This is the Federation Hotline updated Feb. 9.
What’s on tap for next week
The first committee cut-off deadlines were earlier this week so action shifts to the full Senate and House. Most Senate bills must pass the full Senate by Feb. 14 and most House bills must pass the House by Feb. 14. That’s next Wednesday.
We need to keep the calls coming in to legislators now on four key bills that need that last push for floor votes.
Call Legislature’s toll-free message center on four key bills
PSERS (SHB 1558) Our latest priority bill to move closer to a floor vote is the bill to extend the Public Safety Employees Retirement System (PSERS) to institutions workers in high-risk jobs. SHB 1558 passed out of the House Rules Committee yesterday (Feb. 8).
- CALL TO ACTION on the PSERS bill (SHB 1558). 1-800-562-6000 and urge your two House members to bring the PSERS bill (SHB 1558) to a vote of the full House and vote YES! This would give state institutions workers doing high-risk jobs the same recognition on retirement as other public workers in dangerous jobs.
Taxpayer Protection Act (2SHB 1851) The Taxpayer Protection Act (2SHB 1851), our bill to bring transparency and accountability to state contracting, is waiting for a vote of the full House.
- CALL TO ACTION on the Taxpayer Protection Act 2SHB 1851: Call 1-800-562-6000 and urge your two House members to bring 2SHB 1851 to a vote of the full House and vote YES! Bring real accountability to state outsourcing!
Interpreter Services (SSB 6245)
The bill to expand interpreter services (SSB 6245) is awaiting a vote of the full Senate.
- CALL TO ACTION on the Interpreter Services Bill (SSB 6245): Call 1-800-562-6000 and urge your state senator to bring SSB 6245 to a vote of the full Senate and vote YES! Save the state money and improve services and recruitment of interpreters.
Date-of-birth privacy (SB 6079)
Keeping your date of birth from public disclosure (SB 6079) is awaiting a vote of the full Senate.
CALL TO ACTION on the date-of-birth privacy bill (SB 6079): Call 1-800-562-6000 and urge your state senator to vote YES! on SB 6079. Keep dates of birth private to protect the safety and security of our families.
Next week . . .
Most of the action is on the House and Senate floor through Feb. 14. Committee meetings pick up again Thursday, Feb. 15. That’s also the day the state’s latest revenue forecast comes out – kicking off intense supplemental budget work.
Many committees meeting Feb. 15 and 16 are awaiting floor action before announcing their lineup of public hearings. They have to wait to see which bills come over from the opposite chamber.
Saturday, Feb. 10
- The full House and Senate may meet Saturday to vote on bills in advance of the Feb. 14 deadline for House bills to pass the House and Senate bills to pass the Senate.
Sunday, Feb. 11
- The full House may meet Sunday advance of the Feb. 14 deadline for House bills to pass the House.
Monday, Feb. 12
- The full House and Senate convene to vote on bills in advance of the Feb. 14 deadline for House bills to pass the House and Senate bills to pass the Senate.
Tuesday, Feb. 13
The full House and Senate convene to vote on bills in advance of the Feb. 14 deadline for House bills to pass the House and Senate bills to pass the Senate.
Wednesday, Feb. 14
- Today is the deadline for House bills to pass the House and Senate bills to pass the Senate. The full House and Senate convene to vote on bills on this deadline day.
Thursday, Feb. 15
- The Washington State Economic and Revenue Forecast Council https://erfc.wa.gov/meetings meets at 11 a.m. Thursday to adopt the state’s latest revenue forecast. That’s the last piece of information lawmakers need to start writing the respective Senate and House versions of the supplemental budget. Up to now, the only proposed supplemental budget has been the one from Gov. Jay Inslee.
- The House Transportation Committee holds a hearing on SB 5841 concerning worker safety on roadways and roadsides.
Friday, Feb. 16
- The House Finance Committee holds an important hearing on HB 2967 that would enact a capital gains tax and provide property tax relief. This would help working families by improving the fairness of the state’s tax system.
Send a message today to the United States Supreme Court
The United States Supreme Court is threatening to take away the freedoms working people fought for to have a voice on the job.
The high court is taking up that issue when it holds oral arguments on the Janus case on Feb. 26.
Send a message and join a Day of Action: Tell the United States Supreme Court how important our union and these freedoms are to you and your family. SIGN PETITION HERE.
It’s About Freedom. Join the Working People’s Day of Action
The Working People’s Day of Action will take place Saturday, Feb. 24, two days before the court hears arguments in the Janus case. Look for events on that day in your area: http://www.itsaboutfreedom.org/
In our state, some events will take place on the day of the Supreme Court hearing on the Janus case, Monday, Feb. 26. One such event is a joint WFSE/AFSCME and SEIU event outside Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, 11 a.m.-12 noon, Monday, Feb. 26. RSVP on Facebook at:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1216512201814806/
As more events come on line, we’ll let you know.
And one final word for today on Janus and the Day of Action:
From Stephen Mittons, an AFSCME member from Illinois:
“Because I have a strong union and a seat at the table, I have a direct voice in coming up with a strategy to better serve my community, to give a voice to families that no one wants to hear from. When you rob people of the freedom to have that voice – if you take away my ability to speak on their behalf – you’re condemning those families and those kids to silence.”
Our movement is “growing stronger and younger -- yep, young people are keeping labor alive”
Our sons and daughters and millennial co-workers are the future. The Nation tells us about a new report that debunks the myth that Millennials are “economically and politically adrift.” In fact, they’re in the thick of the union resurgence and the resistance against the kinds of attacks we’re now seeing at the United States Supreme Court in the Janus case.
“Nationwide in 2017, nearly 860,000 workers under age 35 got hired, and nearly a quarter of those were union jobs,” The Nation reported.
“Millennials are responsible for a huge portion of the recent gains in union representation across the workforce, which has managed to remain fairly steady (yep, young people are keeping labor alive).
“Growing by some 198,000 workers, youth in union jobs are offsetting loss of union jobs in older age brackets; union jobs for workers age 45 to 54 dropped by some 75,000 over the same period.
“In contrast to the myth of millennials’ being economically and politically adrift, they’re stepping in readily to fill the union ranks that have hemorrhaged middle-aged workers over the years—2017 actually saw an increase in the overall number of unionized workers over the previous year.
“A movement that we’re used to thinking of as getting older and smaller is actually growing stronger and younger—and they may well be leading the next progressive voting bloc in tandem with the labor movement.”
See more on our website at: https://wfse.org/news/millennials-are-keeping-unions-alive
That’s it for now.
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