By Alison McCaffree, Redistricting Issue Chair

For the 2024 election, new legislative map boundaries will switch half a million people to different districts. On Friday, March 15th, Federal District Court Judge Lasnik handed down the final order for the Soto Palmer v Hobbs lawsuit that declared a Yakima Valley district (LD 15) discriminatory to Latino voters. The order creates a new District 14 with the intent of giving better opportunity for Latino voters to elect a candidate of their choice on an equal basis with other voters. The court’s map also adjusts boundaries in 12 other districts. The unnecessary churn and uncertainty for voters caused by having to make changes at this late date demonstrates why LWVWA supports redistricting reform. A new kind of commission putting people first would minimize partisan influences and emphasize a consensus around what’s best for all communities.

To learn more, please join the Redistricting Reform Task Force for one of two briefings on the Washington State’s new legislative maps. How did we get here? Where do we go next? Register for the virtual discussions taking place on Wednesday, April 10th at 6:30pm and Saturday April 13th at 10:30am.

Where voting district lines are drawn affects every voter’s opportunity to elect representatives who best reflect their thinking. This line-drawing process, known as redistricting, is fundamental to establishing individual voting power, your voting power. Our Washington State maps were redrawn in 2021 to account for population changes following the census. But now, in March 2024, Washington has once again redrawn legislative district lines.

The Swirl.

The new legislative map changes thirteen legislative districts: 2, 5, 7, 8, 9, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 20, 31—with the most significant changes to LD 14 and LD 15. An analysis by The League of Women Voters of Washington’s Redistricting Reform Task Force shows that over 502,000 voters are affected by the changes (See the pink areas in the map below). The new LD14 connects the Latino communities in East Yakima, Yakima Valley and East Pasco and combines it with the Yakama Nation’s main reservation and its fishing villages. According to the court, in this district Latino voters have a better opportunity of electing the candidates of their choice. Creating the new LD14 caused a ripple effect, as the changes swirled through Western Washington districts (note green arrows) to balance population numbers. The Office of the Secretary of State has confirmed that these lines will displace 5 sitting legislators. On March 22nd, the appellate court denied an emergency stay which means the new map will remain in place for the 2024 elections. An appeal process will continue during the summer.

The challenge to the map drawn by the 2021 Redistricting Commission was based on a violation of Section 2 of the federal Voting Rights Act. According to Yurij Rudensky of the Brennen Center, Judge Lasnik’s order applied well established legal principles reaffirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court in a 2022 Alabama redistricting case. The court order concluded that 1) the desires of the Yakama Nation were granted, 2) district changes are reasonable given the redistricting process and 3) partisan interests play no part in the new legislative map development and only necessary changes were implemented. Overall, the court’s decision stated that the new map supports the Latino community of interest in Central Washington that has long been underrepresented. The test of the map will be in November when we will see if voters have the chance to elect people who truly represent them.

The Solution.

LWVWA believes the uncertainty and churn caused by this lawsuit illustrates the need to change our state’s redistricting process. People may or may not like the outcome of a lawsuit. Regardless of the ongoing debate, the League believes that this disruption is not good governance. A better process would likely have created a more representative map in the first place and avoided this new change of districts for so many voters.

The Washington State Redistricting Commission, as currently structured, is often described as independent. It is not. Commissioners are put in place by the two major political parties, with work facilitated by a non-voting chair. Court records show that in the 2021 process, Washington State legislators and their staff members were in regular contact with the redistricting commissioners, essentially lobbying for partisan interests. Additionally, court records show there was no public view into their final deliberations. These records report commissioners worked in partisan pairs, finally voting on maps that neither they nor the public had time to study or evaluate. Many LWVWA members directly experienced this exclusion. Ultimately, Commissioners were fined for violations of the Public Meetings Act and faced several lawsuits, including the Soto Palmer action that resulted in the new map.

