Michele Thomas, Director of Policy and Advocacy

Session Ends

The session officially ended on the evening of Sunday, April 28, after 105 long days. But, since budgets are still not done, we'll need a special session for our elected officials to finish their business. Although many are decrying this special session as another example of “political gridlock,” the alternative would be reprehensible. With the Senate refusing to compromise on their budget proposal that slashes programs for affordable housing and homelessness, it is very good news that the House and the Governor are standing firm. And although the Senate’s “Majority Coalition Caucus” keeps saying that they were ready to go home long before Sunday, they seem to fail to recognize that stamping their feet and demanding that their cuts be enacted isn’t a very productive way reach a compromise. All last week, I heard a lot of political accusations of who is at fault for the lack of agreement. But regardless of who holds more or less fault, the special session presents an opportunity for extended advocacy. And that is a good thing.

More Time to Push our Lawmakers to Do the Right Thing

The Governor announced Sunday evening that he'll give the legislature a two-week break and then call them back on Monday, May 13. This presents an excellent opportunity for you to schedule an in-person meeting with your lawmakers while they are home. We urge you to consider calling your lawmaker to request a meeting while they are home. Start with their Olympia office and if they haven’t left instructions on the voicemail to call their home office, leave a message there. If your lawmaker is taking meetings during these two weeks, offer to host it at a building funded by the Housing Trust Fund or at an office where you administer Housing and Essential Needs services or at a shelter supported by Consolidated Homeless Grant dollars. This can help show your lawmakers the value of these programs. Additionally, consider writing a letter to the editor. A short message in your local paper urging lawmakers to enact revenue and to protect the safety net can go a long way. The Housing Alliance will soon be posting some helpful tips on our webpage. So, keep an eye out.

The Revenue Proposals in Play

Revenue is the key to a budget that both funds education and maintains the safety net. The Senate’s budget contained no new revenue, while both the House and the Governor are pushing a combination of revenue options including the closing of tax loopholes and making some temporary taxes permanent. It is critical that advocates for affordable housing and homelessness remain vocal on the need for revenue. To learn more about the proposals in play, please join us for a special member call on Thursday, May 2 at noon. During the this call, Housing Alliance lobbyist and lead coordinator of the Revenue Coalition Nick Federici will explain the revenue proposals, clarify how much they could bring in and how advocates can help make sure that they pass. Please RSVP by emailing me at michele@wliha.org and put “RSVP for May 2nd Revenue Call” in the subject line. We'll send you the phone number once you’ve RSVP'd.

Image Nick Federici

A Special Thank You

This has been a long, hard session. And we’ve got more work to do! But it's important to recognize the accomplishments that your advocacy won this session. The passage of the Fair Tenant Screening Act (SSB 5568), of Foster Care to 21 (E2SSB 5405), and of the 72-hour youth shelter notification rule (SB 5147) are significant accomplishments that everyone should be proud of. Additionally, many bills that would have been extremely bad for Washington’s tenants were stopped. Advocacy isn’t always fun, but it's always necessary. Thank you for standing up repeatedly and please stick with us over this two-week break and then into the special session. We can’t let the Senate’s proposed cuts to affordable housing and homelessness programs get enacted. And only advocacy is going to prevent it.

We won’t be sending out weekly summaries during the special session, but we'll be alerting you to significant developments via our blog, Facebook, and Twitter. And of course we'll continue to share strategic opportunities to take action.

Thank you for advocating with us!

Image