Author Archives: Laudan

Second Amendment Watch

I want to thank everyone for sharing their concerns and any efforts being made to slow or stop these unnecessary infringements on law-abiding citizens. Here is a brief update on where some of these proposals are in the legislative process. I share the frustration and oppose efforts to further restrict our constitutional rights. I’ve argued that these measures will do nothing to protect the public, our schools, or reduce crime. Problems with gun violence in Washington are not due to law abiding citizens, they are caused by criminals with guns they already are not legally allowed to have.

When I stand up for your Second Amendment rights, I am standing up for mine as well. I am doing everything in my power to slow the progress of these bad pieces of legislation. Given the makeup of the Legislature, stopping them altogether may not be possible, but I will voice your concerns and the concerns of many who have contacted me and my colleagues in opposition to this and other gun-related legislation.

Our state already has some of the toughest gun laws in the nation but the problem is that the legislative majority has pushed through bad policies that shield criminals from prosecution, hamper our law enforcement from doing their jobs, and treat violent offenders who use firearms with kid gloves.

House bills:

Senate Bills:

SB 5078 (Passed the Senate) would create liability for gun manufacturers and dealers that would basically make them uninsurable in our state. This proposal was approved by the policy committee with 1563 signing in support and 2775 testifiers opposed. It had a public hearing in the budget committee Jan. 31 where 657 signed in Pro and 886 testifiers Con. No further action has been taken yet.
SB 5193 (Died in Committee) which is being referred to an an “assault weapons” ban.
SB 5265 (Died in Committee) Establishing firearms-related safety measures to increase public safety..
SB 5446 (Died in Committee) would allow local jurisdictions to create their own gun laws, which is currently preempted by state law.

Engaging with your Legislature

The 2023 legislative session is under way and while we are meeting in person at the state Capitol, you can still participate remotely in a meaningful way. I want to be sure you have access to your government. Below are resources on how you can provide input on bills and keep apprised of what’s happening in Olympia.

Overview of how to testify remotely:

https://leg.wa.gov/legislature/Pages/Testify.aspx

(Don’t want to speak? You can sign-in “Pro or Con” not wishing to testify.)

General information on how to sign in to testify remotely before a Senate committee:

https://app.leg.wa.gov/CSIRemote/Senate

Want to follow bills on a topic of concern?

You can also search for legislation by bill number or by keywords and text of a proposal. Click here for more information.

Senate adopts Fortunato’s proposal to find government waste

State employees eligible for bonuses

Politicians often talk about cutting government waste. The question is, how to find it?

State Senator Phil Fortunato argues that one of the best ways is to rely on front-line state workers. His proposal to re-establish the state Productivity Board, Senate Bill 5015, would do just that and was approved unanimously by the state Senate yesterday, the last day to pass Senate legislation out of the upper chamber.

The defunct program had provided financial incentives to state employees who find government waste, but due to budgetary constraints, the board was disbanded in 2011 because it cost $2 million.

“The fiscal note doesn’t tell the whole story,” said Fortunato, R-Auburn. “Using typical government logic, it did not look at the reason it cost $2 million because it paid bonuses to state employees who saved the state $20 million. Only government thinks that way.”

“State employees have the potential to save taxpayers much more in recurring costs from ineffective programs they’re administering,” added Fortunato, who hopes state employees will save taxpayers 10 times more than the cost of the program. With a biennial operating budget now over $65 billion, there is plenty of areas for potential savings, he noted.

If passed into law, the Productivity Board would be operational by July 2025 or sooner if the employment backlog in the Office of Secretary of State can be filled. The board would be required to evaluate the potential savings of a proposal and develop a list of possible productivity awards to be distributed to state employees, who could receive up to $10,000 or 10% of savings, whichever is lower.

“State workers are taxpayers, too. They know firsthand the inefficiencies in the programs the Legislature or state government creates. Now they will have a vested interest in making the best use of those tax dollars,” Fortunato said. “The more savings taxpayers realize, the more they can benefit.”

