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Dear Friends and Neighbors,

Hello from Olympia during the eighth week of the legislative session.

Click to watch my video update.

It’s been a busy couple weeks since I last spoke to you, and we recently passed important cutoff dates of the 2013 legislative process.

The 2013 legislative calendar

As you may know, our work at the Washington State Legislature is driven by a series of cutoff dates by which bills must be advanced in the legislative process, or they are unable to become law.

• February 22: all bills must be out of their policy committees in either the House or Senate, wherever the legislation originated.
• March 1: bills which have a fiscal note and must be considered by fiscal committees before moving on.
• March 13: the halfway point of the session and the “house of origin” cutoff after any bill introduced and heard in the House policy committees must have been approved by the full House of Representatives to still be eligible to move on in the process.

We are quickly moving through the 2013 legislative process, and these cutoff dates are meant to hold us as legislators accountable to making sure we complete our business in a timely manner.

All bills still alive in both the House and Senate will have to complete the same process in the opposite chamber. If any of my pieces of legislation move forward in the process, I may be called upon to testify in the Senate policy committee to which the bill has been assigned.

• April 3: the date for bills to be out of the opposite body’s policy committees.
• April 9: bills with fiscal notes must be out of fiscal committees in the House or Senate.
• April 17: Bills must be approved by either the full Senate or House of Representatives.
• April 28: The last day of the 2013 regular legislative session.

In the coming weeks, we will begin to consider bills for the Transportation, Capital and Operating Budgets. The drafting of the Operating Budget is often dependent on the latest revenue forecast, which is scheduled for March 20. Having the most current revenue forecast available when crafting the operating budget is important so we can be the best stewards of your dollars. When considering the budget this year, I will work hard to maintain our priorities of funding education first, protecting our most vulnerable and preserving public safety.

It’s an honor to represent you here in Olympia as your State Representative.  Thank you for the opportunity to serve.

Brad Hawkins

State Representative Brad Hawkins
12th Legislative District

E-mail: brad.hawkins@leg.wa.gov
Web site: houserepublicans.wa.gov/hawkins

122G Legislative Building – P.O. Box 40600 | Olympia, WA 98504-0600
(360) 786-7832 or Toll-free: (800) 562-6000

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

I was so honored to have my hometown pastor, Steve Brewer from Eastmont Baptist Church (pictured below) come to Olympia to spend time with me and offer the opening prayer in the House Chambers. I was so proud to have him address the House of Representatives on February 22, and it is always nice to have visitors from home in Olympia. You can watch his prayer here.

The first cutoff deadline

We’ve reached an important point in the 2013 legislative session, our first cutoff deadline. All bills must be out of House policy committees in order to still be “alive” and eligible to move forward in the legislative process, except those with fiscal notes or those necessary to implement the budget.

The bills which have advanced will next have the option of being heard in the House chambers and voted on by the full House of Representatives. In the near future we will begin to hear the 2013 operating budget proposals, and House Republicans have already begun crafting a budget which will fund education first, provide for the most vulnerable and protect public safety. I will bring you more information on our proposal in coming weeks after the March 20 revenue forecast.

A look into the committee process

I recently brokered a compromise on a piece of legislation which is a good illustration of how a bill is sometimes improved during the committee process.

House Bill 1562 would fund two professional development days for K-12 educators so they could better understand new evaluation systems. Legislation enacted in past years requires development of revised evaluation systems for teachers and principals. Instead of simply a satisfactory/unsatisfactory grade, teachers would have eight new evaluation criteria. This will help our teachers better understand expectations when teaching our children in the classroom.

The education community agrees our teachers deserve time to better understand how they will be evaluated in the future. But the sticking point for Republicans was that there was no date for these days to stop being funded. In effect, they would be accounted for in our state budget forever. If all House Republicans voted against this bill, it would have still passed the Education Committee. However, in the bigger picture, a split vote in a committee does not put the legislation on a successful course. Educators in the state of Washington need this legislation to pass in some form, so a failure in the legislative process is unacceptable.

I crafted an amendment which I hoped would garner the support from both my Republican and Democratic colleagues. The amendment was designed to fund the professional development days for the next two years, rather than fund them indefinitely. This amendment was supported by the Democrats and switched all of the Republican votes from a “No” to a “Yes.” The unanimous committee vote greatly increases the bill’s likelihood of passage. You can watch my amendment being approved in the House Education Committee here.

As always, it is an honor to serve as your state representative. Please contact me if you have any questions or comments about how I can best represent you.

Thank you,

Brad Hawkins

State Representative Brad Hawkins
12th Legislative District

E-mail: brad.hawkins@leg.wa.gov
Web site: houserepublicans.wa.gov/hawkins

122G Legislative Building – P.O. Box 40600 | Olympia, WA 98504-0600
(360) 786-7832 or Toll-free: (800) 562-6000

Brad Hawkins Home    |   About Brad    |    Brad’s Newsroom    |    Sponsored Bills    |    12th Legislative District Map

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

Hello from Olympia, and welcome to my email update!

