visiting account—state appropriation for fiscal year 2022, $5,299,000 of the home visiting account—state appropriation for fiscal year 2023, and $3,000,000 of the general fund—federal appropriation (ARPA) are provided to expand home visiting services, enhance data collection, and support the local implementing agencies providing home visiting services. The department shall: (i) Contract with local implementing agencies to expand home visiting services by October 1, 2021; and (ii) Provide semiannual updates to the home visiting advisory committee established in RCW 43.216.130 that includes an updated number of families served in home visiting programs and a status of the home visiting services account balance.

Through budget provisos, the Legislature directs state agencies on how to use state funding. Provisos represent legislative budgetary priorities during the biennial or supplemental budget period that relate to a range of issues. For example, the Legislature may direct the Department of Children, Youth, and Families to create a workgroup on maternal health or develop a pilot project related to a new service need.

Budget provisos also function as a strategy to keep an issue or policy moving when a policy bill hits a roadblock. Legislators, lobbyists and advocates all use this tool for piloting issues or for funding a policy goal when a bill related to the issue was not introduced or did not pass through the normal policy bill process.

Unlike policy bills, budget provisos are more difficult to track during session. Essentially, any person or entity advocating for a proviso must wait until a budget proposal is released to see if it is included, rather than a policy bill that can be tracked throughout session.

Another major distinction between a budget proviso and passage of a bill is that budget provisos only “live” through the timing of the budget whereas enacted bills become a part of law in perpetuity (unless the statute expires or is subsequently changed).

To learn more about the state budget, here is a guide to the budget process from the University of Washington as well as a Budget and Policy Highlights overview for Governor Inslee’s 2023-25 biennial proposed budget.

Finnish President Visits the Capitol

(Photo Credit: TVW Screen Shot)

The week began with a Capitol visit from the president of Finland, President Sauli Niinistö. Following an address to a Joint Session of the Legislature, the Finnish President joined Governor Jay Inslee for a press conference.

According to Governor Inslee’s office, this joint legislative address is the first from a foreign head of state. President Niinistö discussed Washington state and Finland’s shared interests in trade, clean energy and the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Bill Tracker: Key Early Learning Bills

As the legislative session progresses, our resource page will update with a weekly bill tracker. Please note that legislation changes quickly, so the version on our website may not represent a bill’s latest version as it is published the Thursday of each week.

Frigid winter weather hits the Du Pen Fountain in front of the Joel Pritchard Building.
(Photo Credit: Erica Hallock)

Trivia

For this week’s trivia, let’s play a game. What jumps out to you from this “class picture” from 1889?

State Tax Collections Update

The Washington State Economic and Revenue Forecast Council is meeting at 8 a.m. on March 3 to receive an economic review. Meeting materials provide a preview of the topics of discussion. With regard to revenue, tax collections are $89 million (or 1.1%) over November 2022 projections. Consumer spending was also stronger than expected, but questions remain about whether the nation is headed toward a recession in 2023.

The next full revenue report will be released on March 20.

Floor Activity

This week’s legislative activity was squarely focused in the Legislative Building with both the Senate and House deliberating bills that passed their respective policy and fiscal committees. This action is expected to continue over the weekend as the 5 p.m., March 8 “House of Origin” deadline looms.

During Floor activity, lobbyists congregate on the third floor of the Legislative Building in clusters reminiscent of a high school quad, waiting to track down lawmakers with a nudge or question about a bill. This week also serves as a painful reminder that hours standing on marble floors wear on one’s feet and back.

The Transitional Kindergarten bill passed the Appropriations Committee with amendments. The House Appropriations Committee passed House Bill 1550 on Feb. 24. A discussion on the bill can be seen on TVW at the 2:01 mark and the vote at the 3:24 mark. As a reminder, this bill would convert the Transitional Kindergarten (TK) program to a new Transition to Kindergarten (TTK) program with new standards and would remove basic education as the funding source. The committee made several amendments to the bill including:

• Conversion of TK programs run by public school districts during the 2023- 24 school year to the new TTK program if they meet new program standards with intent to continue funding
• Requires the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) to develop a process for public school districts to apply to operate or expand a TTK program by Dec. 31, 2023
• Requires TTK instructors with an early elementary education endorsement to have 24 college credits or 60 clock hours in early childhood education within five years of assignment to the program
• Changes the TTK funding formula from the estimated statewide allocation per kindergarten student (currently about $12,773/child) to the Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP) average rate (currently about $12,621/child) adjusted for the school district’s regionalization factor
• Provides TTK eligibility to children who lack access to an early learning program or have been referred by a licensed early learning provider
• Adds a null and void clause to the bill meaning that if the Legislature does not allocate funds for this purpose, the legislation is not enacted

An amendment to add charter schools and state-tribal education compact schools failed. Currently, charter schools have 288 students in existing TK programs and state-tribal compact schools do not currently operate TK programs. The bill is now in the House Rules Committee.

Legislative Lowdown

Committees in both the Senate and the House of Representatives play key roles during this period of intense Floor activity. Before a bill that has passed out of a Policy and/or Fiscal Committee can be moved to the Floor, it must first pass through the Rules Committee, whose members determine which bills will move forward and in what order. In short, the Rules Committees have the power to decide if and when legislation will go to the Floor for debate and a vote. The Rules Committees provide legislative leadership with an additional tool to manage and oversee the bills heading to the full chambers.

In both the Senate and House, the Rules Committee are made up of members from both parties. The House Rules Committee is led (or Chaired) by the House Speaker, currently Rep. Laurie Jinkins, and has 24 members, including 15 Democrats and 9 Republicans, this session. The Senate Rules Committee is chaired by the Lieutenant Governor, currently Lt. Gov Denny Heck, and has 16 legislators comprised of 10 Democrats and 6 Republicans. Rules Committee meetings can be scheduled or held “on the fly.” For example, the Senate Rules Committee issued a notification earlier this week of a Wednesday meeting “following adjournment or during the dinner break.”

The vernacular used to describe the process of a bill moving from the Rules Committee to the Floor is called a “Rules pull.” There are a variety of ways bills can be “pulled.” Individual Rules Committee members can be provided a specific number of “pulls” where they request bills move to the Floor for debate and consideration. Here’s an example of the results of some of these individual member pulls during the March 1 Senate Rules Committee meeting tracking which members requested specific bills move to the Floor. Note Senate Majority Leader Andy Billig used one of his “pulls” to move SB 5225 relating to Working Connections Child Care eligibility to the Floor.

Another way is a “package pull” (seen below, again from the March 1 Senate Rules Committee meeting). Package pulls are when a package of bills is voted on by the Rules committee all at once. This can happen before a cutoff, at the end of the legislative session, or when a body is going to address a topic with several bills.

The final way is called a “consent package bill.” This represents a consent list containing bills that have faced little to no opposition thus far in the process. Here is an example of a consent pull:

There are any number of reasons why a committee member may choose a bill to move out of the Rules Committee and onto the Floor including choosing a bill important to them or their constituents, or per a request by a legislator or stakeholder group, among other reasons. The Rules Committee hearings can now be seen on TVW throughout the legislative session. This coverage began during the pandemic and has continued, making these hearings much more accessible.

