Traffic violence continues to increase in #washington. Will #waleg act or will we just keep prioritizing fast private vehicles everywhere with no real limits?

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/transportation/after-setting-sad-record-last-year-wa-traffic-deaths-trending-higher-now/

#fuckcars

On this Hacks & Wonks week-in-review, @ericacbarnett and I discuss:
😫 Latest in Burien saga
💵 New Seattle revenue options
🗳️ SCC incumbents: doomed or safe?
✅ Police alternative support popular
🤒 Late-summer COVID surge
➕ more!

Listen: https://pod.link/1518308745/episode/c547ebc6883190f2413a7f2cd988e16c
#waleg #WAelex

The supposed climate governor and the climate focused democratic party of Washington can’t seem to make it so that transit is competitive and not constantly stuck in traffic on any interstate. https://www.theurbanist.org/2023/07/26/wsdot-delays-promised-i-5-to-sr-520-transit-ramp-to-2030/ #wsdot #waleg #climate

The place #waleg should have authorized automated speed enforcement is the freeways. I note this because we just had several vehicles drive past at easily 20 over the limit swerving around vehicles mostly within 5-10 mph of the limit. One mistake at that speed with this many vehicles around and the best case is everyone is delayed substantially and have damaged vehicles. The worst case is many deaths.

A long piece at KNKX about the availability and quality of drug treatment programs in Washington after #WaLeg made possession a gross misdemeanor and proponents claim the intent is to get folks into treatment. Of course the criminalization part finds a court and jail system and the treatment system is running on decades of neglect and underfunding so even new funding will take a long time. https://www.knkx.org/law/2023-06-29/washingtons-new-drug-law-was-designed-to-fill-our-treatment-centers-experts-say-it-wont

Seattle Times news alert "To cut costs, the [Seattle school] district is considering closing some of its 106 schools and cutting dozens of staff."

If we were fully funding schools and helps schools deal with pandemic disruptions and changes, then #waleg wouldn't have ended the session without preventing these kinds of disruptive cuts at school districts around the state.

Five years of work to get this bill across that protects renters' security deposits. Time well spent. #WALeg

https://www.realchangenews.org/news/2023/04/26/want-your-security-deposit-back-house-bill-1074-may-bring-new-protections-renters

Five years of work to get this bill across that protects renters' security deposits. Time well spent. #WALeg

Want your security deposit back? House Bill 1074 may bring new protections for renters | Apr. 26-May 2, 2023 | Real Change (realchangenews.org)

The past #waleg session clearly did not make any progress on transportation safety. We aren't even going to fund the much touted Aurora Avenue safety project which was itself years later than it should have ever been and now it has effectively no money. That is, there was a big transportation funding package 2 sessions ago that put $50m towards this project but almost none has been allocated to actually do work.

https://www.theurbanist.org/2023/05/03/state-transportation-budget-passes-over-aurora-avenue-safety-project/

Things that warrant a special session in Washington: making sure drug posesssion remains illegal and can be used to pull people into the criminal punishment system.

Things that don’t: climate change in GMA, housing (last session); renter’s rights, sufficient housing funding for actual need, sufficient school funding (esp for special ed), addressing the transportation safety crisis, etc (this session). #waleg

With Inslee out, here's who might run for Washington governor: Bob Ferguson, Hilary Franz and…Mark Mullet?

https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2023/05/02/inslee-replacement-washington-governor
#WAelex #WALeg

Competent— sometimes transformative—state leadership for three terms. Navigated WA through COVID.

#waleg

WA Gov. Jay Inslee won't seek reelection for fourth term

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/wa-gov-jay-inslee-wont-seek-reelection-for-fourth-term/

Thank you @WAbikes and #WALeg for creating e-bike buyer rebates and a lending program! This will give thousands of Washington families access to affordable, healthy, and sustainable transportation. ❤️🩺🌎https://wabikes.org/index.php/2023/04/26/electric-bike-rebates-coming-to-washington-state/
---
RT @GordonOfSeattle
👀😍! This is a similar policy to the highly effective Denver e-bike program:
⬇️71% of participants drove less, replaci…
https://twitter.com/GordonOfSeattle/status/1641227314443984897

Legislature Abandons Most Traffic Safety Bills As Fatalities Continue To Mount
https://www.theurbanist.org/2023/04/24/legislature-abandons-most-traffic-safety-bills-as-fatalities-continue-to-mount/ #waleg

Anyway, 22 of 53 bills (41%) I was tracking with a Pro position (mostly but not all related to 350 Washington Civic Action Team) passed #waleg. That is not nearly so bad as I thought!

I'm going through my #waleg bill tracker and note that the l33t bill HB 1337 (an ADU related bill) passed: https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?BillNumber=1337&Year=2023&Initiative=false

Things #waleg found time for: allowing airbnb hosts to provide booze to their guests free of charge.

Things #waleg didn't find time for: lowering the legal blood alcohol limit or really any broad bill to address the increasing numbers of road fatalities.

https://www.theurbanist.org/2023/04/24/legislature-abandons-most-traffic-safety-bills-as-fatalities-continue-to-mount/

Senator Rebecca Saldaña gave a great speech in favor of SEPA reform bill SB 5412 on Saturday at #waleg. It thankfully passed and presumably the governor will be signing (if he hasn't already) but I'm glad she is openly saying what everyone knows: that wealthier communities use process to block change protecting their interests but harming everyone.

The bill: https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsummary?BillNumber=5412&Year=2023&Initiative=false

Direct link to where her speech starts: https://youtu.be/ttRVxjQH09k?t=5884

Rough transcript in image descriptions.

Let's be consistent:
•Bill Introduced by [State] House/Senate
•Bill Moved Forward by Other Body
•Bill Signed Into Law by Governor/President
•Veto/Override/Legal Action

#USpol #WAleg #WApolitics

It's the last week of the #waleg legislative session! They are hammering out the budget right now, but if there's a bill you were following that HAS passed, it's a good time to send thank you notes to sponsors or major movers! Their staff are almost certainly very tired and a thank you is a good mood boost right now!