OLYMPIA, WA – After two years of delivering his State of the State Address virtually, Washington State Governor Jay Inslee stood before the joint session of the Legislature, members of the Supreme Court, and other dignitaries this morning to talk about what he thinks are the most important issues during the 2023 Legislative session. He touched on a wide variety of topics, including homelessness, salmon, climate change, reproduction rights, and public safety. He also called for the banning of “military-style assault weapons.”
As leaders, he says lawmakers will be called upon these next few months to act with “decisiveness, ambition and audacity.”
Five years ago, the State launched a transformation of its century-old behavioral health system. Two years ago, we funded a new type of rapid acquisition housing program. The climate policies they passed in recent sessions are now going into effect.
Two years ago, the Legislature also passed a Working Families Tax Credit which starts next month. This credit will put as much as $1,200 into the hands of more than 400,000 Washington families. Inslee says the list goes on – paid family leave, broadband access, career connected learning, and the best financial aid program in the country.
Inslee says if they continue building on the investments and policies they have started, they can create an even better State.
Inslee provided housing and homelessness as an example. He says states across the country are seeing an increase in homelessness, and Washington is one of them.
Today, he says we are short 81,000 housing units and the situation is worsening by the thousands every year. The State’s population grew nearly a million people in the past decade, yet housing stock only grew by about 315,000 units. Inslee says we need another million units in the next 17 years.
Inslee says he understands the frustration of those who wonder why the homelessness problem isn’t solved yet.
Inslee is proposing a $4 billion referendum that will significantly speed up the construction of thousands of new units that will include shelters, supportive housing, and affordable housing. He adds that this will be combined with additional behavioral health support, substance use treatment, employment services, and more.
Meanwhile, one effort they have made tremendous progress on is climate.
On the investment side, the Climate Commitment Act that passed in 2021 is now live. Inslee says it will provide an estimated $1.7 billion that will be used for projects to drive down emissions, create jobs, and make communities healthier.
The CCA is also helping to invest in the strongest suite of salmon recovery actions in State history, he says.
Inslee says he also wants to focus on public safety – including new gun legislation – during the Legislative session.
This year, Inslee says lawmakers need to continue that work in three ways – such as safety training before a weapon is purchased.
Inslee says the Legislature also needs to increase the accountability of manufacturers and dealers; and he adds that it is time for lawmakers to ban the sale of military-style assault weapons.
He says gun safety laws are not the only thing the State needs. Inslee wants to help local law enforcement agencies hire and train more officers.
There is one other important priority Inslee says the Legislature must address, and that’s the rights of Washingtonians to seek reproductive care.
The 2023 Legislative session is scheduled to end on April 24th.