The League of Women Voters’ national position supports a new type of redistricting commission with expanded representation beyond the current two-party structure. The Redistricting Reform Task Force is calling this a People First Commission. All members of this type of commission are ordinary citizens who represent Democratic, Republican, and other points of view but who are not officially affiliated with the political parties. A People First Commission puts people’s interests above partisan tradeoffs. The League believes district line drawing should be accomplished in an open, unbiased manner with citizen participation and access at all levels and steps of the process. Our position supports a prompt review and rule by the courts on any challenge to a redistricting plan and requires adjustments if the standards have not been met.

Good models exist in other states. According to analysis of California’s commission, their People First approach is more transparent and accountable, maximizes opportunities for involvement, and ensures the broadest possible representation. The 2020 California Citizen Redistricting Commission’s final report states that they produced fully vetted maps designed to best serve the people of the state. Recent research from University of Southern California, “Fair Maps in the State of California,” shows that these types of commissions have higher public trust and have resulted in legislatures that are more representative of the people in their state. This Fair Maps report concludes, “The result is a process that empowers communities and reduces the influence of political actors.” The LWVWA supports a People First Commission for Washington.

See lwvwa.org/redistricting for more information on how to get involved.

In three months, delegates from the Washington state League will travel to the LWVUS national convention in Washington, D.C., to seek national concurrence of the LWVWA’s Local News and Democracy position:

“It is the responsibility of the government to provide support for conditions under which credible local journalism can survive and thrive.”

If adopted at the national convention in June, the position will empower Leagues throughout the country—at the local, state and national levels—to advocate for national legislation as well as local efforts to rebuild local news.

You can help Washingtonians mount a winning campaign. We will send as many of our potential 53 delegates as possible from local Leagues throughout our state. But doing so is costly. With the registration fee ($550), airfare, hotel, meals, and ground transportation, we estimate costs for each in-person delegate to be at least $2,200. Sending delegates to attend in person will allow us to mount a more powerful and effective campaign, but some of our delegates will attend virtually, with a $150 registration fee.

We could use your financial support! Perhaps this story will inspire you.

One Washington League member never met the man who inspired her recent donation to the LWVWA’s efforts to help address the local news crisis. While growing up, our benefactor said she’d heard her parents praise the Pulitzer Prize-winning World War II correspondent Ernie Pyle, who chronicled the trials and tribulations of thousands of ordinary American airmen and soldiers, first on the battlefields in Europe and then in the Pacific.

“Pyle told people back at home how the ordinary soldiers were doing,” said the League member, who asked not to be identified by name, but explained her father was severely wounded in the Battle of Okinawa. “People on the home front heard from someone who was in the trenches with their loved ones.”

Nearly 80 years later, that human connection, made possible by newspaper reports of both life-altering and every-day events of friends, neighbors and family, is among the several losses we’re experiencing as the local news crisis continues.

The crisis, which has closed one-quarter of the nation’s newspapers and is on track to close one-third by next year, also has been linked with lower voter participation, less civic engagement, fewer candidates for public office, higher government costs and challenges to public health.

As a result of our two-year study, “The Decline of Local News and Its Impact on Democracy,” and concurrence of local leagues across the state, the position earned consensus of our Washington league last year. This enabled the LWVWA to advocate for legislation and programs in the Evergreen state to support local news, media literacy and greater access to local news.

Now you can help the Washington delegates take our position to the national stage. Support local news with a donation to help offset costs for all Washington delegates to the national convention. Rebuilding local news is a cornerstone of the League’s mission of empowering voters and defending democracy, an ever-so-important effort at this time in our nation’s history.

As a Washington State University professor interviewed by the study committee two years ago described the news crisis: “It’s not a journalism problem. It’s a democracy problem.”

