The Legislature will begin its second week of session by honoring Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Asian Pacific Islander Coalition is hosting a community briefing on Thursday, January 21. This year, they will be sending a statewide delegation of leaders to meet with Governor Inslee and state legislators to discuss issues that impact Asian American and Pacific Islander communities. View more details.

The Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs would like to highlight the following public hearings that may be of interest to the community:

Education

The Senate Early Learning & K-12 Education Committee will hold a public hearing to discuss implementing strategies to close the educational opportunity gap. The House Education Committee will have a hearing on HB 2006 that would create a model for language access by limited-English proficient parents of students.

January 18, 2016

  • SB 6194: Concerning public schools that are not common schools.

January 19, 2016

  • HB 2449: Providing court-based and school-based intervention and prevention efforts to promote attendance and reduce truancy.
  • HB 1243: Providing flexibility for how school districts address truancy of students.
  • HB 2006: Concerning a model policy and procedures for language access by limited-English proficient parents of students.
  • SB 6192: Implementing strategies to close the educational opportunity gap, based on the recommendations of the educational opportunity gap oversight and accountability committee.

Health and Human Services

The House Early Learning & Human Services Committee will have hearings to discuss HB 2439, which increases access to mental health services for children and youth, and HB 2313 to raise the minimum legal smoking age to 21.

January 18, 2016

  • SB 6239: Authorizing local governments to adopt a property tax exemption program for the preservation of certain affordable housing.

January 19, 2016

  • HB 2408: Mitigating barriers to patient access to care resulting from health insurance contracting practices.

January 20, 2016

  • HB 2439: Increasing access to adequate and appropriate mental health services for children and youth.
  • HB 2448: Concerning the practice of certain East Asian medicine therapies.
  • HB 2313: Concerning the age of individuals at which sale or distribution of tobacco and vapor products may be made.

Civil Rights & Justice

The House State Government Committee will have a public hearing on HB 2076 which would help legislators understand disparate racial and ethnic impacts of proposed legislation.

January 19, 2016

  • ESHB 1745: Enacting the Washington voting rights act.

January 21, 2016

  • HB 2076: Regarding information concerning racial disproportionality.

Legislative Committees

Visit the Committee webpage for a full list of committees and their weekly agendas.

Resources