I already geeked out enough, so won’t describe the meaning behind the “green” sheet or “white” sheet, but check out the description provided on the legislative website if you want to learn more.

Bill Tracker: Key Early Learning Bills

As the legislative session progresses, our resource page will update with a weekly bill tracker. Please note that legislation changes quickly, so the version on our website may not represent a bill’s latest version as it is published the Thursday of each week.

(Photo Credit: Erica Hallock)

Trivia

When Washington state legalized marriage equality in 2012, it joined how many other states in recognizing same-sex marriages?

Potato Day!

The excitement was palpable as the Washington Potato Commission held the first in-person “Potato Day” since 2020. Lines of potato fans stretched around the third floor of the Legislative Building well before the lunch hour as the common refrain of “did you get your potato yet?” rang throughout campus.

All joking aside, it is fiscal cutoff this week (see more information below about fiscal cutoff) and folks are tired/stressed/irritable. Friendly faces offering free comfort food is sometimes just what’s needed to put a pep back in your step! Potatoes are unifying.

The Washington Potato Commission brings comfort food to campus

(Photo Credit: Erica Hallock)

Cutoff Time – Again

This week, legislative focus – when not on potatoes – was on fiscal committees as they held marathon meetings to work through public hearings, amendments and votes on hundreds of bills prior to today’s fiscal cutoff deadline. After today, bills with a financial impact that have not been approved by the fiscal committee in its house of origin are considered “dead.” Frequently, bills heard in fiscal committees are amended to include two clauses – “null and void” or “subject to appropriation.” These clauses allow bills to proceed through the process but provide “escape hatches” if the policies put forward in the bill are not funded in the final adopted budget. Put another way, inclusion of these clauses makes implementation of the bill contingent upon budget funding.

Now, there are always exceptions to the rules, particularly in the legislative process, and the reality is no bill or idea is dead until the Legislature adjourns April 23. One exemption is that bills deemed “Necessary to Implement the Budget” (or NTIB) are not subject to cutoff dates. Further, concepts surfaced in bills can be amended into other bills or reflected in the budget.

Starting next week, action will turn to the respective Senate and House floors as those bodies work through all of the bills approved by the fiscal and policy committees. The next legislative cutoff is Wednesday, March 8 at 5 p.m. with the deadline for bills to be voted out of their house of origin (e.g., House bills must be approved by the House, and Senate bills approved by the Senate). We are at the time of session where you need to grab sleep when you can – kind of like living with a newborn. It is not unusual for one of the bodies (typically the House) to pull an all-nighter during this period.

Bill Hearings

SHB 1550. The House Appropriations Committee held a public hearing on Substitute House Bill 1550 Tuesday, which can be seen on TVW starting at the 34:45 minute mark. As a reminder, this bill would sunset Transitional Kindergarten (TK), replacing it with a new Transition to Kindergarten (TTK) program to be administered by the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) with a role for the Department of Children, Youth and Families.

The Appropriations Committee hearing began with a panel that included State Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal, DCYF Secretary Ross Hunter and Maddy Thompson, Governor Jay Inslee’s Senior Policy Advisor on Education and College Access. The opening panel spoke in opposition to the bill, stressing the importance of maximizing preschool access as well as the positive outcomes children are receiving from existing TK programs. Following that panel, several school district and education stakeholders reiterated the positive developmental outcomes from TK program participants as well as concerns that removing basic education as the funding source for TK could eliminate current programs as well as other supports for families such as school bus transportation.

Several early learning providers spoke in favor of the bill, focusing on the importance of the quality of services available in existing early learning programs. Additionally, early learning advocates stressed the importance of strong collaboration between school districts and community-based early learning providers so as not to negatively impact early learning programs.

As of this publication, SHB 1550 is on the possible executive session (vote) list for the Friday, Feb. 24 hearing.

Updates on additional early learning related bills include:

• Senate Bill 5225, which would increase eligibility for subsidized child care such as eligibility for dependents of child care employees and children regardless of immigration status, was passed out of the Senate Ways and Means Committee Wednesday.
• Senate Bill 5580, which would create a post-delivery and transitional care program and update the current Maternity Support Services (MSS) program, has a vote scheduled Feb. 23.
• One bill that did not receive a hearing is House Bill 1511, which would remove certain forms of income, such as Social Security benefits and child support, from income considerations related to child care subsidy and ECEAP. However, there are other avenues for priorities to move forward without a bill, including amendments onto other bills or as a proviso in the operating budget.

Legislative Lowdown

What is the state’s four-year balanced budget requirement? While much of the budgeting focus is on the upcoming two-year biennial budget cycle, 2012 legislation required the Legislature to pass four-year balanced budgets beginning in 2013. This means that our current budget writers must ensure both the 2023-25 and 2025-27 biennial budgets are balanced with a positive ending fund balance.

The Budget Outlook Workgroup holds a key role in this process by preparing an official state budget outlook for state revenues and expenditures. This outlook must include costs forecasted in the upcoming four years for continuing existing programs, projecting for future growth as well as implementation costs of various laws. The Economic and Revenue Forecast Council then approves this budget outlook and the Legislature uses this information to craft and pass a budget ensuring the state’s expenditures do not exceed projected revenues for the following four years.

Proponents of the bill establishing the four-year balanced budget requirement argued that a four-year balanced budget would move the state from reactionary, short-term budgeting to a more long-term view, resulting in more sustainable budgets that reduce out-year expenditure commitments that cannot be supported with existing revenues.

The requirement for a balanced four-year budget means that budget writers are keeping both a keen eye on the state’s recent and projected revenues (what they will have to spend) and its current spending commitments to ensure the final budget is balanced not just for the 2023-25 biennium, but also for 2025-27. As a result, it is not uncommon to see the strategy of “pushing a cost outside of the four-year” to mitigate projected costs. This can result in extending implementation dates for expanding services, so the law is on the books, but the costs do not hit the four-year budget.

To learn more about the budget process and related terminology, check out this helpful guide from the Office of Financial Management at the Governor’s Office which is updated annually.

Bill Tracker: Key Early Learning Bills

As the legislative session progresses, our resource page will update with a weekly bill tracker. Please note that legislation changes quickly, so the version on our website may not represent a bill’s latest version as it is published the Thursday of each week.

The Legislative Building from the north side on Super Bowl Sunday.
Note the third flagpole is not flying the Seahawks flag. There’s always next year …
(Photo Credit: Erica Hallock)

Trivia!

How old were the “Keepers of the Capsule” who, during Washington state’s Centennial celebration in 1989, pledged to preserve the time capsule designed to commemorate the Centennial and to enlist future generations to update the capsule contents and continue the tradition?

Cutoff Time

Policy Cutoff. The first cutoff is today (Friday, Feb. 17), with a deadline for bills to pass out of policy committees. After this cutoff, we will have a better idea of what is still in play. It is not uncommon for bills to be amended (sometimes substantially) to keep the issue alive. We are at the stage in the legislative process where bills can change on a dime, so it’s wise to keep the legislative website handy and check it frequently for bills you care about.

Fiscal Cutoff. Next week will be filled with marathon (likely late night) meetings in the fiscal committees as the Feb. 24 fiscal cutoff looms. As of this writing, the Senate Ways and Means Committee has a Saturday Feb. 18 meeting scheduled.