The measure will start working its way through the House of Representatives for consideration and must be approved by the House by April 12. The 2023 legislative session is scheduled to end April 23.

Senate approves Fortunato’s continued efforts to clean state roadways

In 2021, Fortunato passed the “”Welcome to Washington” litter act, directing the state Department of Ecology and the Department of Transportation to work together to tackle the state’s litter problem with increased cleanups and education. However, there are additional hurdles to keeping our roadways clean, so Fortunato sponsored Senate Bill 5178, which would increase penalties for large debris cleanup. The measure was approved unanimously Monday by the state Senate.

Fortunato’s proposal would increase penalties for large debris cleanup and originally redirected the surplus in the existing $1 tire tax to an account dedicated to clearing large items like tire pieces, car bumpers, couches and other large debris. The bill was amended to remove the dedicated funding source and made it subject to budget appropriations.

Jokingly, Fortunato has said, “You can furnish a house and build a car with what you find on the side of road.”

“There are too many large items on the side of our highways that could make it unsafe to pullover especially at night,” said Fortunato, R-Auburn. “While it appears there are still some issues getting litter picked up, at least these state agencies can pick up the big stuff and make our roads a little safer.”

As an expert on environmental issues, particularly Clean Water Act compliance, Fortunato has been pushing state agencies to clean up their act, pointing to the environmental disaster resulting from the numerous homeless encampments exacerbating the pollution problem.

“The homelessness problem and the environmental problem are connected here. The state needs to find a solution that deals with where a lot of the debris is coming from. Driving to Olympia during the session, there are large homeless camps that have no regard for our littering laws. That has to change,” added Fortunato.

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Fortunato calls Senate’s Blake solution ‘50% carrot & 50% stick’

This past Friday, state Sen. Phil Fortunato voted in favor of the Senate’s proposal to mostly fix the so-called Blake Decision drug possession fiasco.

In 2021, the state Supreme Court issued its ruling on a 2016 case over the arrest of Shannon Blake for possession of drugs. Blake contended she did not know there were controlled substances in the pair of borrowed pants she was wearing at the time. The high court said the felony drug possession statute was unconstitutional as it violated due process protections.

Working late into Friday night, senators reached a compromise to address the temporary drug possession measure set to expire later this year. Fortunato argues that the ruling and pro-legalization advocacy efforts has wreaked havoc on the legal system, vacating hundreds of felony drug convictions that released offenders back on the streets.

Senate Bill 5536 would implement various classifications for drug possession sentencing, pretrial diversion programs, requirements for deferring prosecutions and resources to treat offenders.

Fortunato offered this statement on the bill now heading to the House of Representatives for consideration:

“I do not think that this proposal went far enough to fix the rampant drug problems we are seeing, but this solution is better than nothing. It is 50% ‘carrot,’ with voluntary treatment, and 50% ‘stick,’ with jail time to force treatment. Considering where state law is currently and the abuses that are happening, this proposal will hopefully start to have an impact by providing some accountability for people suffering from addiction who are also engaging in criminal activity to feed their habit.

“We need to show compassion, but we also need to have ways to discourage the behavior. I’ve contended since we started to see the skyrocketing thefts, drug overdoses and property crimes that it is not compassionate to let people live in tents on city streets or overdose in parks. We need stronger drug laws that force people into treatment. While the legislative majority seemingly has a philosophical opposition to any sort of accountability, this compromise is a good starting point.”

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Restricting Your Rights

It has been a challenging week on the Senate floor. While the majority of our work is bipartisan, there are certain areas of sincere disagreement that I have to speak up about, especially concerning what I view are fundamental rights.

Parents Rights

Late Wednesday night the legislative majority rushed through probably one of the worst pieces of legislation for families that I’ve seen in a long time. Senate Bill 5599 claims to help troubled youth, but the bill as approved really interjects government into the rights of parents to make decisions for their child.

