Fiscal Cutoff Passes, Tuesday Marks Major Deadline
By Marie Sullivan, legconsultant@wastatepta.org Monday, February 9th, was the cutoff by which bills needed to pass out of fiscal committees to remain under consideration this session (See the list of bills that failed to make the deadline towards the end of the report). The House and Senate worked through the week, including a couple of late nights, and the House worked…
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Advocacy
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Legislative
House Finance Committee Exempts K-12 Schools from Sales Tax Extension
By Marie Sullivan, legconsultant@wastatepta.org As mentioned last week, February 4th was the first session cutoff, with hundreds of bills failing to pass out of policy committees in the chamber in which they started. Then it was a quick rush to the fiscal committee cutoff, which is today. The Senate Ways & Means Committee chose to work a bit longer on Thursday and…
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Advocacy
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Legislative
February 4 Policy Cutoff Looms | One Third of 2026 Session Complete
By Marie Sullivan, legconsultant@wastatepta.org This Wednesday marks the first of many deadlines by which bills need to advance to stay under consideration this session. As a reminder, only about 10% of bills introduced actually pass both chambers and are signed into law by the governor. Here are the next few deadlines to keep in mind as lawmakers move towards the…
Category:
Advocacy
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Legislative
Write your Legislators during Focus on Advocacy Week
By Marie Sullivan, legconsultant@wastatepta.org This week is Focus on Advocacy Week, when WSPTA members will have the opportunity to send a tailored email about Top 5 priorities and current issues each day, beginning today. Members of the WSPTA Advocacy Committee have made this easy by writing letters that can be personalized by you before sending to your legislators or specific chambers. Look for…
See you at Focus Day!
By Marie Sullivan, legconsultant@wastatepta.org Parents and students will descend on Olympia today to meet with their state legislators during the annual Washington State PTA Focus Day. Members also will hear from Senators and Representatives over the lunch hour and will participate in a march around the capitol grounds in support of closing K12 funding gaps. If you weren’t able to travel to the State Capitol,…
And … We’re Off!
By Marie Sullivan, legconsultant@wastatepta.org Today marks the start of the 60-day session and it’s already setting off at a fast pace with public hearings on Governor Bob Ferguson’s proposed 2026 supplemental budgets and a variety of policy bills. Remember, all bills from 2025 are still eligible to move forward this year, but they’ll need to meet cutoff deadlines. And, legislators have been very busy “pre-filing” bills which will…
Act Now: Attend town halls and demand legislators prioritize K-12 funding
Education Funding Crisis: Students across the state need your help! To invest in our future, we must invest in education, yet districts across our state are struggling financially. Funding from our legislature has not kept up with the true costs of education. Our students will continue to be impacted by the loss of staff, programs,…
Category:
Advocacy
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Legislative
Week Six: Make way for Focus Day!
By Marie Sullivan, legconsultant@wastatepta.org Click here to view the comprehensive Week 6 bill tracker. More than 280 people have registered for Washington State PTA’s Focus Day in Olympia, and the capital will be a crowded place, with many rallies and protests taking place on the Capitol campus. WSPTA members will be meeting with legislators and…
69th Legislature Convenes January 13 Amid New Faces, Projected Deficit
By Marie Sullivan, legconsultant@wastatepta.org The Washington State Legislature convenes Monday, January 13th for the first year of the 2025-27 biennium and a 105-day session that is scheduled to end April 27, 2025. Legislators must adopt two-year budgets for operating, capital, and transportation, based on updated revenue forecasts and changes to caseloads since they left town in…
Focus Day
What is Focus on Advocacy Day? We need WSPTA leaders and members to meet with their state representatives and senators to share the PTA mission and priorities. Let’s make sure the PTA voice is loud and proud on this day! You will be provided with everything you need to know in order to schedule and…