Testimony in fiscal committees differs from policy committees in that fiscal chairs request testifiers to speak to the fiscal aspects of the bill, rather than make a policy case. Short and sweet and a minimal number of testifiers is advised!

Bill Hearings

The Transitional Kindergarten bill passed Education Committee with amendments. The House Education Committee passed a Substitute House Bill 1550 Tuesday, which can be seen on TVW starting at the 42:30 minute mark. This bill would codify (make official in law) the Transitional Kindergarten program and convert it to a new Transition to Kindergarten (TTK) program with distinct roles for both the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) and the Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF).

Changes made to the bill as compared to the original version include:

• Clarification that school districts can play a vital role in providing services to young children, particularly in early learning deserts
• Legislative intent to convert existing Transitional Kindergarten programs to TTK if the program standards outlined in the bill are met
• A requirement that school districts applying to operate or expand a TTK program must consider the availability of existing early learning providers and enact a memoranda of understanding between the district and other early learning providers and the development of a model memorandum of understanding by OSPI and DCYF
• TTK sites must implement the following elements in alignment with Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program (ECEAP) performance standards: classroom environment, pedagogical approach and safety measures
• Direction that OSPI and DCYF consider existing availability of ECEAPs, Head Start and licensed child care when coordinating authorization of school districts to offer a TTK program, approval of TTK program sites, and capping of eligible child enrollment
• The elimination of the requirement for full school day and full school year programs and instead directs OSPI to prorate funding for partial day and partial year

Education Committee members stressed that their goal is to ensure school districts and other early learning providers work together to expand access to high quality opportunities for young children. The bill now moves to the House Appropriations Committee and awaits a hearing.

The Senate Committee amended and approved the “Improving Maternal Health Outcomes” bill. The Senate Health and Long Term Care Committee passed Senate Bill 5580, which can be seen on TVW beginning at the 1:40:30 minute mark. This bill would create a post-delivery and transitional care program and allow five additional days of hospitalization after birth for women with a substance use disorder. The bill would also update the current Maternity Support Services (MSS) program to address perinatal outcomes and increase equity and healthier birth outcomes. The committee amended the bill to extend the deadline for implementing the post delivery and transition care program and changes to the Material Support Services (MSS) program from Jan. 1, 2024, to no later than Jan. 1, 2025. The bill now awaits a hearing in the Senate Ways & Means Committee.

Caseload Forecasts Released

On Feb. 10, the Washington State Caseload Forecast Council met to receive updated caseload forecasts. These caseload forecasts inform the writing of the budgets by providing insight into expected costs for forecasted programs like K-12 education, nursing home usage and foster care.

Following are caseload forecasts for early learning related programs. Two items of note: 1) the changes reflect projected increases or decreases from the November 2022 forecasts and 2) Transitional Kindergarten is not separately forecasted.

Early Support for Infants and Toddlers (ESIT)

• State Fiscal Year 2023 projected caseload: 11,012 (+16/+.1%)
• State Fiscal Year 2024 projected caseload: 11,649 (+78/+.7%)
•  State Fiscal Year 2025 projected caseload: 12,226 (+167/+1.4%)

Early Childhood Education Assistance Program (ECEAP)

• State Fiscal Year 2023 projected caseload: 11,962 (-697/-5.5%)
• State Fiscal Year 2024 projected caseload: 14,168 (-269/-1.9%)
• State Fiscal Year 2025 projected caseload: 14,490 (-415/-2.8%)

Working Connections Child Care (WCCC)

• State Fiscal Year 2023 projected caseload: 24,079 (-221/-.9%)
• State Fiscal Year 2024 projected caseload: 26,520 (-872/-3.2%)
• State Fiscal Year 2025 projected caseload: 28,368 (+233/+.8%)

In the forecast narrative, risks to the ECEAP forecast include a tight labor market and potential competition from other early learning programs. For Working Connections Child Care, the narrative notes that while provider availability has not restricted caseload growth so far, there could be a risk to the caseload associated with supply limits.

Striker and Substitute Bills

What’s the difference between a striker and a substitute bill? The process for a bill to become a law is a lot more complicated than Schoolhouse Rock led us to believe. Like other governmental bodies, the Washington State Legislature deploys many different processes and avenues to add or make changes to law.

At this point in the legislative session, you may hear references to “substitute bills” or “striking amendments” on legislation you are following. A “substitute bill” is a new version of an existing bill substituting the original bill with new content. Substitute bills can only be offered by a committee in the bill’s house of origin during a committee hearing or executive session (voting session). A “striker amendment” or “striker bill” removes – or strikes – everything after the title of the bill and inserts new language, usually major changes to the underlying bill.

The main difference between the two is where the change to the bill happens: “substitutes” can only happen in committee in the house of origin and “strikers” happen on the floor or in the opposite chamber. If you’re interested in learning more about the legislative process, the legislature has a host of information including a detailed guide to reading bills. The University of Washington Office of Budget and Planning also provides a great overview.

Bill Tracker: Key Early Learning Bills

As the legislative session progresses, our resource page will update with a weekly bill tracker. Please note that legislation changes quickly, so the version on our website may not represent a bill’s latest version as it is published the Thursday of each week.

Rainstorms usher in Week Five
(Photo Credit: Erica Hallock)

Trivia!

In 1932, John H. Ryan became the first Black man elected to the Washington State Senate. Ryan served nearly 20 years in both the State Senate and House of Representatives. He was elected representing how many different political parties?

Legislative Session Temperature Check

On Sunday, we will officially be one-third through the 2023 legislative session and it feels like a good time to check in on where things stand. Some things top of mind for me include:

• The hybrid approach works. Thanks to great prep work from TVW and legislative staff, the hybrid nature of testimony that allows for a mix of in-person and virtual, is going very well. The campus feels markedly quieter on many days as many people appear to be taking advantage of virtual opportunities to testify and meet with legislators. As a result, the anticipated fears of a parking shortage have not materialized. However, the lines for food at the Dome Deli are still long, with the Pritchard Cafeteria only open intermittently.
• Policy Cutoff is coming. The legislative process is structured to reduce the number of issues under consideration as the session progresses via “cutoff deadlines” for action on bills. That first cutoff is rapidly approaching with a Feb. 17 deadline for policy committees to take action. The fiscal committee “cutoff” is just one week later on Feb. 24. These cutoff dates serve as a natural filter as it is not feasible for lawmakers to partake in mindful debate on the approximately 1,600 bills introduced to date. As a result, many bills fall victim to timing rather than concerns over merit. It can be very frustrating when a bill you care about does not make it through these filters, but there is always next year. (At least that’s what we tell ourselves).
• The budget is starting to take shape. Budget writers continue to receive briefings on the various aspects of the operating, capital and transportation budgets. Major items with large price tags that continue to be in play include housing (impacting both the operating and capital budgets), workforce needs and special education funding. At the end of the day, budget writers need to secure sufficient votes to pass the budgets and we will see trade-offs as these negotiations intensify.

Collective Bargaining Agreements and the State Budget

Prior to the start of each legislative biennium, the Office of Financial Management (on behalf of the Governor) negotiates with respective labor unions to create tentative collective bargaining agreements (CBAs) that address wages, hours and working conditions.