DONATE

As you reflect on your estate plan, you have a unique opportunity to extend your impact beyond your lifetime by leaving the League of Women Voters of Washington a bequest. In fact, there are a number of benefits that leaving a bequest to the LWVWA can have:

• Supporting a Cause: Donations to the LWVWA help ensure the continuation of our work, and a bequest enables you to support that work and the causes you believe in even after you're gone.
  
  
• Legacy Preservation: A bequest to the LWVWA provides an opportunity to leave a lasting legacy through your support of us and our work.
  
  
• Tax Benefits: Any kind of bequest made to the LWVWA Education Fund is tax-deductible, which can reduce the estate tax burden on your heirs.
  
  
• Recognition and Honor: Your bequest can be recognized by the LWVWA, providing a meaningful tribute to your support and commitment.
  
  
• Inspiring Others: Your act of generosity may inspire others to consider similar gifts, thereby perpetuating a culture of philanthropy and sustaining the League of Women Voters of Washington.
  
  
• Ensuring Sustainability: A bequest to the LWVWA can provide long-term financial stability for the League, allowing us to continue our work and impact for years to come!
  
  
• Flexible Giving Options: You can specify how you want your bequest to be used, whether that be for general purposes, to be put toward the LWVWA Endowment, or even toward funding a specific program you're passionate about.
  

Leaving a bequest to the League of Women Voters of Washington can be a powerful way to make a lasting impact. 

Extend Your Impact

The 2024 Legislature began January 8, 2024 and adjourned 60 days later, on March 7. During this period, the Legislature passed 350 bills, from among hundreds more that were introduced. The LWVWA Lobby Team worked hard to keep up with the strenuous and, at times chaotic, legislative process. 

There were some successes among the League’s priority bills; and there were also disappointments for us and our coalition partners. There were too many bills this session to list them all, but some of the bills are listed below. You can read more details in our final Legislative Action Newsletter. In most cases, the titles of the bills below explain the bill itself.

The legislation that passed covers a lot of policy territory. In many cases, the legislation was related to workforce needs. There was also legislation aimed at the protection of citizens, consumers or clients. Important legislation relating to Washington's response to climate change, and much more!

Below is a break down some of the bills that passed, broken down by issue:

Democracy

• HB 1241 Addressing harassment of election workers.
  
• SCR 8414 Creating a joint select committee on civic health.
  
• HB 1541Establishing the 'Nothing About Us, Without Us' Act (lived experience).

Children

• HB 1455 Eliminating child marriage.
• SB 5908 Extended Foster Care (for youths 18-21).
• There were also budget increases for many early childhood programs.

Health and Behavioral Health

•  SB 5986 Protecting consumers from out-of-network health care service charges.
• HB 1969/SB 5811 Expanding the definition of 'family member' for individual providers (home health care).
  
• HB 1889 Allowing persons to receive professional licenses and certifications regardless of immigration or citizenship status. 
  
• SB 5821 Establishing a uniform standard for creating an established relationship for the purposes of coverage of audio-only telemedicine services.
• HB 1946 Creating the Washington Health Corps behavioral health scholarship program.
  
• E2SHB 2247 Addressing behavioral health provider shortages.
  
• E2SSB 6251 Coordinating regional behavioral crisis response and suicide prevention services. (Coordinating regional behavioral crisis response services.)
  

Climate Change, Forests, and Waste Diversion

• HB 1368 Zero emission school buses.
• HB 1012 Creating an extreme weather response grant program.
• HB 1282 Public Building Materials—Buy Clean Buy Fair.
• HB 1589 Clean Energy Progress—Transitioning utilities from natural gas to electricity.
• SB 6039 Geothermal energy resources.
• Funding was appropriated to preserve mature forests and purchase replacement lands for economically impacted rural counties.
• The Trust Land Transfer Program received $10.8 million conserving 9 projects with over 2,200 acres of state trust land.
• Recycling was expanded among a number of new materials.

Housing and Homelessness

• HB 1998 Authorizing Co-living.
• HB 1012 Addressing the response to extreme weather events.
  
