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Olympia Office: 425 John L. O'Brien Building P O Box 40600 Olympia, WA 98504-0600 (360) 786-7862 |
District Office: 219 1st Ave S; Suite 205 Seattle, WA 98104 (206) 587-5554 |
Committees: • Finance (Vice Chair) • Audit Review & Oversight • Higher Education • Rules • Technology, Energy & Communications |
E-mail: Hasegawa.Bob@leg.wa.gov Website: http://www.housedemocrats.wa.gov/ members/hasegawa/ |
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October 2009 Dear Neighbors: |
I will hold a town hall meeting on Saturday, October 17, 2009 at 10:00 am. Please come and share your views on the issues that matter to our diverse communities so I can represent you better in the upcoming Legislative Session. SeaTac Community Center
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| I did not vote for the final budget. I find many of the cuts are unfair and negligent. Thousands of people will be left without health care; many teachers and other service providers will also be out of their jobs. The picture is grim and I’m not sure everyone is aware of just how bad things are.
What we really need in this state is down to earth tax reform in order to make sure there’s enough revenue to fuel programs and services that thousands of people rely on. It’s time for big corporations to start paying their fair share instead of getting more tax breaks. And it’s also time to go back and look at all existing tax breaks and only keep those that effectively help businesses create more jobs. I brought the subject up and had several meetings with other lawmakers who feel the same way. The thing with the Legislature, however, is that you need allies and support to pass bills, when the support is not there, neither are the votes. The budget shortfall got most of the media attention, but I feel I had an effective year and was able to work on numerous bills that will have favorable outcomes for you and our state as a whole. Here is a brief recap of some of this session’s accomplishments: |
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Education | |
We want all students to succeed, so we addressed the achievement gap that exists for low-income students as well as students of color and made a few important changes to our assessment system; they include:
 Many of the changes we’re making to the Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) are particularly important in the math and science sections of the test. Two bills: SB 5414 and HB 1562 are aimed at improving our assessment system to help every student succeed and graduate on time.
I co-sponsored a bill that allows students who have earned an associate degree at a community or technical college (including high-school students in the Running Start program) to receive a high-school diploma. Military kids will get better educational opportunities; there are 30,000 children of military families in our state and they face unique challenges that often hinder their education. With this new law, Washington will join the Interstate Compact for Military Children – and we’ll do a better job helping them succeed. The world of online K-12 education is fast-growing and in need of a framework. We created a new state standard that (1) calls for a baseline-study of requirements, (2) sets up a process for accreditation and approval, and (3) addresses funding issues related to online learning. Additionally, the new law establishes a website providing details on the program, as well as model-contracts for school districts and providers. To increase student access to higher education we passed legislation that will encourage all higher-education institutions to use common online-learning technologies. There are many state and federal financial aid programs, but it can be difficult and overwhelming to get information and find the one that best meets a student’s needs. This session we simplified the process in several ways with legislation that will:
 As you know, our Washington schools depend on qualified teachers. Traditionally, in order to become a teacher you’d have to graduate from a teacher-preparation program offered by a college or university. But in an effort to attract mid-career professionals into the teaching force, in 2001 the Legislature created alternative routes to teacher-certification. These programs are aimed at experienced para-educators and mid-career professionals with expertise in math, science and special education – areas where we have the most severe shortages. This session we addressed this issue with a measure that removes certain requirements for candidates pursuing residency teacher-certification through alternative routes.