Following negotiations, these tentative CBAs are submitted to the Office of Financial Management (OFM) by October. After the state’s Revenue Report is released in November, OFM determines the financial viability of the various agreements. After that step, the Legislature approves the agreements during its legislative session through a yes or no vote without any amendments allowed. If the Legislature does not approve any of these agreements, the state must go back to the bargaining table. Check out the Office of Financial Management for more information on the process of collective bargaining.

For the upcoming 2023-25 biennium, OFM negotiated a total of 32 separate agreements, with general government employees representing the highest number of employee count (54,656) and total agreements (11). The cumulative cost for the negotiated agreements for the 2023-25 biennium totals $1.33 billion. The largest portion of this expense can be found in the agreements for general government employees.

According to an OFM presentation to the Joint Committee on Employment Relations in October 2022, major common bargaining themes include staff recruitment and retention, investments to employees who provide direct services, modernizing language related to hybrid work conditions and wage increases. General government employees are slated to receive a wage increase, lump-sum COVID-19 booster incentives and recognition and retention bonuses, among other increases.

Related to early learning, family child care providers are unionized through the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) 925. The tentative negotiated agreement heading into the 2023-25 state budget cycle includes an increase in the hourly rate of care provided by family, friends and neighbors (FFNs) from $3.00 to $3.85 that would go into effect July 1, 2023 and an increase to $4.00 on July 1, 2024. The agreement also increases the base subsidy rates for licensed family child care providers to the 85th percentile of the 2021 market rate survey, increases the cost-of-care subsidy base rate enhancement from $2,000 to $2,100 per month per licensed provider and eliminates background check and fingerprinting fees on behalf of licensed family child care providers. Budgeted cost for the Family Child Care agreement totals $217 million.

Why am I including this information in the newsletter? As the legislative session progresses, budget writers must balance available revenue and priority expenses. These collective bargaining agreements represent a significant budget expense that will factor into the availability of funding for other state priorities.

Maternal Health

On Feb. 7, the Senate Health Care Committee held a work session on maternal health followed by public hearings on a number of maternal health related bills. Senator Yasmin Trudeau, the prime sponsor of SB 5470 related to lactation consultants, testified with her infant daughter. The visual of Senator Trudeau and her baby reminded me of the importance of representation!

Senator Yasmin Trudeau and her effective assistant
(Photo Credit: TVW hearing screenshot)

One of the bills heard in the Senate Health Care Committee that day was SB 5580 (Muzzall). SB 5580 would create a post-delivery and transitional care program at the Washington State Health Care Authority for birthing people experiencing substance use disorder. The program would provide five additional days of hospitalization after birth and provide the birthing parent access to a number of parental, behavioral health and other supports. The bill would also update the current Maternity Support Services (MSS) program to address perinatal outcomes and increase equity and healthier birth outcomes.

Bill Tracker: Key Early Learning Bills

As the legislative session progresses, our resource page will update with a weekly bill tracker. Please note that legislation changes quickly, so the version on our website may not represent a bill’s latest version as it is published the Thursday of each week.

A Gorgeous Sunny Sunday in Olympia
(Photo Credit: Erica Hallock)

Trivia!

What was the capstone event of Washington state’s yearlong centennial celebration in 1989?

Bill Hearings

House Human Services, Youth, and Early Learning Committee

On Tuesday, Jan. 31, the House Human Services, Youth, and Early Learning Committee held a hearing on a variety of early learning focused bills:

• The hearing on House Bill 1451, a child care workforce pipeline bill that would create a Child Care Worker Pilot Program for high school students interested in the field of child care, begins at the 46 minute mark. The bill also looks to increase the child care substitute pool and provide additional assistance to those interested in continuing to pursue a child care career.
• The hearing on House Bill 1525, which would provide child care subsidy for parents in state-approved apprenticeship programs and, according to Committee Chair Tana Senn, may have the most legislative co-sponsors for any piece of legislation this session, begins at the 25 second mark.

Both HB 1451 and HB 1525 are scheduled for Executive Session in the House Human Services, Youth and Early Learning Committee Tuesday, Feb. 7.

• Finally, the hearing on House Bill 1511, which aims to increase access to affordable child care by exempting social security benefits, social-security income and child support from being considered “income” when determining child care subsidy eligibility, begins at the 1:11 minute mark. This bill particularly supports low-income working families, single parents, parents with disabilities, grandparents and other seniors caring for children. It is slated for Executive Session in the House policy committee Friday, Feb. 10.

House Education Committee

• The House Education Committee hearing on House Bill 1550 Tuesday, Jan. 31, begins at the 42:30 minute mark. HB 1550 would create the “Transition to Kindergarten” program to be administered jointly by the Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) and the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI). The bill analysis summarizes the bill’s key components, including outlining state agency, school district and program rules and requirements and plans to convert existing “Transitional Kindergarten” programs to the proposed new program.

The bill’s sponsors, Rep. Sharon Tomiko Santos and Rep. Tana Senn, began the hearing by framing the bill as an opportunity to codify the new Transition to Kindergarten program as the current Transitional Kindergarten program is not explicitly authorized in law; to require coordination between school and community-based early learning programs; and to ensure the state is on track for meeting the existing ECEAP entitlement by the 2026-27 year.

Supporters of the bill, largely community-based early learning stakeholders, discussed the need for coordination between school districts and early learning providers to ensure child and family needs are met and expressed concerns that the current approach with Transitional Kindergarten may negatively impact early learning providers and may not provide developmentally appropriate education statewide. Groups that signed in with a position of “con” or “other,” mainly K12 system stakeholders, expressed concerns that certain provisions of the bill, in particular the loss of the current funding source for Transitional Kindergarten (Basic Education funding), could lead to fewer pre-K options for children and families, particularly in communities with fewer options for families.

HB 1550 is scheduled for an Executive Session in the House Education Committee Thursday, Feb. 9.

New Legislation Introduced This Week

HB 1676 (Senn). HB 1676 would modify the Early Support for Infants and Toddlers Program (ESIT) by increasing the funding allocation multiplier for the program. The bill would also require monthly reporting of children utilizing the program to occur at the end of each month for services provided within that month.

HB 1697 (Walsh). HB 1697 would eliminate requirements for child care and other learning providers participating in the Early Achievers Quality Rating Improvement System. It would also bar linking the Core Competencies for Early Care and Education to licensing standards.

HB 1716 (Rule). HB 1716 would create a tax credit for employers supporting employee child care needs. The bill would require the Department of Revenue to report details on the tax credit and provide an opening to extend the tax credit if proven successful in increasing access to child care for families.

HB 1739 (Dent). HB 1739 would require the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) to create an instructional handbook for child care providers. A child care provider would be exempt from obtaining an early childhood certificate if they signed an attestation indicating the handbook had been read.

Caseload Forecast Update

On Friday, Feb. 10, the Washington state Caseload Forecast Council will meet to receive updated caseload numbers for entitlement programs such as ECEAP, Working Connections Child Care, Early Support for Infants and Toddlers, K-12 enrollment and Corrections (prisons). These caseload numbers will inform the biennial budget that is currently under development. Increases in caseloads will drive further state investment and decreases in caseloads will do the opposite.