• SB 6015 Concerning residential parking configurations (reduces parking requirements in certain areas).
• SB 6175 Concerning housing affordability tax incentives for existing structures (authorizes cities to establish a sales tax deferral program for conversion of underutilized commercial property to affordable housing).

Some of the disappointments of this session include the bills listed below which did not pass. In some cases, the bills had been worked on for several years:

Revenue

• Unfortunately, no changes were made to WA State’s regressive tax structure this session.
  
• SB 5770 Providing state and local property tax reform.
• HB 2276/SB 6191 Increasing the supply of affordable and workforce housing (with a permanent funding source).

Healthcare

• SB 5241 Concerning material changes to the materials and operation structure of participants in the health care marketplace (formerly Keep Our Care Act).
• SJM 8006 Requesting that the Federal Government create a Universal Health Care Program.
• HJR 4201 Amending the Constitution to address reproductive freedom.
  

Climate Change

• HJM 4003 Requesting that the United States join in developing a Fossil Fuel Nonproliferation Treaty

Education

• HB 1479 Concerning Restraint or Isolation in Public Schools and Educational Programs
  

Housing and Homelessness

• HB 2160 Transit-Oriented Development.
• HB 2270 Creating a Department of Housing for Washington State.
• HB 2114 Rent Stabilization.
  

Additionally, as was widely reported in the news, three of the six Initiatives to the Legislature were passed; and three were not (and no alternatives were offered). The three initiatives that were not passed will be on the ballot in the 2024 November Election.

Initiatives Passed by the Legislature:

• I-2111—Prohibit a state income tax
• I-2113—Loosen restrictions on police vehicle chases
  
• I-2081—Parental Rights 

Initiatives Not Addressed by the Legislature (which will appear on the ballot in November):

• I-2117—Repeal the Climate Commitment Act; prohibit carbon cap and trade
• I-2124—Opt Out of State-run Long Term Care Coverage (WA Cares Act)
  
• I-2109—Repeal the Capital Gains Tax 
  

The Board of Directors for the League of Women Voters of Washington will make decisions at a future meeting to determine whether the LWVWA will support, oppose, or remain silent on the three ballot iniatives that will be on the ballot in November.

As always, the Lobby Team welcomes new advocates and Issue Chairs! If you are interested, please contact our Advocacy Director, Cynthia Stewart.

This month we are bringing you the second in our series of essays from writers with lived experience who are directly impacted by the bills we advocate for. The  essay for this installment is written by incarcerated journalist Chris Blackwell and freelance writer Rachel Zarrow, and was originally published in The Nation. Blackwell and Zarrow's essay, entitled "The Invisible Labor of Women Who Love Incarcerated People," highlights the myriad of costs faced by women with incarcerated loved ones.

Communication costs are one part of the picture—it can cost hundreds of dollars to visit a loved one in prison. And people are frequently moved from prison to prison, making visits difficult, if not impossible. One of the bills we advocated for in the 2024 Legislative Session,  SB 6021, would have required the Department of Corrections to provide free phone calls and other communications services for people who are incarcerated. Unfortunately, that bill did not make it out of the Senate Ways & Means Committee.

The burdens of incarceration change, but don't end, upon reentry. In addition to difficulties in securing housing and jobs, there are few resources available to address the mental health needs arising from incarceration and reentry. Blackwell concludes by citing an astonishing statistic—94% of  women surveyed reported that the strain of their partner's incarceration has had a "significant or extreme" impact on their emotional and mental health. 

You can read Blackwell and Zarrow's powerful piece here, and learn more about how the bills we advocated for fared during the 2024 Legislative Session on our webpage.

