Inslee’s week included a tour with Second Gentleman Emhoff

Inslee tours FEMA vaccination site in Yakima with Second Gentleman Emhoff

Gov. Jay Inslee visited Yakima Tuesday and joined Second Gentleman of the United States Doug Emhoff for a tour of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s community vaccination center. Inslee and Emhoff were also joined by 8th District Congresswoman Kim Schrier.

The vaccine program, combined with mobile clinics throughout the Yakima Valley, is administering more than 1,200 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine daily. The clinics boost vaccine equity in Washington state by targeting underserved communities and individuals facing barriers to medical access.

“I hope more people continue to take advantage of these opportunities, and the state will continue to do its part in boosting vaccine equity,” Inslee said.

More than 20% of Washingtonians are now fully vaccinated, and close to 4 million doses have been administered, which includes 200,000 doses administered at state-run mass vaccination sites.

To find an appointment to get vaccinated in Washington state, click here.

Inslee updates Healthy Washington criteria for county phases

Gov. Jay Inslee on Friday updated and clarified the criteria for counties to stay in Phase 3 of the state’s Healthy Washington pandemic reopening plan.

Under the plan that took effect March 22, counties are individually evaluated every three weeks. The first evaluation occurs this coming Monday, and changes to a county’s phase status take effect Friday, April 16. In addition to being individually evaluated, large and small counties have different sets of appropriate criteria based on case counts and hospitalizations.

In advance of each county’s evaluation on Monday to determine its phase, the governor established that:

1. In order to move down one phase a county must fail both metrics for case counts and hospitalizations. Under the previous plan, a county only needed to fail one metric to move back one phase.
2. The spectator events guidance is updated to make clear what is allowed for counties in Phase 2 and how these events are related to school graduation ceremonies. That guidance is available at this link.

“Given the incredible progress on vaccinations and our focus protecting people from severe illness, we believe analyzing and requiring both metrics together is the right approach to make sure we’re considering the connection between COVID cases and our medical system and hospitalizations,” Inslee said.

Case counts and hospitalizations are rising in Washington. This is a concerning trend that is also happening nationally. Vaccines are making a difference in this fight, but millions of Washingtonians still need to be fully vaccinated. About 60,000 doses are being administered daily in Washington, but the governor urged all Washingtonians to be mindful of physical distance, wear masks, and keep gatherings small until COVID activity becomes less of a threat.

Following Monday’s evaluation, the next Healthy Washington – Roadmap to Recovery plan evaluation will occur May 3.

Clean fuel standard and Climate Commitment Act pass state Senate

On Thursday the state Senate acted on two of Gov. Jay Inslee’s priority climate bills.

The Climate Commitment Act (CCA) would cap greenhouse gas emissions and invest in clean energy, climate resilience and transportation. This legislation would help the state meet goals set by the Legislature last session to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The bill focuses on equity, ensuring an environmental justice analysis for all investments made with the revenue generated from capping emissions. The CCA also takes the lessons learned from other state’s programs into consideration, building in ways to further protect the communities who are the most impacted by the climate crisis. The bill now goes to the House for further consideration, with a hearing scheduled in the Energy and Environment Committee on Wednesday.

The Senate also passed HB 1091, a clean fuel standard, which would reduce emissions in the state’s biggest polluting sector: transportation. This legislation would also help to grow clean energy jobs, with new potential biofuel sources and infrastructure investments all across the state. The bill is technology neutral, which means its goals can be met with electricity, biofuels or other emissions-reducing improvements.

Biofuels are already made in Washington, but residents lose out on much of the cleaner energy they provide. That’s because the fuels are transported to places like Oregon, California and British Columbia where there are established clean fuel standards to help drive demand. Growing biofuels in Washington will grow jobs in clean energy, and will create new demand for waste products, giving farmers, restauranteurs and others a chance to increase their revenue.

Having previously passed the House, HB 1091 will now go to conference for the House and Senate to work out differences in language.

Inslee visits Spokane mass vaccination site

Gov. Jay Inslee and First Lady Trudi Inslee traveled to Spokane on Friday. The governor toured the Spokane Mass Vaccination site at the Spokane Arena. The site is run by Safeway/Albertsons and the Washington State National Guard.

As of Friday, the site had administered more than 43,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccines and expanded evening and weekend hours to serve more people.

WATCH: Inslee visits Spokane Arena ahead of vaccine eligibility increase.

The governor and Trudi Inslee also visited 2nd Harvest, a non-profit that provides food assistance for those community members in need.