The final “revenue report” that informs how much the state will have to spend on these entitlement programs, as well as Collective Bargaining Agreements with represented labor groups and other state investments will be released March 20.

Bill Tracker: Key Early Learning Bills

As the legislative session progresses, our resource page will update with a weekly bill tracker. Please note that legislation changes quickly, so the version on our website may not represent a bill’s latest version as it is published the Thursday of each week.

Washington State Capitol Building
(Photo Credit: Erica Hallock)

Trivia!

In 1954, the Washington State Supreme Court narrowly ruled in favor of a group of Olympia businesspeople who sued the state for what reason?

Highlights of the Week

Capital Gains Tax Oral Arguments Commence. On Jan. 26, Crosscut published a thorough review of the capital gains tax background and issues, including a bit about the expected timeline of the Supreme Court’s actions.

Unexpected Free Food Giveaway. One of the best ways to turn a Monday frown upside down is the offer of free, warm cinnamon rolls. People throughout the Capitol campus were downright giddy to learn the Washington Association of Wheat Growers was on campus with smiles and offers of warm cinnamon rolls. The rolls, coupled with Wednesday’s Dairy Day giveaway, helped many a Capitol dweller through another long week.

Cinnamon Roll Station
(Photo Credit: Erica Hallock)

Of course, Dairy Day did not disappoint. Along with the expected ice cream, they offered chocolate milk and selfie-inviting cut-out cows!

Dairy Day Selfie Station
(Photo Credit: Erica Hallock)

New Legislation Introduced this Week

As we near the end of week three and approach the Feb. 17 policy cutoff, the introduction of new bills has slowed a bit and committees are squarely focused on bill hearings and executive sessions (a fancy term for votes on bills).

Please check out Start Early Washington’s bill tracker on our State Policy Resources page for a more complete listing of early learning-related legislation and their status. Below is a summary of some bills in play. Inclusion is not meant to indicate Start Early Washington’s position, but instead meant to provide a flavor of issues under consideration.

HB 1451 (Senn). HB 1451 directs OSPI to create the Child Care Worker Pilot Program that will provide high school students credit for working in and exploring pathways in early childhood education programs. The bill also creates a grant program to support technical assistance for new child care providers, directs DCYF to create a web-based manual for youth caring for younger siblings when parents are not home, and calls for the expansion of the substitute pool.

HB 1511 (Reeves). HB 1511 ends the use of social security benefits, social-security income, and child care support as income for families applying for child care subsidy or ECEAP. This bill supports low-income families that may have limited work capacities such as parents with disabilities and single parents.

HB 1550 (Santos). HB 1550 creates the “Transition to Kindergarten” program administered jointly by the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) and the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI). The bill outlines state agency, school district, and program rules and requirements as well as plans to convert existing “Transitional Kindergarten” programs to this new program.

Following are some key components:

Funding

• Removes basic education funds as the primary funding source for the program and designates the source as State General Fund. Also explicitly removes the ability to fund the program with basic education dollars.
• Requires the program to be free of charge to eligible children.
• State funding for the program must be based per enrolled eligible child and must not be higher than the amount per child allocated by the legislature for ECEAP.

Eligibility

• Program eligibility must be coordinated with existing early learning providers. Eligibility requirements include:
  • Children on an ECEAP waitlist, but not yet enrolled in an ECEAP program.
  • Children screened as needing additional preparation before entering kindergarten (screening process must be submitted to the state).
  • Children that have not participated in a formal early learning program.
  • Children with families earning up to 100% of the State Median Income adjusted for family size.

Program Administration

• The “Transition to Kindergarten” program would be jointly administered by OSPI and DCYF.
• Programs would be authorized by school districts and program sites would be limited to common schools.
• Districts applying for the funds must:
  • Describe the process to determine if a child needs support from the “Transition to Kindergarten” program.
  • Outline recruitment and enrollment plans with early learning providers in the school catchment area.
  • Wait one year between application submission and the program’s start date.
  • Describe the assessment tools used to screen children for program eligibility.
  • Outline a plan for coordination with existing early learning providers.
  • Not deny entry to the program based on a student’s disability.
•  Provides OSPI administrative responsibility for parts of the program, including:
  • Providing eligibility and enrollment data.
  • For the 2024-25 school year, prioritizing program funding to districts currently offering “Transitional Kindergarten.” These program dollars are subject to the availability of funding appropriated for this specific purpose.
  • Requiring OSPI to work with DCYF on program monitoring, quality and teacher certification.
  • Directing school districts to work with the existing early learning provider ecosystems in their catchment area.
• School districts must have their programs reauthorized every five years and districts must notify the state if any program discontinues one year before closure.
• Clarifies DCYF has monitoring and rule-making authority.
• Requires OSPI and DCYF to develop a plan to convert existing “Transitional Kindergarten” programs to the new “Transition to Kindergarten” program outlined in this bill.

Program Standards

• Requires school districts with the “Transition to Kindergarten” program to participate in Early Achievers.
• Requires alignment of the “Transition to Kindergarten” program licensing standards to child care and ECEAP licensing standards and the use of developmentally appropriate curricula.
• Requires each program to be staffed with a teacher holding a valid Washington teacher certificate with either an early childhood education endorsement or an early childhood special education endorsement.

Senate hearing on Working Connections Child Care Bills. On Wednesday, Jan. 25, the Senate Early Learning and K12 Committee held public hearings on several child care and early learning-focused bills. The committee heard SB 5225, which would: 1) increase access to child care by authorizing care for families involved in therapeutic court; 2) prohibit the Department of Children, Youth and Families from considering the immigration status of a full-time student parent enrolled in certain education programs applying for Working Connections Child Care; and 3) authorizes child care subsidy eligibility for dependents of child care employees with incomes up to 85% of State Median Income. Senators heard from parents directly impacted by the current policies, including a parent who had to leave her job at a preschool due to the cost of child care for her own child.

The committee also heard SB 5316, which eliminates the requirement for applicants of child care and foster care entities to pay state and federal background check fees.

Finally, the committee heard SB 5423, which provides qualifying applicants and consumers of state registered apprenticeship programs eligible for the Working Connections Child Care subsidy. A parent and ironworker apprentice described how trade apprenticeships are a great pathway to family financial stability and how unreliable and unaffordable child care can be a barrier.

Bill Tracker: Key Early Learning Bills

As the legislative session progresses, our resource page will update with a weekly bill tracker. Please note that legislation changes quickly, so the version on our website may not represent a bill’s latest version as it is published the Thursday of each week.

Home visiting is about finding strengths in human connection, building trusting relationships – and all the messy stuff in between.

After a remarkable three decades of shaping the home visiting landscape, Quen Zorrah – Lead Facilitator and Co-Developer of NEAR@Home – is retiring.

Start Early Washington shares our collective love, respect and appreciation for Quen Zorrah and her lifetime of work supporting human connection and relationship building between children and their caregivers. Her expertise in supporting families has shaped how programs work with families to promote strong relationships.

