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Dear Friends and Neighbors,
This Saturday, March 11, Sen. Keith Wagoner, Rep. Sam Low and I will be hosting two in-person town hall meetings in the 39th District.
The first meeting is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. at the Lake Stevens Educational Service Center and the second meeting starts at 3 p.m. at the Sedro-Woolley City Hall.
I look forward to seeing you all there!
Police pursuit
On Tuesday morning, House Republicans made a procedural motion to bring House Bill 1363 up for a vote on the House floor. This is the bipartisan measure that would roll back the 2021 anti-police measure that's preventing police officers from engaging in vehicular pursuit.
Public safety has been my number one priority during the 2023 legislative session and passing HB 1363 is a critical step toward restoring law and order in our communities. Unfortunately, the majority party voted to block the bill from coming up for a vote. I am extremely disappointed with the result and I am urging the House Democratic leadership to allow us to pass this bill over to the Senate.
Wednesday, at 5 p.m., is house of origin cutoff – the deadline for House bills to pass out of the chamber. If a bill does not advance by this deadline, it is considered “dead” for the year. There is still hope, however, if a bill does not make it by this deadline. Bills that are considered by the House speaker to be necessary to pass the budget can be resurrected before the end of session.
Increasing the cap on cottage food sales
On Feb. 17, the House unanimously passed House Bill 1500, my measure that would double the annual limit on gross sales for cottage food products from $25,000 to $50,000. The cottage food industry is a great source of supplemental income for Washington families, and it's been particularly helpful during the pandemic. Increasing the cap is vital for families to get by during this period of high inflation.
The bill is scheduled for an executive session in the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Water, Natural Resources and Parks. Executive session is when members of a committee have the opportunity to amend and/or pass a bill out of committee.
You can watch my floor speech on HB 1500 here:
Increasing our mental healthcare workforce
Staff shortages are a big part of the problem with our mental healthcare system. We simply need more behavioral healthcare workers. That's why I am sponsoring House Bill 1763 to boost the ranks of our behavioral health workforce.
The bill would cap the loan interest rate and repayment interest rate for conditional scholarships under the Washington Health Corps at 2%.
HB 1763 unanimously passed the House on Monday and is on its way to the Senate for further consideration.
Promoting shooting sports
My bill to allow bona fide charitable and nonprofit organizations to conduct shooting sports and activities sweepstakes also unanimously passed the House this week. This is similar to the rules we have in place for golfing sweepstakes.
House Bill 1824 is on its way to the Senate for further consideration.
Stay connected
My legislative website | My contact information, bio, news releases, email updates, videos, opinion pieces, bills, and other information.
Participating in the Process | Information about how you can participate in the legislative process
The Capitol Buzz | A weekday roundup of online news stories.
The Current | An online legislative publication from the Washington House Republicans.
TVW | TVW broadcasts floor and committee action live online.
The Ledger | A legislative news aggregator.
Legislature's website | Bill reports, committee agendas, and information about upcoming activities in the Legislature here.
State agencies | Lists of all state agencies, boards, and commissions here.
Thank you!
Please contact me if you have questions about the legislative process, bills, or important issues facing our communities and state.
During session, my office receives hundreds of emails per week. I will do my best to answer the ones I receive from constituents first, so please include your home address and phone number in your correspondence.
It's an honor to serve you!
Sincerely,
Carolyn Eslick
