Author Archives: Laudan

03-13-15: KPQ Legislative Hotline with 12th District legislators (audio)

Rep. Cary Condotta, Rep. Brad Hawkins and Sen. Linda Evans Parlette talk with Steve Hair on the KPQ Legislative Hotline about the halfway point of the 2015 session, including issues related to the governor’s carbon tax proposal, a Boeing jobs bill, an education town hall meeting, and the status of a mandatory child vaccination bill.

Find more audio content on our Web site.

# # #

Washington State House Republican Communications
www.houserepublicans.wa.gov
451 John L. O’Brien Building – P.O. Box 40600 – Olympia, WA 98504-0600
Broadcast studio: (360) 786-5046

Rep. Hawkins’ Update from Olympia: March 12, 2015

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

We have been busy over the past couple weeks in anticipation of last night’s floor cutoff deadline. Now that March 11th has passed, House-approved bills will be heard in Senate committees and Senate-approved bills will be heard in House committees. Policy bills that were not approved by their respective chambers – other than the bills necessary to implement the budget – are done for the year.

As you can imagine, there are many bills of interest to our district, and I appreciate the comments I have received from many of you about them. One major topic of discussion this year has been the minimum wage. Last week, the House passed a measure to increase the minimum wage to $12 an hour over the course of four years. I voted “no” because I’m concerned about the impact it would have on small businesses operating on thin margins and on youth employment opportunities. Washington state currently has the highest minimum wage in the United States, but it could increase even further if the Senate approves House Bill 1355.

As for my bills, my School Infrastructure Recovery Bill, House Bill 1003, passed the House unanimously and now awaits action in the Senate. Another bill I sponsored at the request of Chelan County, House Bill 1752, related to residency requirements for chief examiners, also successfully passed the House. Both bills will soon be receiving Senate hearings. I am also working on multiple budget items related to important projects in our district and the Carlton Complex Fire long-term recovery efforts.

Hearing directly from you is always important to me, so please feel free to contact me anytime if you have information to share. I also want to invite you to a town hall meeting this Friday, March 13 from 4:00-5:30 p.m. The meeting will take place in the 2nd floor Ponderosa Room at the North Central Educational Service District office, 430 Olds Station Road in Wenatchee. I’m specifically inviting educators and school employees to attend, but I encourage anyone to come and participate.

Finally, I want to thank everyone who took the time to complete my survey about the tourism marketing proposal. I received helpful feedback that I’ve shared with some of my colleagues here. Here’s the results of the survey.

Thank you for the opportunity to serve as your state representative.

Sincerely,

Brad Hawkins

State Representative Brad Hawkins
12th Legislative District
E-mail: brad.hawkins@leg.wa.gov
Web site: www.representativebradhawkins.com
122G Legislative Building – P.O. Box 40600 | Olympia, WA 98504-0600
(360) 786-7832 or Toll-free: (800) 562-6000

03-06-15: 12th District lawmakers give legislative update on KOHO Radio (audio)

Sen. Linda Evans Parlette, Rep. Cary Condotta and Rep. Brad Hawkins talk with KOHO Radio’s Clint Strand about several legislative issues, including: a marijuana omnibus bill, a proposal to increase the state’s minimum wage, and a vote in the Senate on a transportation revenue package.

Find more audio content on our Web site.

# # #

Washington State House Republican Communications
www.houserepublicans.wa.gov
451 John L. O’Brien Building – P.O. Box 40600 – Olympia, WA 98504-0600
Broadcast studio: (360) 786-5046

03-06-15: 12th District lawmakers give legislative update on KOZI Radio (audio)

Sen. Linda Evans Parlette, Rep. Cary Condotta and Rep. Brad Hawkins provide a legislative update to KOZI’s Jay Witherbee with discussion of a transportation revenue package, funding of local road projects, preserving classes in Stehekin, compacts with tribes getting into the marijuana business, floor debate on bills, and House passage of a bill to raise the state’s minimum wage.

Find more audio content on our Web site.

# # #

Washington State House Republican Communications
www.houserepublicans.wa.gov
451 John L. O’Brien Building – P.O. Box 40600 – Olympia, WA 98504-0600
Broadcast studio: (360) 786-5046

03-06-15: 12th District legislators provide update on KPQ Legislative Hotline (audio)

KPQ News Director Steve Hair talks with Rep. Cary Condotta, Rep. Brad Hawkins and Sen. Linda Evans Parlette about issues of the 2015 session, including House passage of a bill to raise the state minimum wage to $12 an hour, education funding, and the governor’s low carbon fuel standard.

Find more audio content on our Web site.

# # #

Washington State House Republican Communications
www.houserepublicans.wa.gov
451 John L. O’Brien Building – P.O. Box 40600 – Olympia, WA 98504-0600
Broadcast studio: (360) 786-5046

03-06-15: Capitol Conversation with Rep. Brad Hawkins (audio)

Rep. Brad Hawkins, R-East Wenatchee, talks about legislation he has proposed during the 2015 session, including school recovery efforts from the Carlton Complex Fire, and a bill that would change residency requirements for chief examiners.

Find more audio content on our Web site.

