||| FROM THE OFFICE OF REP. DEBRA LEKANOFF |||
Happy Fantastic Friday!
Join us for the 40th LD Virtual Town Hall on January 27!
You’re invited to join Sen. Liz Lovelett, Rep. Alex Ramel and me on Thursday, January 27 from 7:00 – 8:00 p.m. for a virtual town hall! There are several ways to tune in: the event will be livestreamed to my legislative Facebook page, to the House Democrats Facebook page, to the House Democrats YouTube channel, and to the House Democrats Twitter feed.
You can submit questions to us ahead of time, or live during the event by entering them in the comment section.
Please note, the livestream will not appear on most of the platforms until the event begins. You also do not need a Facebook or Twitter account to view the livestream and the video will be saved on YouTube.
We’re looking forward to listening to you, answering your questions, and updating you on the first few weeks of the 2022 Legislative Session.
WA Cares Reforms Means Exemptions for Military Spouses and Disabled Veterans, No Premiums from Workers for 18 months
On Wednesday, I voted to pass some needed reforms to the WA Cares Fund, the state’s long-term care benefit for seniors and people with disabilities. House Bill 1732 will extend the implementation period for WA Cares, meaning workers won’t pay the premium until the Legislature finishes their work to improve the benefit next year. House Bill 1733 allows voluntary exemption for certain individuals, including military spouses and disabled veterans, non-immigrant visa workers, and border state workers who live outside Washington and wouldn’t qualify for WA Cares benefits.
Most families don’t plan for long-term care, or have any sort of insurance to protect them. That leads to them spending down savings to qualify for the state Medicaid funding for long-term care, or asking unpaid family members to care for them. Sometimes families end up selling everything they own, including their homes, to be able to qualify. This simply is a broken system and that is why we need WA Cares. This is the next step for a true social safety net that protects working families like yours and mine. These two bills are necessary reforms to make sure WA Cares is accessible, robust, and available to you when you need it. |
In The News: MMIWP alert system
As many of you know, I am the only Native American currently serving in the Washington State Legislature, and that is the perspective I bring when developing legislation. Since joining the Legislature, one of my top policy priorities has been to advocate for the safety of the first peoples of Washington state. After working with Sen. Manka Dhingra last session to secure funding for the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and People (MMIWP) Task Force, last summer I was appointed to serve as a member.
This year, I’ve introduced legislation stemming from that work over the interim, House Bill 1725, which creates a statewide alert for missing Indigenous people. It will operate similarly to the ‘silver alert’ established for missing vulnerable adults. The bill was heard in the Public Safety Committee last week, and is scheduled to be voted out of committee this week. Watch the recent hearing on HB 1725 in the House Public Safety Committee.
If passed, the system would be a first in the US. It is expected not only to help locate the individual and improve communication between law enforcement agencies and local jurisdictions, but also to increase awareness about the crisis of missing Indigenous people, particularly women and girls. – via The Guardian
Learn more about the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous people, as well as this alert system designed to bring our sisters and brothers home in this recent article in The Guardian, entitled ‘This alert is her scream’: new system would help locate missing Indigenous women.
A demonstrator displaying a symbol of solidarity with missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls. Photograph: Keiko Hiromi/AFLO/Rex/Shutterstock
Removing Derelict Vessels from the Sound
One of the most effective programs for protecting the Puget Sound is the Department of Natural Resources’ (DNR) Derelict Vessel Program. Derelict and abandoned vessels damage habitat for salmon and herring, and threaten our cultural resources, marine infrastructure and the safety of other boaters. With so much of Whatcom, Skagit and San Juan counties dependent upon healthy marine waters, this program is especially important to our district.
DNR has spent about $23 million to remove 1,000 vessels since the program started in 2002. But this problem is ever-present, with 277 derelict or abandoned vessels currently needing removal. Removing all of them would cost about $10 million, but DNR only receives $1.6 million per year to remove derelict vessels.
When large vessels sink, like the Chilkat, a retired Alaska Marine Highway ferry, did after a strong storm broke it free from its moorage, they damage infrastructure like the Guemes Island Ferry terminal and quickly drains DNR’s budget. Removal of the Chilkat itself cost almost $1.3 million, leaving little funding to remove other vessels threatening habitat and infrastructure.
That’s why I’m supporting House Bill 1700, which would give DNR an additional $2.1 million every year to remove more vessels. This would be the program’s first funding increase in 10 years, and will help our state tackle this ongoing problem in earnest. The funding comes from an excise tax boaters already pay, so it uses boater funding to address a boating problem. If you support this effort, please take a moment and submit a comment in favor of this legislation so we can continue to protect the marine waters that have supported the people of the 40th District for generations.
FEMA Flooding Assistance
On January 5, President Biden approved Washington state’s request for FEMA assistance to recover from flooding and mudslides that occurred between November 13 and November 15, 2021. The assistance is available to affected individuals and businesses in Clallam, Skagit and Whatcom counties and the Lummi Nation, the Nooksack Indian Tribe and the Quileute Tribe.
If you are a resident or business owner who sustained damages in the November floods, you can begin applying for assistance by registering online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov or by calling 1-800-621- 3362. Assistance can include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses and other programs to help individuals and business owners recover.
Asistencia de FEMA para inundaciones
El 5 de enero, el presidente Biden aprobó la solicitud del estado de Washington de asistencia de FEMA para recuperarse de las inundaciones y deslizamientos de tierra que ocurrieron entre el 13 y el 15 de noviembre de 2021. Esta asistencia está disponible para las personas y empresas afectadas en los condados de Clallam, Skagit y Whatcom, y las Tribus Lummi Nation, Nooksack Indian, y Quileute.
Si usted es residente o dueño de un negocio que sufrió daños en las inundaciones de noviembre, puede comenzar a solicitar asistencia registrándose en línea en www.DisasterAssistance.gov/es o llamando al 1-800-621-3362. La asistencia puede incluir ayuda para vivienda temporal y reparaciones en el hogar, préstamos de bajo costo para cubrir pérdidas de propiedad no aseguradas y otros programas para ayudar a personas y empresarios a recuperarse.
Thank you all for taking to the time to read this week’s Fantastic Friday, and for taking an interest in our progress at the House of Representatives. I will be sending out a Fantastic Friday letter each week throughout the legislative session.
Please feel free to reach out to me using the information below, with any questions, inquiries, or concerns you may have.
I am here for you!
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