Latest from Lekanoff | It’s Orca Recovery Day, COVID updates, student financial aid, and – yes – ferries

||| FROM THE OFFICE OF REP. DEBRA LEKANOFF |||

Orca Recovery Day

Today is Orca Recovery Day – a day in which people from across Washington will go out in their communities and take action to help recover our salmon and orca populations. Supporting salmon supports orcas because the largest threat to our Southern Resident Orca population is lack of their primary food source, salmon. Chinook salmon make up 80% of the orca diet, and because of loss of habitat and increasing pollution, local salmon populations are a fraction of what they used to be.

In the Legislature, I have led multiple efforts to better protect our salmon and orca, including to create a Joint Legislative Committee on Salmon, to modernize the Growth Management Act to include salmon recovery efforts, and to implement a net ecological gain standard for land development. While many of these policies are still being debated, I am dedicated to continuing this work into the future. 

You can do your part to help recover this iconic species of the Pacific Northwest by participating in Orca Recovery Day! Volunteer events are being held in our region in recognition of the day. Find an event near you.

Can’t attend an event? Bring Orca Recovery Day to your home. You can be a part of the solution by joining countless others who are creating habits and taking steps to make a better, healthier environment than the one we have now. Learn about actions you can take.

An Update on Ferries

Please know your legislators in the 40th District are working hard to address the ongoing challenges with the ferry system. As we said in our statement a few weeks ago: “The unprecedented frequency of service disruptions that passengers have endured, either through severely delayed sailings or cancellations, has been and continues to be unacceptable. This is not a matter of inconvenience—this is a matter of livelihood and whether people can get to doctor’s appointments, commute to work, get food for their families, and other essential reasons for travel.” Read our full statement. This week, your 40th District delegation, along with other ferry-concerned legislators met with Governor Inslee to discuss the issue and how we can help our communities. Much of that meeting was a discussion of potential emergency funding for San Juan County, including a voucher proposal and what that would entail. Learn more about the situation in this recent Salish Current article. As always, if you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to our office.

Vaccine Booster Shots

A third “booster” shot of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine has been approved by the federal government and the Western States Scientific Safety Review Workgroup. Find out if you are eligible by clicking the image below and click here to find a vaccination site offering booster shots.

Community Mental Health Resources 

Our community has shown an incredible amount of resilience over the last 18 months as we’ve dealt with the many challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, the pandemic has highlighted the need for improving mental and behavioral health support in rural communities and our state.     

It’s important that we check in and take care of ourselves, our loved ones, and community members in these challenging times.  

Here are some free resources recommended by local health experts if you or someone that you know needs some support:  

• If you are experiencing stress due to COVID-19, and would like to talk to someone, call Washington Listens for support from a trained specialist who can listen and help guide you to connections in your community –  1-833-681-0211 
• The Crisis Text Line provides confidential and secure text access from anywhere in the U.S. to a trained crisis counselor. Text HOME to 741741. 
• Teen Link offers confidential support from trained volunteers to teens about any issue, no matter how big or small, in English and Spanish. Call or text 866-833-6546 
• National Disaster Distress Helpline: 800-985-5990 or text “TalkWithUs” to 66746. 
• Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 800-273-8255 

For additional resources—including specialized resources for families, children and teens, Tribal communities, service members/veterans, LGBTQ+, healthcare workers, and other groups—please visit the Washington State Coronavirus Response page.  

Financial Aid Applications Out Now

Our colleges and universities are reporting decreased rates of enrollment. This is particularly true for students in underrepresented communities.

There’s good news, however, as 2022-23 financial aid applications are open and families of four making up to $102,000/year can qualify for aid.

The Washington Student Achievement Council (WSAC) is providing online support and resources—including virtual events—to help families complete their applications. Learn more in the WSAC notice.

Courtesy of the Washington Student Achievement Council

Better Bags

In 2020 we passed a law to phase out single-use plastic bags. Those thin, easily torn bags we’re used to getting at the grocery store are a huge pollution, litter, and waste problem. They hurt our wildlife since they often end up inside birds and fish, but also impact our health because the chemicals released into those animals and waterways can wind up in our bodies. Disposable plastic bags also clog storm drains, fill up landfills, and are generally wasteful.

There is a better way: Paper bags and tough, reusable plastic bags are a smarter choice, and that’s what our state switched to on Friday, October 1.

Visit Ecology’s plastic bag ban website for all the details, including a frequently asked questions section and information in 17 languages.

There’s Still Time to Weigh-in on Washington State’s Redistricting

Every ten years, we change the boundaries of our legislative and congressional districts to ensure that they represent a roughly equal number of voters. At the end of last month, each voting member of the Washington State Redistricting Commission released their draft maps and asked for your feedback.

This week, the commission wants you to know that to ensure full consideration, third-party maps should be submitted by Friday, October 22. While third-party submissions can be sent after October 22 (and the mapping tool on the Commission’s website will continue to remain live), they want you to be aware of the suggested deadline to ensure that the Commissioners have the time to properly consider youar submissions. They also strongly encourage you to continue sending comments and suggestions via email at comment@redistricting.wa.gov, voicemail at (360) 524-4390, or online. The Commission will accept all such comments through its November 15 deadline for delivery of the final legislative and congressional district plans to the Legislature.

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. While we are in the interim, I will be sending out an official Fantastic Friday twice a month, with two weeks on and two weeks off. 

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!