We know that young people go through difficult periods and face new challenges, often involving social or family problems. But we also know that mentors can offer support, guidance and assistance. With this information in mind, I sponsored a bill that establishes a pilot mentoring project at Western Washington University (WWU) in partnership with a community or technical college. The program’s goal is to encourage elementary students to complete high school and pursue college. While I was able to work on these great bills, I also worked to try and defeat bills that were not good and I was disappointed with the passage of HB 1487 and SB 5734. The first one will extend in-state tuition rates at Washington state colleges and universities to foreign professionals at companies such as Microsoft and Amazon, as well as to their children and spouses. We only allow a certain amount of opportunities for resident tuition rates and we are displacing local residents with H-1B visa holders, their families and dependents. Microsoft can well afford out-of-state tuition for its people; we should not be subsidizing those costs for Microsoft workers while at the same time making deep cuts into the budgets of our universities and colleges. SB 5734 removed the tuition setting authority from the Legislature and, instead, gave it to the Boards of Regents at universities and colleges. However, the Boards of Regents are unelected and, therefore, unaccountable private citizens. I was opposed to this because I felt that as public institutions the tuition setting authority should remain with those who can be held accountable for ensuring that it stays affordable and accessible to everyone. | |
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Health Care | |
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Kids are our state’s most precious asset, so this session we managed to set aside $850,000 for the Apple Health for Kids program. A couple of years ago the Legislature made the commitment to provide health coverage for every child in Washington state by 2012. I am happy to report we are on the right track; in fact, we believe we’ll reach our goal ahead of time. Many people are struggling to meet their health care needs, so we required the state’s Medicaid program to cover and reimburse home health services delivered through telemedicine. Due to the national recession, the number of unemployed workers has increased dramatically and, although health care coverage is available to unemployed workers through the federal Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) program, it is too expensive. This year we passed legislation that allows unemployed workers to apply directly for individual health insurance they can afford. | |
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Small Businesses | |
I believe everybody should have the same chance to succeed. But that is seldom the case, particularly when it comes to small businesses. Since they are the backbone of our economy, it only makes sense to support them, especially during hard times. This session I focused on several measures to do just that: support Washington small businesses. Small Businesses & State Contracting Many small businesses don’t have access to state contracts because the projects are too large or because, since the projects are not listed on the Washington Electronic Business Solutions (WEBS), they simply don’t know about them. This lack of opportunities to compete for state contracts indicates there is a serious problem with the system. I worked with small-business owners last interim and listened to their concerns about access to state contracting and procurement opportunities. So this session I sponsored HB 1095, which requires the state's central service agencies to list all their contracts up for bids on the WEBS. Under my bill, the agencies must develop procedures to encourage and facilitate state agency purchases of products, and break larger contracts down to more manageable sizes. The bill passed the House unanimously, but it never even got a hearing in the Senate. I found a different avenue to get it through by working with the Senate, and managed to amend my bill onto SB 5723, which was signed into law. Another bill I drafted, HB 1096, would have given Washington’s small businesses a bid preference over companies based out of state. It didn’t make it this year but we’ll try again next session. I could use your support at Legislative Committee hearings to testify in support of this bill. Call my office if you’d like to get involved. Access to Capital  As a result of work within the minority and women owned business community, I sponsored a couple of bills that will promote the development of these small businesses. Washington state was ranked as the second best state for business by Forbes.com, but even here you can’t start any kind of venture without access to capital. I sponsored HB 1166 to address that problem; my bill will allow Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) to participate in the linked deposit program, which will give certified minority and women owned businesses greater access to capital. To find out more on how to become certified, please visit the Office of Minority and Women’s Business Enterprise website here.
To make sure the linked deposit program is effective we need accountability. So I also sponsored HB 1167 to direct the Office of Minority and Women’s Business Enterprise (OMWBE) along with the State Treasurer, to study how accessible and effective the linked deposit program is. Unfortunately, the governor vetoed the sections of my bill that would have looked at how many loans are not being funded and why. Also, the global economic crisis has lowered interest rates to a point where, because of the way the linked deposit program is set up, the state might have ended up paying money instead of receiving interest on deposited money. Due to this fear, the linked deposit program had been frozen; my bill fixes that by allowing the State Treasurer to reduce the interest rate of these loans to zero in times when the general interest rate is between 0 and 2 percent. This way the linked deposit program should be up and running again, providing low-interest loans to women and minority owned businesses. | |
| Economic Development and Green Energy | |