In prior email updates I have explained my role on my three policy committees. In this update, I’d like to take an opportunity to discuss some of the bills I have sponsored, and why I think they are good for the 12th District and Washington state.

First, I’d like to explain my legislative philosophy because it may differ from others in Olympia. I believe we need less intervention from government in our lives and too may bills are introduced each session. The more bills we hear, the more rushed the legislative process becomes. I believe that as legislators we need to think critically about every piece of legislation we consider. We should be a deliberative body; we owe it to the people of Washington.

Below you will find a few of the bills I have personally signed my name to because I believe they are important for our State and district.

House Bill 1174—Known as the “Fund Education First” bill—I consider this to be the most important piece of legislation we will consider this session. I wrote an opinion piece which appeared in the Wenatchee World that explains my view on why funding education first, before any other money is allocated for state programs, is the right thing for our state.

Here is the last paragraph of my submission, which summarizes my view on this important piece of legislation:

“If we are serious about meeting our constitutional and court obligations — and if we want to do so within existing revenues — we need the Legislature to pass the Fund Education First bill. If not, all aspects of the budget could be treated similarly in terms of priority, and certain lawmakers will likely once again politicize educational issues in an attempt to justify higher taxes.”

House Bill 1733—This bill aims to promote greater transparency in government spending. I co-sponsored this legislation with a freshman House Democrat, and the bill has received bipartisan support. It would leverage existing government data to create a user-friendly online map which would display capital Budget and transportation Budget spending by legislative district and county.

I believe strongly that the people who elect us want legislators to work together, and they want transparency in government spending. This bill will help citizens across the state better understand where Capital and Transportation budget investments are made.

House Joint Memorial 4207—This legislation is called a memorial because it would amend the State Constitution. HJM 4207 would modify the eligibility requirements for superior court judges to ensure they live in the county they were elected to serve in. This is already the case for all elected officials except superior court judges, and recently a judge in our state was elected in one county, but lives in another. I believe all elected officials should live in the communities they are elected to represent, and this bill would ensure that.

To see the full list of bills I am sponsoring this session, click here. As you will discover, this list is not long, but I believe quality over quantity will be how we move the state forward.

As always, it is an honor to serve and represent you as your 12th District Representative.

Sincerely,

Brad Hawkins

State Representative Brad Hawkins
12th Legislative District

E-mail: brad.hawkins@leg.wa.gov
Web site: houserepublicans.wa.gov/hawkins

122G Legislative Building – P.O. Box 40600 | Olympia, WA 98504-0600
(360) 786-7832 or Toll-free: (800) 562-6000

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

Click to watch my legislative update:

As I mentioned last week, I have been assigned to three policy committees as part of my legislative duties. The Capital Budget Committee, the Business and Financial Services Committee which handles licensing and business regulations and the Education Committee which considers issues related to K-12 education.

Last week I focused on the Education committee, and this week I want to highlight the Capital Budget Committee.
Many people don’t realize that there are actually three budgets we consider every two years in Olympia. Those three budgets are the Transportation budget, the Operating budget and the Capital budget of 3.6 billion dollars.

The Capital Budget

The Capital Budget provides money for the construction and repair of public buildings and for other long-term investments, such as land acquisitions and transfers. In addition, the budget provides state money that is either given or loaned to local governments or nonprofit organizations for infrastructure, housing, and other facilities. I have been appointed as the Assistant Ranking Member of the House Capital Budget Committee.

Many of the programs associated with the Capital Budget come to us after first being analyzed at the state department level. This process is rigorous and helps to prioritize projects by need and scheduling. While working on the Capital Budget, I will be fair to the state budgeting process, but I’ll always keep in mind the types of projects that are important to the 12th District.

The Capital Budget Committee will likely prioritize school construction funding to assist projects approved by local voters. I believe preserving these school construction assistance funds is vital to making sure our students get a great education in a safe, up-to-date building. An example of a local school district benefiting from state matching dollars includes the Eastmont School District for their ongoing building renovations.

The Capital Budget also funds the Public Works Assistance Account, also known as the Public Works Trust Fund. This program provides low-interest loans to local governments that have public works needs and projects are
ranked by the Department of Commerce. Many 12th District projects are being considered for this low-interest loan program, including the Cities of Bridgeport, Chelan, Wenatchee, East Wenatchee, and Winthrop.

The Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program is another competitive program funded through the Capital Budget. This is a state grant program that provides funding to protect habitat, preserve working farms and create new local and state parks. This program has helped to fund many projects in the 12th District in over the years.

In closing, I understand the importance of Capital projects in the 12th District, and I plan to make sure our district continues to receiving funding for capital projects.

Thanks for joining me this week, I look forward to speaking to you again soon.

Sincerely,

Brad Hawkins

State Representative Brad Hawkins
12th Legislative District

E-mail: brad.hawkins@leg.wa.gov
Web site: houserepublicans.wa.gov/hawkins

122G Legislative Building – P.O. Box 40600 | Olympia, WA 98504-0600
(360) 786-7832 or Toll-free: (800) 562-6000

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

Click to watch my legislative update:

As I mentioned last week, I have been assigned to three policy committees as part of my legislative duties:

• The Capital Budget Committee which approves money for the construction and repair of public buildings;
• The Business and Financial Services Committee which considers licensing and business regulations; and
• The Education Committee which considers issues related to K-12 education.