Raising the Bar

Prior to her time with Start Early Washington, Quen was a public health nurse and one of the first nurses in the nation to provide home visiting services to families through Nurse-Family Partnership. Her work has integrated infant mental health and Neuroscience, Epigenetics, ACEs, and Resilience (NEAR) science into home visiting through teaching, coaching and reflective supervision. As the Lead Facilitator and Co-Developer of NEAR@Home, Quen has developed trauma-informed practices for building resilience and uniquely positions home visitors to safely and effectively talk with families during a critical period of development – the earliest years of a child’s life.

“I was fortunate enough to work with Quen for 20 years, as a teacher, supervisor, consultant, co-author and an esteemed colleague. I’ve never known anyone who got what reflective listening was, or who was freer of professional pretense, than Quen. She is so unpretentious that it would be easy to underestimate her real genius for this work.” — Dr. Marian Birch, DMH, Psychologist

The Journey

Like many staff on Start Early Washington’s home visiting team, Quen’s firsthand experiences as a mother led her to pursue a lifelong career devoted to children and their families.

At the age of 19, Quen distinctly remembers the first day she met a home visitor. “My child was only two days old when a woman from King County Public Health knocked on my door. She was so humble and respectful, but as persistent as a boot wedged in my doorway! Somehow, she knew how much I needed to hear words of compassion.” Seemingly, Quen’s home visitor intuitively knew that Quen was in need of positive reinforcement and support as a young, first-time parent.

Quen admired the compassion and hopefulness home visitors brought to her life, but she was still apprehensive at the thought of home visiting with her second child. “I wasn’t as put together and I was worried about what they would think of me, my mess and my reality.” Unsurprisingly, her home visitors lauded her efforts and bolstered her confidence, helping her tackle the many challenges of parenting. With each visit, Quen’s self-talk started to shift substantially, “College is achievable!” “My voice matters!” “I can do this!”

Quen’s home visitors changed the course of her life. “Not only my life but my kids’ lives as well. We take for granted the power of finding strengths and being human with each other.” After witnessing the power of home visiting support, Quen was determined to make a difference to others just as her home visitors did for her; she was determined to be a catalyst for change.

Quen completed her GED and carried her remarkable determination and fortitude as a young parent with her to nursing school at Seattle Central Community College. Upon graduation, Quen worked as a nurse for renowned medical centers and rural based community hospitals in remote mountain towns, before joining Nurse-Family Partnership, where she flourished for the next 20 years, supporting families with young children, pregnant women, grandparents, foster parents and fathers as primary caregivers.

Quen’s passion and perseverance to provide comfort, compassion and support led her to the creation of the highly successful, nationally acclaimed NEAR@Home toolkit, a tool providing home visitors with information and skills to talk about trauma and Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) during home visits, while building trust and hope.

“Quen reminds me that I do not always have to fix things; my presence alone can bring value to any given situation.” — Amy Houser, Consultant 

Finding Balancing

Home visitors often face their own challenges with trauma and Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). These lived experiences bring motivation and strengths to the field of home visiting, but they also add another level of strain. The exposure to challenges and trauma of others can contribute to burnout and poor mental and physical well-being. Quen notes gardening as her antidote to secondary traumatic stress or “compassion fatigue” inherent to those supporting families directly.

Quen appreciates the balance that gardening brings to the intensity of her work. Influenced by her great-grandmother, Quen cherishes time outside to slowly walk around her garden and admire each of her plants. “Gardening is a wonderful balance to all seriousness. It’s creative and offers exercise and most importantly, if I mess something up in my garden, I just compost it. But of course, it’s not that simple with humans. With plants, the worst that will happen is a compost pile.”

“Quen’s thoughtfulness, reflectiveness, kind, calm and peaceful way of being, is something I strive to incorporate into my work and personal life.” — Amanda Costello, Director of National Home Visiting, Start Early

Home visiting stories of success and triumph were also a grounding element for Quen. She recalled all the knowledge accumulated over the years: “That’s what kept me going for so long. When working long hours or flustered with bureaucracy, budgets and funding, I’d think about the stories we accumulated. My hope for home visitors is that they will share stories for inspiration and as a guide to move past challenges together.”

A Career to Remember

“Quen has shown me how to focus on people and building relationships before focusing on the work.” — Valisa Smith, Executive Director, Start Early Washington

While Quen may no longer be part of the thick of home visiting life, her profound impact has left a lasting legacy, disrupting the way we interact with each other by offering tools that will transform how we build and foster relationships for generations to come.

Start Early Washington is proud to be part of Quen Zorrah’s story. Her ability to reach parents and children at an intrinsic human level is immeasurable. We are honored to continue to share NEAR@Home with the world – a toolkit designed to allow users to rediscover hope and strive toward healing, fostering strong and healthy relationships.

We thank Quen for her incredible contribution to the field, honor her on all she has accomplished in her professional and personal life, and congratulate her on retirement and her future endeavors.

Washington State Capitol Building
(Photo Credit: Erica Hallock)

Trivia!

The Capitol Campus is undergoing a great deal of construction. What major campus building is completely closed, necessitating a temporary move four miles away to Tumwater?

Highlights of the Week

A day in Olympia during the legislative session can often feel like a week as the days are filled with committee hearings, legislative meetings and sprinting across the Capitol campus to get to the next appointment.

I have to say the campus feels a tad quieter than usual – even during the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday, traditionally a very busy day. It appears people are taking advantage of the virtual option and testifying and meeting virtually rather than making the trek to Olympia. As previously shared, the Washington State Legislature does work on the federal holidays that fall during the legislative session. For the MLK holiday, the Legislature honored the life and legacy of Dr. King during their Floor session.

In many ways, we are readjusting to an in-person legislative session. It is a bit like riding a bike; some days, we may be missing a wheel! Note that despite fewer people on campus, parking can still be challenging as a staff parking lot has been converted to a temporary building and the DASH shuttle is not in service this year.

Senate Early Learning and K12 Committee Work Session on Early Learning. On Wednesday, Jan. 18, the Senate Early Learning and K12 Committee held a work session on a number of early learning topics, including the implementation of the Fair Start for Kids Act, the Recommendations from the Child Care Collaborative Task Force, and recommendations for child care workforce and compensation (starts at the 1:00 mark).

The presentation kicked off with Allison Krutsinger from the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) providing updates on the implementation of the Fair Start for Kids Act (starts at 1:01) and COVID-related grants (starts at 1:08 mark).

Next was an update on the Child Care Collaborative Task Force, which was housed at the Washington Department of Commerce and co-convened with DCYF. The Task Force was charged with developing recommendations to improve access to child care, a new approach to the child care subsidy model and strategies for businesses to support child care (starts at the 1:11 mark). Co-Chairs Ryan Pricco (Child Care Aware) and Amy Anderson (Association of Washington Business) presented the most recent recommendations focusing on the true cost of quality child care, including background on the cost estimation model (starts at the 1:13 mark) followed by the four recommendations. An interesting discussion on the future of Early Achievers starts at the 1:22 mark.

