Devon Connor-Greene
WCAAP Legislative Liaison
Happy 2022! The 2022 Legislative session kicked off in Olympia on Monday, January 10. Due to the recent COVID-19 surge, the 60-day session will once again be a mostly remote with online committee hearings. WCAAP has big plans for the session to champion policies that advance equity and improve child health and well-being. You can read about our priorities at wcaap.org/advocacy
Our top priorities are:
- SB 5129 – Prevent law enforcement from detaining or fining youth (under 18) if suspected of purchasing, using, or possessing commercial tobacco or vapor products (Sen. Saldaña)
- HB 1676 – Vape tax increase commensurate to cigarette tax & increase funding for commercial tobacco control (Rep. Harris)
- Bill # TBD / Budget – Fund non-licensed team members for BH coordination and to help families with Social Determinants of Health (Sen. Frockt)
- SB 5768 – Authorize the State Board of Health to ban vape/tobacco flavors (Sen. Kuderer)
- Budget – Startup funding to establish collaborative care in primary care settings (Rep. Callan)
We will keep you up to date on our progress throughout the session with weekly Advocacy Update emails. Keep an eye out for Action Alerts, which give you an opportunity to contact legislators and help us move bills along. You can also download WCAAP’s VoterVoiceapp to get action alerts sent right to your phone.
Finally, please join us for WCAAP’s annual Advocacy Day on February 4th. You can register here.
- Learn effective advocacy strategies
- Hear from legislative champions about issues that affect children
- Interact directly with policymakers
- Share your experiences caring for children
No experience is necessary! We’ll provide talking points and issue briefs to help you prepare for conversations with legislators. We also have a great lineup of speakers planned – including Representative Dr. Kim Schrier, who represents Washington’s 8th District in Congress – and will be honoring Senator David Frockt for his work as he winds up his term in office. We hope you can join us.