I don’t believe unemployment benefits are meant to be paid to people who walk off the job and go on strike, yet on Friday the majority Democrats on the Senate budget committee endorsed a bill to allow that. To view the public hearing that led to the vote on SB...

Dear Neighbor, The results of a recent survey of 600 Washington voters showed up in my inbox earlier this month. Most of the survey questions had to do with state spending, one way or another. That makes sense considering how years of overspending have finally caught up with the majority...

With Sen. Lynda Wilson of Vancouver in the Senate chamber. The supplemental operating budget passed today by the state Senate reflects some of my input, which I worked through her as Senate Republican budget leader and her counterparts on the majority side. Keep reading for details. Dear Neighbor, Greetings from...

Dear Neighbors, Greetings from the state Capitol! Our 2024 session began at noon a week ago with a combination of ceremony and housekeeping. Although it’s my fourth session as your 16th District state senator, I can’t imagine that the opening-day traditions will ever get old — and as a member...

September 2023 Dear Neighbor, Greetings from here at the ranch! Legislators refer to the months between our annual sessions as “interim,” and if you look at when the 2023 session ended (late April) and when the 2024 session begins (early January), we’re not much past the halfway point of this...

On Tuesday morning I had the pleasure of taking part in a memorable ceremony for the B5 Community Learning Center in Kennewick. Often the shovels are put in the hands of the elected officials and others who have had roles in getting a project to the construction stage; this time...

No one would have seen this in 2021 and 2022, because pandemic restrictions kept the public from being heard when legislators were in session. I’m glad that’s over! The people of Washington have the right to come to their Capitol and assemble peacefully, the way we saw last week from...

At the edge of the Senate chamber with Sen. Nikki Torres of Pasco, foreground, and Sen. Lynda Wilson of Vancouver. Dear Neighbor, Greetings from Olympia! As if there weren’t enough important decisions left for legislators to make, with just eight days remaining in our time at the Capitol, there is...

April 2, 2023 On the floor of the Senate chamber this week with Sen. Matt Boehnke, R-Kennewick. This is his first session as a senator, coming over from the House; we’re neighbors, as the 8th Legislative District is primarily the Kennewick and Richland portions of Benton County adjacent to our...