Finally, Meka Riggins (Child Care Aware) presented on the Liberatory Design Process undertaken to develop recommendations related to workforce recruitment and compensation recommendations (starts at the 1:30 mark). Child Care Aware convened a diverse set of child care providers to discuss challenges and opportunities in the field and design recommendations and advocacy priorities for the workforce. The design team’s recommendations start at the 1:36 mark. Finally, the committee heard from providers Desiree Hall from Stay and Play Child Care Learning Center in Seattle, Nicole Sohn from the Discover Journey Center in Spokane, a family home provider Holly Lindsey in Longview, and Lupe Mendoza, a parent from Walla Walla, on field experiences (starts at the 1:38 mark).

Sen. Patty Murray Holds Capitol Early Learning Press Conference. U.S. Senator Patty Murray, new Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, hosted a press conference on child care at the Legislative Building Wednesday, Jan. 18. Susan Lee, Director at the Refugee Women’s Alliance, spoke along with Lauren Hipp from MomsRising. Child care champions State Senator Claire Wilson and State Representative Tana Senn also spoke and were joined by Sen. Jesse Solomon, Rep. Lillian Ortiz-Self, Rep. April Berg, and Rep. Monica Stonier.

Sen. Murray described the challenges in child care today, such as providers lacking sufficient funds to stay open; limited child care options; the need for facilities particularly in rural areas; child care staff leaving the workforce for better paying jobs in the retail and food service industry; and the lack of affordable options for parents.

Sen. Murray noted that the recent federal spending bill increased federal child care investment by over 30% or $1.8B. This increase is expected to provide additional funding for child care access to an estimated 130,000 more children. However, Sen. Murray was clear that bold action is needed and we are still a long way from saying “mission accomplished.”

State Sen. Claire Wilson and State Representative Tana Senn spoke to the increased state investment in child care over the past several years. This included the passage of the 2021 Fair Start For Kids Act, which provided an additional $1.1B in investments, including reduced family co-pays, bonuses for non-standard hours, increased home-based services such as home visiting, and grants to early learning providers to remain open.

What’s on Deck for Next Week

Dairy Day! Who doesn’t love free food? Particularly when that free food involves ice cream and cheese!

One of the biggest highlights of the legislative sessions is the “food days.” The food days involve various food-related associations coming to the Capitol to demonstrate the value of their product to the state of Washington. These “food days” generate an unbelievable level of excitement. It is kind of like when you were in elementary school, and there was an assembly with a person doing all of the yo-yo tricks. We are all giddy!

If you are on campus on any of these days, you will witness long lines of people patiently waiting for free potatoes, beef or ICE CREAM! The first food day is scheduled for next week on Jan. 25 with Dairy Day. The mezzanine around the third floor of the Legislative Building will be filled with representatives of the Washington State Dairy Association handing out free ice cream, cheese and yogurt. It will be a very good day.

Photo proof that I have been enjoying ice cream giveaways at capitals for decades (June 1992, Washington, D.C.)
(Photo Credit: Erica Hallock)

Oral Arguments Before State Supreme Court Jan. 26. On Jan. 26, the Washington State Supreme Court is scheduled to begin hearing oral arguments on the constitutionality of a capital gains tax in its temporary building in Tumwater.

The Supreme Court has already acted to allow the State Department of Revenue to begin collecting the tax prior to the Court’s final ruling and all the revenue forecasts assume receipt of this revenue. The funding is primarily designed to support the implementation of the Fair Start for Kids Act.

Helpful Legislative Engagement Tips and Legislative Cutoff Dates

I am all about not reinventing the wheel. On Sunday, Jan. 15, the Spokesman Review’s Jim Camden had an informative column compiling resources to help stay engaged with the legislative process. Check it out!

Legislative Cutoff Calendar. The 105-day “long” legislative session moves really fast and it won’t be long before we are facing “cutoff” deadlines. These cutoffs are designed to serve as a filter, reducing the number of bills considered throughout the process. The first cutoff is scheduled on day 40 (Feb. 17), when all bills must be approved by their respective policy committees. From that point, the cutoff dates come at a quicker clip, with the fiscal cutoff scheduled for day 47 (Feb. 24).

This cutoff calendar is particularly important to review if you are planning to visit the Capitol as there is always a swirl of activity around these cutoff dates.

Bill Tracker: Key Early Learning Bills

As the legislative session progresses, our resource page will update with a weekly bill tracker. Please note that legislation changes quickly, so the version on our website may not represent a bill’s latest version as it is published the Thursday of each week.

This newsletter will be distributed every Friday morning during the legislative session. It is intended to keep you abreast of legislative activity, highlight important upcoming events, deadlines and share trivia with the help of our adorable Capitol Ambassador, Ollie.

Ollie, our Capitol Ambassador, eagerly awaits the start of Legislative session
(Photo Credit: Erica Hallock)

2023 Legislative Session Awaits!

The 105-day legislative session kicks off Monday, Jan. 9. And while it is “go time” for all the players involved in the legislative process, I think I am not alone in experiencing a level of trepidation around what to expect. Think extreme Sunday “scaries” mixed with back-to-school anxiety.

We have not seen a “normal” legislative process for nearly three years, and I do not expect this year to be a full return to previous experiences. On the positive side, we know that most legislative committees will maintain some ability for people to testify virtually. As we saw during the 2021 and 2022 years, this virtual option greatly increased access to the legislative process (even for people on airplanes and ski slopes – two of the most memorable moments of the past two years). We know legislative staff and TVW have been hard at work to make the hybrid nature of in-person and virtual testimony as seamless as possible. Note, questions remain as to how committee chairs will navigate the virtual/in-person balance and we can expect variance among committees.

On the uncertainty side, there remains concern that the typical legislative session steady diet of close quarters, lack of sleep and stress will result in the spreading of illnesses. And while people used to “power through” being sick, hopefully our collective experience over the past three years will lead to people leveraging technology and staying home when ill!

Additionally, the legislative campus is undergoing a few major construction projects and a temporary building has been erected in the parking lot historically occupied by legislative staff. If you are coming to Olympia, acquaint yourself with Capitol campus parking information as many of the usual parking areas will likely be full. (You can fully expect I will don a hard hat and include an upcoming trivia question or two about capital construction!).

Finally, the House has instituted some additional security procedures and staff may need to escort visitors up to legislative offices for meetings. Also, expect a cap on the number of meeting attendees – no more stuffing 10 people in tiny offices. Keep this in mind if you are coming to the Capitol.

Patience and flexibility continues to be the themes!

What’s on Deck for the First Week?

The first day of the legislative session includes the requisite pomp and circumstance, with “Opening Day Ceremonies” slated for noon Monday. This will include swearing-in of newly elected members. Our House of Representatives will also vote to affirm the recommendation that current Speaker Laurie Jinkins continue in this role. Unlike the “other Washington” that is garnering great attention this week, this vote is expected to be procedural – she has the votes!

On Tuesday, Jan. 10 at noon, Governor Jay Inslee will present his annual State of the State Address to a joint session of the Senate and the House. This will be Governor Inslee’s first in-person State of the State since 2020. Expect Governor Inslee to reinforce his priorities laid out in his proposed budgets released in December. On Wednesday, there will be a Joint Session for the State of the Judiciary. Given the state Supreme Court plans to hear oral arguments on the constitutionality of the capital gains tax, this could be an interesting State of the Judiciary.

