Chief Rocky Eastman headed the delegation from Walla Walla Fire District #4 that came by this past week. If you expect to be anywhere near the state Capitol between now and the March 7 end of this year’s session, I hope you will contact my office and arrange to...

OLYMPIA… While raking in more than $1 billion from the carbon-pricing program that is behind Washington’s crushingly high fuel prices, the state Department of Ecology isn’t being fully open about who is buying and holding the carbon credits. A state senator says that has to change. The state’s Climate Commitment...

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...

OLYMPIA… Agricultural-policy leaders from the Senate Republican Caucus are weighing in on attempts to gaslight the public on why Washington’s gas prices remain highest in the nation. While Gov. Jay Inslee and other Democratic elected officials tried to lay blame on the oil and gas industry during a news conference...

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...

Dear Friends and Neighbors, I hope that you’re all enjoying your summer and spending time with family and friends. It’s been a busy season in southeastern WA and while I have been tackling many projects on our farm, I’ve also had the opportunity to participate in many events, tours, and...