About Christopher Blackwell:

Blackwell, 42, is a Washington-based award-winning journalist currently incarcerated. He is the 2023 Narratively Memoir Grand Prize Winner. The cofounder and Executive Director of Look2Justice.org a grassroots organization of system-impacted organizers working to cultivate justice, fairness, and accountability in Washington State's criminal legal system through research, public education, and advocacy that leads with racial equity. His work has been featured in the New York Times, The Washington Post, Boston Globe, Huff Post, and many more. He is a contributing writer with Jewish Currents and a contributing editor at The Appeal. He works closely with Empowerment Avenue, a nonprofit organization that uplifts the voices of incarcerated writers and artist. You can read more of his work on his website or follow him on X (formally Twitter).

 

Recently, a team of volunteers for the League of Women Voters of Bellingham/Whatcom County embarked on a project to create an ongoing series of short educational videos about various election topics. These videos will be distributed on the LWVBWC's Facebook and Instagram accounts, as well as on their YouTube channel and Civics Education page.

The team members working on this project include a researcher, a script writer, a tech person who edits the videos and creates graphics, a presenter—who stars in the videos—and a social media advisor.

The first topic covered in these videos is the Electoral College. Currently, these videos can be viewed on the LWVBWC Civics Education page.

by Lyn Whitley, LWVWA Local News and Democracy Committee and Delegate to the national League of Women Voters Convention

This June, delegates from state and local Leagues across the country will gather at the nation's capitol for the national convention of the League of Women Voters. At this convention, many delegates will work to gain national concurrence for the LWVWA’s Local News and Democracy position. 

The delegates from each League in our state can, and likely will, voice their own perspective. A delegate need not be in favor of concurrence to attend the national convention. The final number of delegates that can be sent from Washington Leagues to the national convention is determined by the official number of members in the state. This information will be available in a few weeks. Our goal is to send as many League members from Washington as possible—not just the members of the Local News and Democracy Committee. 

In the meantime, work toward national concurrence of our Local News position is underway. Here’s a brief update: 

• Each state and local League across the country have been asked by LWVUS to respond to a Program Planning Survey by March 10. Part of this survey is to indicate if that League supports the LWVWA bid for national concurrence on our Local News position. At least 13 local Leagues in Washington have already indicated their support.
  
  
• At some point, likely in April, we will learn if the LWVUS Board of Directors will recommend the position for concurrence at the national League convention.
  
  
• To spread awareness on the importance of national concurrence on our Local News position, the members of the LWVWA Local News Committee have been available to present workshops on how national concurrence on our position would enable Leagues across the country—including LWVUS—to advocate for legislation or other efforts that support local news and media literacy. A number of states and communities have proposed such legislation, including New York and Colorado. 

We recognize that attending convention is costly for individuals, which is why local Leagues are encouraged to host fundraising events to help offset a portion of the delegate costs. The LWVWA is also looking at possible grants from corporations and interested organizations to help offset a portion of the costs for delegates.

Updates on the LWVWA's bid to secure concurrence at the national League convention can be found on our Local News and Democracy page. The updates will also be shared with local League presidents, so you can contact your local League to learn more. 

The League of Women Voters of Washington is pleased to announce that we will be working with KIRO TV to present Senatorial and Gubernatorial debates for the 2024 Election. These debates will be held in October.

The LWVWA will be holding other statewide debates as well. Currently, there are also plans for primary forums for Attorney General, Commissioner for Public Lands, and the Superintendent of Public Schools.

If you would like to be part of the LWVWA Debates Committee, please contact the LWVWA Debates Coordinator Shelley Kneip or LWVWA President Mary Coltrane.

You can find more information in our press release.

In November 2023, the LWVWA Board approved a request to pay writers with lived experience to republish their work in The Evergreen Voter. We will be highlighting issues that are or will be before the legislature. We are pleased to be able to share the perspectives of those who are most affected by these issues.

Our first in the series is an essay by Kevin Light-Roth, originally published in The Stranger, and entitled “Bill to Reduce Solitary Confinement Stalls.”