Legislative Hearings/Work Sessions. Lawmakers in our state can begin “pre-filing” bills starting the first Monday of December. A quick perusal of the pre-filed bill list is a good reminder of the wide range of issues our Legislature considers. Among many others, there are proposed bills to establish a wine retailer’s sellers permit, related to the sale of cosmetics tested on animals and another about courthouse facility dogs. The magnitude of complex policy and budget questions reinforces the importance of being clear in your desired action and succinct in your talking points.

Some of these pre-filed bills are scheduled for public hearing in the first couple of weeks of session. Because the first weeks are a bit slower, it is common that legislative committees use this time to hold “work sessions” where they do a deeper dive on an issue of interest, without a specific bill before them for consideration. For example, the House Human Services, Youth and Early Learning Committee will hold a work session on brain development and early learning on 1/10 at 1:30 p.m., the House Finance Committee will hold a work session on the state’s tax system on 1/12 at 1:30 p.m. and the Senate Human Services Committee will have an overview of the Department of Children, Youth and Families on 1/10 at 10:30 a.m.

Public Hearings on the Budget. The hot ticket legislative committees during the first week of session are the public hearings on Governor Inslee’s proposed budget convened by the Senate and House fiscal committees. The schedule is as follows:

• Senate Ways and Means Committee Public Hearing on Operating Budget, 1/10 at 4 p.m.
• House Appropriations Committee Public Hearing on Operating Budget, 1/11 at 4 p.m.
• House Capital Budget Committee Public Hearing on Capital Budget, 1/12 at 1:30 p.m.
• Senate Ways and Means Committee Public Hearing on Capital Budget, 1/12 at 4 p.m.

These public hearings typically open with an overview of the proposed budget by the Governor’s Budget Director, followed by the opportunity for presentations by statewide elected officials like the Superintendent of Public Instruction or the Commissioner of Public Lands Following these presentations, public hearings commence where individuals are invited to share brief (emphasis on brief) remarks on what is in – and more importantly NOT in – the proposed budget.

These hearings are always a tad chaotic as lobbyists hop up and down, speaking on behalf of their clients. This year will be particularly interesting with the added dynamic of virtual testimony as well. We lovingly refer to these evenings as “cattle calls.” (By the way, I just looked up the definition and apparently the phrase comes from the acting world where cattle calls were massive auditions to fill parts for plays or movies. I guess we are auditioning to be included in the final adopted budget!)

Note that if you want to testify, you need to sign-in via the leg.wa.gov website at least an hour before the hearing. Committees also accept written testimony and you can have your position noted for the legislative record.

Legislative Preview with Legislative Leaders

On Jan. 5, the Allied Daily Newspapers/Washington Association of Broadcasters held a 2023 legislative preview.

The morning began with release of a recent poll of registered Washington voters conducted by Crosscut and the Elway Group focused on top priorities for legislative action. The poll found the top issues include the economy/cost of living (the only issue identified by both Democrats and Republicans as a top concern), housing/homelessness and public safety. After years of being at the forefront, COVID-19 dropped dramatically as a primary issue of concern for voters.

Following the overview of the poll, the Spokesman Review’s Laurel Demokovich moderated a panel of the four corners of legislative leadership – Senate Majority Leader Andy Billig, House Speaker Laurie Jinkins, Senate Minority Leader John Braun and House Republican Leader JT Wilcox. This session is an opportunity for the press to ask questions.

Before the panel was interrupted by a fire alarm that necessitated the building’s evacuation (don’t worry – there was no actual fire), the legislative leaders discussed their approaches to many of the issues elevated in the voters’ poll. The two issues that received the most attention during the abbreviated time were housing/homelessness and the need to address workforce challenges in a broad manner.

The legislative leaders noted there is bipartisan agreement as to what are the major challenges (e.g. behavioral health, housing, workforce), but their approaches to addressing them differ. Senate Majority Leader Billig discussed child care more than once and emphasized it is both a workforce and education issue. He also cited that workforce challenges impact child care as other sectors. When asked to identify strategies to address workforce, Senator Billig noted the issue is complex and will require multiple solutions.

Following the return after the fire drill, the lead budget writers from both parties outlined their priorities and challenges and Governor Jay Inslee wrapped up the morning doing the same, with a great focus again on housing. We can expect to hear many of Governor Inslee’s talking points at his State of the State next week.

The session ended taking up most of the morning. TVW has a link if you want to capture the remarks. It is a good grounding about what to expect next week, and how issues will be approached.

Legislative Leadership Preview 2023 Priorities
(Photo Credit: TVW Screenshot)

Legislative Resources

If you are wanting to follow Olympia activity, my go-to websites are TVW.org and the Legislature’s website, leg.wa.gov.

TVW is our state’s version of CSPAN. TVW covers every committee hearing, Floor session, press conferences and, since the pandemic, both the Senate and House Rules Committees. If you miss something live, you can go to the menu on the left and scroll down to media archives.

I serve as a member of the TVW board of directors and believe TVW is an invaluable asset. We truly could not have done our jobs during the pandemic without TVW and their ability to evolve to meet ever-changing needs is appreciated. Note that in addition to covering live activity, TVW also produces weekly shows such as “Inside Olympia” where decision makers discuss and debate hot topics. They also produce great documentaries. I recommend “Reforming the Juvenile Justice System in Washington State.”

Leg.wa.gov is a site that contains a mountain of information about our legislators and the legislative process. The website will be updated to include all of the newly sworn-in Senators and House members after Monday’s swearing in. (Helpful hint – all legislative emails are firstname.lastname@leg.wa.gov). Additionally, the website will include committee members and committee meeting times and all sorts of helpful information. I will include the updated links in next week’s Notes.

Other helpful government websites:

Office of Financial Management (Governor’s Budget Shop)
Fiscal Information (where to access the various budget proposals)
Governor’s Official Webpage

Federal Spending Bill Passed – Major Increases for Early Learning

Right before the end of the year, Congress passed, and President Biden signed, a $1.7 trillion spending bill. The numbers are still being crunched and details being unearthed, but we know the package made a number of positive investments in early learning, including:

• $8 billion investment in the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) (a 30.1% increase over Federal Fiscal Year 2022)
• $12 billion for Head Start and Early Head Start ($960 million increase over Federal Fiscal Year 2022)
• Five-year reauthorization of the Maternal Infant Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) program along with funding increases (bringing total funding to $1.4 billion over five years and a doubling of the tribal set-aside)

These increases are welcomed for Washington’s children and families and this additional federal funding will play into our state budget discussions. More to come here for sure.

Start Early Washington Resources

A reminder that Start Early Washington maintains and regularly updates a robust set of resources on our website.

These include an overview of Governor Inslee’s proposed budget, Fair Start for Kids Act analysis and a summary of federal investments in early learning. Note, we will produce a weekly bill tracker that will be included on our resource page (and linked in this newsletter). We will also include Senate and House budget analyses when that time comes.

In addition, our website includes an overview of Start Early Washington’s 2023 budget priorities, the Home Visiting Advocacy Coalition’s budget ask and a resource highlighting the importance of investing in the home visiting workforce.

Bill Tracker: Key Early Learning Bills

As the legislative session progresses, our resource page will update with a weekly bill tracker.

Please note that legislation changes quickly, so the version on our website may not represent a bill’s latest version as it is published the Thursday of each week.