Latest from Lekanoff | Salmon recovery, police legislation, and more

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

House Bill 1117 Passed the House

A bill I introduced last session, House Bill 1117, passed the House again this week on a vote of 57-40! The bill integrates salmon recovery into the Growth Management Act (GMA), which guides land management and planning in our state. The policy also sets a standard for net ecological gain, or ‘leaving it better than you found it,’ rather than Washington’s current standard of no net loss in community development. Through these policies, we can protect our environment and mitigate the impacts of climate change as we continue to grow. I’ll keep you updated on the bill’s progress this session as it once again moves through the legislative process.

Watch my speech in support of HB 1117 on the virtual floor of the People’s House.

Protecting the Skagit River and Ecosystem

As you’ve heard from me before, I’ve long held concerns relating to mining operations in British Columbia impacting Washington salmon habitat.

Washington is spending a lot time and money to protect and restore salmon habitat, but mining operations in the Upper Skagit watershed could cause significant damage to our progress. The Skagit River is the only river in the lower 48 that produces all five species of salmon, including chinook, steelhead, and bull trout, which is why we must protect our precious habitat and resources. In fact, over 50 percent of chinook salmon rely on the Skagit River to spawn, and chinook are the prime food source for our endangered southern resident orcas. The mining activities in British Columbia pose a significant risk to the health of these species, as waste from mining activities can be toxic to juvenile salmon.

Your Legislature has taken steps to address this issue and protect our progress in restoring salmon habitat. In 2020, former Sen. John McCoy and I each introduced joint memorials (HJM 4013 and SJM 8014) to call on our counterparts in British Columbia’s Legislative Assembly to institute new regulations on mining projects. Last year, Sen. Jessie Salomon led on this issue, authoring a letter to John Horgan, Premier of British Columbia, which I and many other Washington legislators signed onto. 

This year, I am happy to be able to announce that after years of advocacy, the sought-after permit to allow mining in the unprotected Canadian headwaters of the Skagit River has been stopped from moving forward and the mining rights are to be surrendered to the British Columbia government. The coordinated efforts of Tribes, lawmakers, citizen activists, and many others, which made this news a reality, have saved the Skagit River from any current or future upstream mining threats, keeping it healthy for our salmon. It’s amazing what we can do when we work together!

Read more about this victory in a recent Seattle Times article.

Claimstake Mountain, Skagit Headwaters Donut Hole. Wilderness Committee photo.

Police Accountability Implementation and Clarification

Last year, the Legislature passed a package of bills designed to improve trust between law enforcement & the community and to uphold the policing profession. These laws work together to establish clear expectations for the behavior of police officers: defining acceptable use of force; identifying permitted tactics and equipment; and to making sure that misconduct is held accountable. 

Since this legislation went into effect a few months ago, we have heard concerns and confusion from police, from mental health professionals and from the public that these new laws might be restricting what police can do, especially in trying to help people suffering from mental health crisis. Members from the House Public Safety Committee have spent the last few months meeting with law enforcement leaders, rank-and-file officers, designated crisis responders, mental and behavioral health professionals, firefighters, EMTs, cities, and counties to gather feedback and ensure that our officers have the clarity necessary to do their jobs. As a result of these discussions, House Democrats have introduced two bills to clarify portions of the new laws. House Bill 1735 clarifies that officers can use force, subject to the newly established reasonable care standard, in behavioral health circumstances, for involuntary treatment commitments, child welfare, and other related circumstances. While the new use of force standard never made any changes to these statutes, some law enforcement agencies contend that it prevents them from assisting designated crisis responders and mental and behavioral health specialists with involuntary treatments and other community caretaking functions. Regrettably, this has caused some law enforcement agencies to stop responding to community caretaking calls altogether. HB 1735 ensures that officers have the certainty they need to respond to community caretaking calls. The second bill, House Bill 1719, amends the ban on .50 caliber firearms to only apply to .50 caliber rifles and not less lethal ammunition that may be greater than .50 caliber or the devices that fire them. Some law enforcement agencies had discontinued use of these devices because they feared they might violate the ban on .50 caliber firearms. However, the new standard of reasonable care explicitly calls for using less-lethal devices before employing deadly force if at all possible. With these tweaks to the law, I am confident that our dedicated law enforcement professionals will be able to prioritize de-escalation and less lethal alternatives to deadly force while providing everyone in our community with the public safety they expect and deserve.

Happy Lunar New Year! I wish you and your family happiness and good health as we enter the Year of the Tiger.  This new beginning is a time to reflect on the year past, make room for joy, and honor cultural unity. Recognizing Lunar New Year is also an opportunity to acknowledge Asian American communities, essential workers, and small businesses, many of whom have withstood violent racism throughout the pandemic and for years before.  Sen. Joe Nguyen and Rep. My-Linh Thai are hosting the Legislature’s fourth-ever Lunar New Year event. You are invited to join us for a virtual celebration at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 1, the first day of the Lunar New Year. There will be new year greetings from state leaders and legislators, as well as cultural performances from Asian American community members. I hope to see you there!

Thank You for Attending our 40th LD Virtual Town Hall!

Thank you to those who participated in last night’s virtual town hall! If you were unable to attend, you can view a recording of the event on my Facebook page or on YouTube.

Click the image to view the recording of last night’s event.

Upcoming Legislative Cutoffs

Since the beginning of the legislative biennium in 2021, over 2,000 bills have been introduced in the House and nearly 1,000 more in the Senate. There’s never a shortage of work for the Legislature to do, but we also want to make sure that any bills we pass are given the attention and careful consideration they deserve — that’s where legislative cutoffs come into play.

Legislative cutoffs are milestones bills need to reach by certain dates in order to receive further consideration. Any bills that don’t make it to these milestones will need to wait until the next legislative session to continue the process or be reintroduced at the start of a new biennium.

Because this is a short, 60-day session, the first set of cutoff dates are quickly approaching. House bills that are not approved by House policy committees by Feb. 3 (or Feb. 7 for fiscal committees) will need to be reintroduced next year. Any House bills that fail to be approved by a vote on the House Floor by Feb. 15, will also need to be reintroduced.

As strongly as we may feel about passing our top priorities, we always want to make sure that we’re making good policy — even if that means we have to continue the fight into the next session.

View the 2022 Session cutoff calendar on the Legislature’s website.

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!