Broadband is of critical value to all parts of our state – rural and urban. Jobs, business, education, and health care can be more efficiently distributed by government with broadband, so I co-sponsored a bill to direct the Department of Information Services to engage in high-speed internet activities. Funding for this project comes from the federal stimulus dollars as part of President Obama’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.  This session I worked to support, and we passed, the Evergreen Jobs Act, which will create 15,000 new green-economy jobs by 2020, target 30 percent of the jobs to certain populations, and secure federal and other green-economy funding. It authorizes workforce-training organizations to prioritize training programs that lead to certification for green-economy jobs. Another green measure passed this year will require state and local governments, as well as other entities, to implement the use of electric vehicles by modifying zoning and development codes, building permits, transportation policy, and environmental regulations. Reducing greenhouse emissions is a global priority and Washington state will lead the way. Here’s the goal: by 2020, emissions will be 15% below the 2005 level; 36% below 2005 levels by 2035; and 57.5% below 2005 levels by 2050. State government will reduce vehicle-fuel consumption and emissions by phasing in better fuel-economy standards. When considering applicants for state infrastructure grant programs, state agencies will consider whether the applicant has adopted greenhouse gas emission policies. Agencies will also develop an integrated response strategy to climate change, to help Washington prepare for and adapt to climate change impacts. You may have heard different versions of what we did regarding state parks this session. As one of the sponsors of this bill, I want you to have the accurate version: as of September 1, 2009, the Department of Licensing started collecting a $5 donation from vehicle owners when they renew their vehicle registrations. But vehicle owners may opt out of paying the donation. These donations are expected to raise $28 million that will be used to help keep parks open, maintained and available to the public despite severe budget cutbacks. I also want to make sure you know that through a combination of state and federal money, we’re jumpstarting our economy this construction season, new roads and buildings are laying the groundwork for future economic development in our state. This means family-wage jobs immediately and better prospects for attracting and keeping good-paying jobs in the future. Of course, a lot of folks need short-term help to bridge the gap between jobs. During hard times when working families need it most, we have coordinated with the Obama administration to provide added funding for unemployment benefits, increasing the weekly amounts and expanding the training benefits program. Unemployed workers will now be eligible to receive unemployment benefits while training for new jobs. We have also opened the program to disabled workers, honorably discharged military personnel and low-income workers. But not all the news is as good for workers when it comes to unemployment insurance. The Legislature had originally given businesses a $250 million reduction in UI taxes to help mitigate their costs in economic tough times. Under SB 5963, the UI bill, businesses were going to get an additional $127 million tax cut and it granted a permanent UI tax cut to businesses. The 2010-2015 tax rates were lowered about $377 million and, assuming the economy recovers, SB 5963 will save businesses some $1.6 billion every five years after that. I strongly believed that if we were going to help out businesses with a dramatic tax cut, then we should also provide some help to workers. Fifty-two other legislators agreed with me and we offered an amendment to this bill that would retain some assistance for workers who were unemployed, including a permanent increase in unemployment benefits from $8 to $19 a week after next year’s expiration of the temporary boost. I was disappointed that the amendment failed and the Legislature ended up passing a multi-million dollar tax break to businesses without offering any extra protection to workers. | |
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Consumer Protection | |
Thanks to a new law passed this session, homeowners and tenants will get more notice with foreclosures on deeds of trust; it will require lenders to contact homeowners prior to issuing a notice of default and it will also give tenants more time to move after a foreclosure sale. When cash is short, sometimes payday loans are the only option, but it’s easy to fall into an endless cycle of debt. With this in mind, we passed legislation that:
Washington state has taken significant strides in bringing justice and equality for all its residents. This year we worked hard so that state-registered domestic partners are treated the same as married spouses for all purposes under state law. | |
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Worker privacy | |
 Did you know that, as it stands today, the law allows an employer to force workers to attend meetings in which the employer presses company views on religious, political and union issues? Workers can be—and often are—fired or disciplined for refusing to participate in these meetings. The Worker Privacy Act, which I co-sponsored, would have put a stop to these mandatory meetings. In America, we shouldn’t be forced to surrender our rights for the ability to work. What it all comes down to is that workers should have the right to think what they want to think. Matters of individual conscience are just that: matters that pertain to an individual and nobody else. This legislation would have allowed workers to decide whether or not to take part in these meetings without any threat to their employment status. The bill clearly stated that employers could express their views on absolutely any topic. Certainly. But they couldn’t force workers to listen to those views by threatening their jobs. I am disappointed that the measure didn’t make it through the 2009 legislative session. But I remain committed to supporting the fight again in future sessions for the rights of Washington working people.  Rep. Bob Hasegawa purchasing the first bottle of wine at the Legislative Gift center on August 10, 2009. I’d like to close this report by inviting you to stop at the Capitol next time you’re in Olympia. You’ll be able to see a truly amazing building and, if you happen to step into the Legislative Gift Center, you can now purchase wine. That’s right; I sponsored a bill that now allows the Capitol’s gift center to sell wine produced in Washington by licensed wineries. Wine is not sold to people under 21, and you can’t drink it on the Capitol campus. I wrote this bill because selling Washington wine in the Legislative gift shop alongside many other locally-made products makes perfect sense. When people think of Washington state the first thing that comes to mind is apples and, while that’s great and true, our state has also made important investments to develop the wine industry. Look at the results: we’re the second largest quality wine producers in the nation. Our wine history has been a huge economic development success. I want to thank you for taking the time to read this electronic newsletter and would appreciate your feedback. Even though we’re not currently in session, please keep in mind that I am your representative year-round, so let me know if you have ideas on how to make improvements to our district and our state. Be sure to call or email me with your thoughts and your concerns. Your input helps me serve you better. Best regards,  Bob Hasegawa |
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