Light-Roth's essay discusses the challenges faced by the solitary confinement reform bill, HB 1087 during the 2023 legislative session. The bill aims to mandate the reduction of solitary confinement, expand education and therapeutic programming for individuals in solitary, and eventually phase out its use. Despite strong initial support and a diverse coalition, the bill faced opposition based on high projected costs—estimated to be $78 million in the next fiscal period and $98 million in the following two periods. Critics question the accuracy of the above fiscal note and argue that reducing solitary should result in cost savings. The bill was not voted down but stalled in the House Appropriations Committee.

Light-Roth’s essay highlights the psychological impact of solitary and ongoing efforts by advocates to reform the practice. The Department of Corrections proposes reducing solitary by 90% over five years, but critics argue that this falls short of addressing the torture of solitary confinement. The push for reform continues, with the hope that the bill will move forward during the 2024 legislative session. 

You can follow the progress of this legislation, and all of our criminal justice work, on the Criminal Justice issue webpage.

The 2024 legislative session is well underway, completing three weeks in session as of this publication. Our League Lobby Team of Issue Chairs has been very busy reviewing bills, researching, preparing testimony, and writing the Legislative Action Newsletter. The 13 Issue Chairs are supported by 14 Advocates, who are League members with a passion about specific issues and who have the time and talent to help with research and writing. Additionally, Issue Chairs rely on support from the League’s contract lobbyist, Nancy Sapiro, and issue-specific coalitions for background and prioritizing which legislation is most important to support (or oppose).

Here's what goes on behind the scenes. Issue Chairs work in teams of related issues, including Making Democracy Work, Environment and Social and Economic Policy. They begin in the summer, during the legislative interim, recruiting new volunteers and meeting in a retreat to debrief the previous session and determine how to approach the upcoming one.

Early in the term of the new Board (some Board members are elected each year, most at Convention and some at Council), there is a discussion of how the Lobby Team is organized, as background for upcoming issues.  In early fall, each Issue Chair—both current and proposed new ones—submits an application to be appointed to that role. Issue Chairs are authorized to speak for the League and must be approved by the Board. Advocates, in contrast, do not speak for the League and do not need Board approval. They work with Issue Chairs according to interests and the needs of the Issue Chairs.

In later fall, the Lobby Team submits proposed legislative priorities and requests for coalition memberships for Board approval. Then the Team begins organizing the Action Workshop(s) for late November/early December and Democracy Lobby Week in conjunction with Fix Democracy First, typically in late January. (Note, the 2024 Lobby Week is having its celebration as this is published). These activities are organized to provide you—our members and interested readers—with background on the issues and opportunities to meet with your legislators during session.

The week ahead is critical for the legislature. January 31 is the cut-off of bills in the policy committees of the chamber of origin. In other words, if a bill is initiated by a Representative, then the relevant House policy committee must have passed it on to the next stage or the bill has died; and the same in the Senate. Our Lobby Team is working hard to help get priority bills passed by then. This means tracking progress, testifying in committees, meeting with legislators to discuss the bills, and coordinating with relevant coalitions.

The next phases are consideration of fiscal bills—those that generate revenue and those that appropriate, or spend the funds—and working on legislation going through the process in the opposite chamber. Throughout this process, both Chambers meet “on the floor” in session where they vote on what to pass for the other chamber to consider. By February 13, any bill that has not been passed by its chamber of origin dies.

The last day of session is March 7, only three weeks after the above cut-off. During that final period, the opposite chamber is considering bills passed by the first chamber and gets into final budget negotiations. Our Lobby Team works hard to continue to press for legislation and budgets we support, right up to the end.

This is a continuous learning experience for everyone. Even Issue Chairs who have been in that role for a decade or more learn something new each session. If you are interested in joining this team, starting as an Advocate and perhaps moving into an Issue Chair role, please know that we need your help! You will be provided with training and mentoring throughout. Those interested can contact Cynthia Stewart to learn how to get involved.