House passes Pettigrew bills focused on children and families

February 25, 2008

OLYMPIA – The House passed a number of bills by Rep. Eric Pettigrew (D-Seattle) that are now being considered in the Senate.

“My focus is championing laws to help kids and families,” Pettigrew said. “There’s a pile of evidence that investing in kids gives us the best payoff for our tax dollars – and I believe it’s our moral duty to do our best for the most vulnerable in society.”

Among the bills Pettigrew passed:

Better Pay and Training for Child Care Workers (House Bill 2449)
“We now know – thanks to some world-leading research at UW – that kids learn the most during their first few years,” Pettigrew said. “Half of our kids aren’t ready to learn on the first day of kindergarten – and many of those kids never catch up. So it doesn’t make any sense to pay early learning teachers and child care workers a little more than minimum wage. Our kids need the best possible preparation those first critical years.”

Pettigrew said his bill is aimed at giving every child a better chance at school.

“If you’re rich, you can afford to pay for great pre-school for your kids,” Pettigrew said. “It’s the middle class and working moms and dads who have to struggle to find affordable, top-quality preschools and child care. I’m a father, so I know what it’s like. And I believe every child – rich or poor, black or white or Asian or Latino – deserves a fair shot at success in school and life.”

Local Farms and Healthy Kids Act (House Bill 2798)
This bill brings fresh food from local farms to our students in public schools.

“This bill is about making sure our students have fresh, healthy food from local farms,” Pettigrew said. “In the short term, students do better in class when their bodies and brains are fueled with good nutrition instead of junk. And in the long term, the eating habits they form early tend to last a lifetime.”

Achievement Gap (House Bill 2722)
This measure focuses on closing the achievement gap among African-American students.

“There’s nothing that makes me more sad than seeing a young man or woman not reach their potential in school,” Pettigrew said. “And nothing makes me more proud than to watch a student get excited about learning and get good grades and get a college degree. We can do better for our kids, and that’s what this bill is about.”

Housing Discrimination (House Bill 1956)
This bill bans income discrimination when it comes to housing loans.

“Owning a home in a safe neighborhood with good schools – that’s the foundation of the American Dream,” Pettigrew said. “This bill is about treating people equally, about ending discrimination so that working families and the middle class can get a fair loan to buy their first home.” 

Student Discipline (House Bill 2884)
This measure is in response to a series of incidents in local schools. 

“There’s no reason to put a student in handcuffs for minor discipline problems – but that’s what was happening in Kent,” Pettigrew said. “Seattle has some of the toughest schools in the state, but the entire district has a ‘no-touch’ policy that works. So this bill sets up standards to prevent the kind of problems that students had to deal with in Kent and elsewhere. Our schools aren’t jails and students shouldn’t be treated like inmates.”