I plan to highlight each of these committees in depth in the coming weeks. First I want to focus on the Education Committee. I’m proud to have received an appointment to the House Education Committee. This is the first time since 1978 that state representative from our district has served on this committee.

One of the primary reasons I decided to run to be your Representative was because I believe Washington children deserve an outstanding education – and that it’s a core service of state government. As a former school board president, parent of young children, and now your legislator, my duty is to make sure our schools are the best they can be. The Washington State Constitution says that education in our paramount duty and a recent Supreme Court decision has directed the legislature to fund education more. To me, this means that we need to maximize existing tax dollars to provide the best possible education to our children.

This is why I am co-sponsoring a House Bill 1174 to prioritize spending so that education is funded first in the budget process before other state appropriations are made. This solution is the “Fund Education First” bill.

The 2013-2015 budget would:

• Fully fund all-day kindergarten across the state
• Provide ½ of the funding enhancements to improve K-3 class sizes

The 2015-2017 budget would:

• Fund the remaining K-3 class-size enhancements
• Provide funding for an additional 80 instructional hours for grades 7-12
• Fund some materials, supplies and operating costs

The 2017-2019 budget would:

• Make the remaining class-size enhancements, including additional pupil-transportation funding

Fund education first would fully fund provisions of House Bill 2261 and House Bill 2776, beginning in fiscal year 2014 and completing in fiscal year 2019.

In the current two-year budget cycle, for example, 44 percent of the operating budget is dedicated to K-12 education. Under the Fund Education First bill, this number would rise to 51 percent in the 2017-19.

If our “Fund Education First” legislation is approved, it would send a message that education is our top priority in Washington state and our paramount duty. It will ensure that education receives the first dollar in the state budgeting process rather than our last dime.

Our state actually has the money to meet our educational needs – it’s just a matter of how lawmakers choose to prioritize spending. I say, let’s focus on the state’s core services – and that starts with education. Our state constitution says it, our state Supreme Court has said it, now let’s do it – without raising your taxes.

As always, it is an honor and a privilege to serve as your 12^th district state representative.

Sincerely,

State Representative Brad Hawkins
12th Legislative District

E-mail: brad.hawkins@leg.wa.gov
Web site: houserepublicans.wa.gov/hawkins

122G Legislative Building – P.O. Box 40600 | Olympia, WA 98504-0600
(360) 786-7832 or Toll-free: (800) 562-6000

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

Hello and welcome to my first e-mail update of the 2013 legislative session. I will be sending out updates periodically throughout the session, and hope you will encourage others in the 12^th District to sign up in order to stay aware of what I am doing in Olympia!

Click to watch my legislative update:

Thank you for the opportunity to represent you here in Olympia. It is both an honor and a privilege. As you probably know, our 12^th legislative district in Central Washington includes all of Chelan County, all of Douglas County, and portions of Okanogan and Grant Counties. There are 49 different legislative districts in our state with two State Representatives elected from each district, so there will be 98 House members designing and debating laws for the State of Washington.

We’ve had a busy first week of session here at the legislature, filled with both ceremonial events as well as policy duties.

I took my oath of office on January 14, followed by two “joint sessions” where we heard from outgoing Governor Christine Gregoire and newly elected Governor Jay Inslee. I had the honor of escorting the Washington State Supreme Court Justices into the House chambers. I also had a chance to take my wife to the Governor’s inaugural ball. In addition to the ceremonial duties, I have been busy listening to testimony in my policy committees.

The legislature will be spending most of the first month of session in committees hearing bills referred to those committees. I have been appointed to serve on three committees:

• Education Committee which considers issues related to K-12 education;
• Capital Budget Committee which approves money for the construction and repair of public buildings; and
• Business and Financial Services which considers licensing and business regulations.

I’m excited about my three committee appointments. They represent a good mix of policy areas both for me and our district and I believe I can make an immediate contribution to the legislative process in these committees. I will be discussing each of these three committees in more detail during future updates.

In addition to my committee meetings, I have also been spending time meeting with constituents.

This is my favorite part of the job! It’s always great to hear from folks back home, to learn more about your legislative priorities, and to study up on issues so that I can serve you effectively.

In closing, I’d like to thank you for the opportunity to represent you here in Olympia.

My office is always open to you and I encourage you to contact me any time to share any thoughts and concerns about state legislative matters. If you happen to be visiting Olympia during the legislative session, please stop in to say hello.

Thank you again for this opportunity to serve as your 12^th District State Representative.

Sincerely,

State Representative Brad Hawkins
12th Legislative District

E-mail: brad.hawkins@leg.wa.gov
Web site: houserepublicans.wa.gov/hawkins

122G Legislative Building – P.O. Box 40600 | Olympia, WA 98504-0600
(360) 786-7832 or Toll-free: (800) 562-6000