# # #

Washington State House Republican Communications
www.houserepublicans.wa.gov
451 John L. O’Brien Building – P.O. Box 40600 – Olympia, WA 98504-0600
Broadcast studio: (360) 786-5046

Bill sponsored by Rep. Brad Hawkins at request of Chelan County approved by House

A bill introduced by Rep. Brad Hawkins, R-East Wenatchee, at the request of Chelan County Commissioners was approved by the House of Representatives today by a vote of 92-5. House Bill 1752 would update a law from the 1950s pertaining to residency requirements of a staff-level county position known as chief examiner.

A chief examiner maintains records and testing procedures for civil service positions in counties. A chief examiner is a staff-level, non-elected position usually within a county’s human resources division. Under current law, a county’s chief examiner must reside within the county. House Bill 1752 would relieve counties of this strict residency requirement.

“In the Wenatchee Valley, because of the proximity of our two cities, counties, and school districts, some employees live in one jurisdiction and work in another. When the county brought this old statute to my attention about a staff-level county position, I thought it made sense to get it updated,” said Hawkins. “Other counties in the state need this little-known law updated as well and might not even realize they have a potential compliance issue. It is a modest bill, but I am glad I can help.”

House Bill 1752 now advances to the Senate for consideration.

For more information about Rep. Hawkins, visit: www.representativebradhawkins.com.

###

Rep. Hawkins’ media:

Washington State House Republican Communications
www.houserepublicans.wa.gov
461 John L. O’Brien Building
P.O. Box 40600
Olympia, WA 98504-0600

OPINION by Rep. Brad Hawkins: A Legislator’s Response to the Carlton Complex Fire

By Rep. Brad Hawkins

After the devastating Carlton Complex Fire that deeply affected the communities and economy of the Methow Valley, our Legislature is taking action to respond to our natural disaster, including providing funding and changing policies as needed. As your state representative, I am working to turn over every rock to find funding for the recovery efforts and to understand the lessons learned.

The Legislature recently adopted changes to the 2013-15 supplemental budget that appropriated $1.2 million for wildfire recovery. This includes funding for various emergency watershed, debris removal, landscape seeding, and wildlife fencing projects. These state dollars will also help maximize federal funding. I have sponsored House Bill 2022 to create a Natural Disaster Recovery Account in an effort to direct more funding to the recovery effort in the upcoming 2015-17 budget and to prepare the state for future disasters.

My legislative colleagues have been very interested in learning about what happened and how we can best move forward. The Community Development, Housing and Tribal Affairs Committee I serve on hosted a work session at my request about the recovery efforts. Amy Stork, executive director of TwispWorks; Julie Muyllaert, president of the Winthrop Chamber of Commerce; Roni Holder Deifenback, executive director of the Okanogan County Economic Alliance; and members of the Carlton Complex Long Term Recovery Group Carlene Anders and Jon Wyss all traveled to Olympia to share stories about the need for economic recovery.

We shared an emotional video of the destruction. As you may know, the video includes the song “Wildfire” sang by local artist Brittany Jean and shows how the economies of Okanogan County and the Methow Valley were affected. Committee members were visibly emotional after watching the video and hearing from the group. These locals did a great job and made a compelling argument to the committee. We later visited the Speaker of the House to share information at the highest levels of state government about the recovery process and the need for continued state support.

Another response to the fire, aside from financial support, is implementing policies to help our state respond to these disasters more quickly and effectively. I am sponsoring House Bill 1003 that would pull together state resources and agencies to develop a model policy to help school districts restore their facilities following natural disasters. Pateros School District suffered over $2 million of damage to its only school building and school officials shared with me their struggle of not knowing where to start and who to contact to get their school renovated and ready for the school year. My proposal would provide clear information to school districts about who to contact and what funding sources are available. The bill unanimously passed the House of Representatives and is being considered in the Senate.

Though the recovery from this fire could take 10 years or more, I am committed as your state representative to helping however I can. At the legislative level, this is a team effort and my colleagues from the 12^th and 7^th Districts have been working very hard as well to assist in the recovery, including sponsoring the funding of critical projects in the affected areas and advancing bills through the legislative process. I remain both in awe and proud of the people I represent. Your determination and selflessness during this time has been the light in the midst of this darkness, and this will be what gets you through the challenges ahead.

###

Rep. Brad Hawkins represents the 12^th Legislative District, which includes Chelan, Douglas, and parts of Grant and Okanogan counties. He can be reached at his office in Olympia by email at brad.hawkins@leg.wa.gov or by phone (360) 786-7832 or toll-free (800) 562-6000. Sign up for his periodic e-mail updates on his website at: www.representativebradhawkins.com.

Rep. Hawkins’ media:

Washington State House Republican Communications
www.houserepublicans.wa.gov
461 John L. O’Brien Building
P.O. Box 40600
Olympia, WA 98504-0600

02-27-15: 12th District lawmakers give legislative update on KOHO Radio (audio)

Feb. 27, 2015

12th District lawmakers give legislative update on KOHO Radio

KOHO Radio’s Dan Longager talks with Sen. Linda Evans Parlette, Rep. Cary Condotta and Rep. Brad Hawkins about current issues in the 2015 Legislature, including: a proposal to increase the minimum wage; police body cameras; and legislative deadlines to pass bills.

Find more audio content on our Web site.

# # #

Washington State House Republican Communications
www.houserepublicans.wa.gov
451 John L. O’Brien Building – P.O. Box 40600 – Olympia, WA 98504-0600
Broadcast studio: (360) 786-5046