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Rep. Frank Chopp, serving the 43rd District Serving Seattle (Capitol Hill, University District, Madison Park, Washington Park, Broadmoor, Montlake, Wallingford, Madison Valley and parts of Fremont, Ravenna, Denny Regrade and downtown Seattle). |
House Democrats committed to One Washington agenda
March 12, 2009
Olympia – At the halfway point of the legislative session House Democrats
have passed over
400 bills aimed at helping working families, spurring
economic growth, and protecting the
environment.
“We have made
tremendous strides in the past several years to help Washington families
find
affordable health care, boost funding for education, and build up
our economy,” said House
Speaker Frank Chopp (D-Seattle).
“These
priorities reflect the values of people all around our state, and we remain
committed
to working for One Washington despite the fallout of the
national recession.”
Among the 434 bills sent to the Senate are
measures to:
• Overhaul the state’s basic education funding system
(HB 2261) and launch efficiency
reforms in higher education (HB 1946).
• Keep our promise to make sure all kids have health coverage by 2010
with “Apple
Health for Kids” (HB 2128).
• Rebrand all financial
aid as an Opportunity Grant and create the Washington Higher
Education
Loan Program (HELP) in order to increase postsecondary access and
affordability
(HB 2021).
• Boost support for unemployed workers
(HB 1906) and worker retraining programs, some
in the green jobs
industry (HB 1323, HB 2227).
• Take early cost-cutting actions to
address the budget situation (HB 1694).
• Generate 6,500 jobs by
putting people to work on transportation projects throughout
the state
(American Recovery and Reinvestment Act).
• Ensure a strong
agricultural industry (HB 1580, HB 2223, HB 2313, HB 2275).
•
Implement an aggressive climate change policy including supporting more use
of
electric vehicles and helping more families increase the energy
efficiency of their homes
(HB 2165, HB 1060, HB 1481, E2SHB 1007, E2SHB
1009, 2SHB 1481, E2SHB 1747).
• Protect Washington’s children and our
environment by banning toxic bisphenol A in
bottles and sippy cups (HB
1180).
• Protect Washington’s waterways with a permanent, year-round
response tug funded by
industry and stationed at Neah Bay to respond to
fuel spills (HB 1409).
• Expand and strengthen consumer protection
(HB 1709, HB 1311, HB 1011, HB 1215, HB
1816, HB 2013)
“Getting
benefits in to the hands of unemployed people, making sure all our children
have
health care and moving our education system forward are more
important than ever. Working
together we will get through these
challenging times,” continued Speaker Chopp.