Under this proposed law, parents of a minor who runs away from home and ends up in a shelter or other some “host home” do not need to be notified if there’s a “compelling reason” not to.

I agree that kids who are being abused should have protections, but that’s not what this bill does. The “compelling reason” to not tell parents where their child is focuses on what they call “protected health services,” defined as gender affirming care or reproductive care, including abortions which do not have to be performed by a doctor.

A little known fact is that the state recently lowered the standard of care for this serious medical procedure. Now, any “health care provider” can perform an abortion without parental knowledge. Proponents pretend there aren’t medical risks, including possible sterilization or death, while simultaneously passing legislation requiring informed consent about other health care procedures.

We hear all the time in other legislation how children don’t have the mental faculties to make all kinds of decisions. Those same people are now saying that children somehow have the capability to make life-altering medical ones without a parent even being notified. This bad proposal puts the government between families and suffering kids and it’s plain wrong. I voted against this bill.

Just Get it Over With!

Despite strong federal and state constitutional protections, some lawmakers in Olympia are obsessed with gun regulations.

On Thursday, the Senate Democrats passed Senate Bill 5078, which would create new liability for gun manufacturers and dealers that would basically make them uninsurable in our state. The proposal says that this lawful industry must establish “reasonable controls” related to their products or face penalties for creating a public nuisance if the products are used by a third party in a criminal activity. It’s akin to making car manufacturers and dealers liable for drunk drivers.

You can read my amendment to this bill by clicking here and compare it to the intent section as it was approved by clicking here.

During the public hearings on this proposal 1,563 people signed in support and 2,775 testifiers opposed it.

I spoke against this illogical legislation and ultimately voted against the bill.

Problems with gun violence and crime in Washington are not caused by law-abiding citizens. It’s a cumulative effect of bad laws and a judicial system that lets hardened criminals off the hook when they have guns they aren’t legally allowed to possess anyway.

Imposing this kind of liability will do nothing stem the tide of crime in our state, but it will kills jobs and possibly drive a significant industry out of our state.

One of my Senate colleagues said on the floor that if they want to ban guns, just introduce a bill and let’s debate it, but this incrementalism is not going to fix the problems of crime and gun violence that they’ve enabled.

While some in Olympia are working furiously to restrict your right to protect yourself and your family, they enable insane things like allowing violent criminals to be released without bail, even in the case of a mass shooter. Read more about this recent story by clicking here. The Legislature should stop the pretense that these special-interest driven gun regulations are about protecting people.

More Restrictions on Law-abiding Citizens

My office is being inundated with constituents concerned about what is going on in Olympia with respect to our Second Amendment rights.

I want to thank everyone for sharing their concerns and any efforts being made to slow or stop these unnecessary infringements on law-abiding citizens. I thought I’d share a brief update on where some of these proposal are in the legislative process.

Senate Bill 5078 would create liability for gun manufacturers and dealers that would basically make them uninsurable in our state. This proposal was approved by the policy committee with 1563 signing in support and 2775 testifiers opposed. It had a public hearing in the budget committee Jan. 31 where 657 signed in Pro and 886 testifiers Con. No further action has been taken yet.
Senate Bill 5193 and the House companion bill, which are being referred to an an “assault weapons” ban have not yet received a public hearing. The other related legislation, Senate Bill 5265 has not moved in the Senate, but the House version, HB 1240 could be voted on by the House of Representatives if it is taken out of the Rules Committee.
Senate Bill 5446 would allow local jurisdictions to create their own gun laws, which is currently preempted by state law. The Senate version has not received a public hearing, but the House bill is moving. Interestingly, it was scheduled to be voted out of committee twice, but nothing happened.

I share the frustration and oppose efforts to further restrict our constitutional rights and the impact this liability proposal will have on a legal industry in our state.

Problems with gun violence in Washington are not due to law abiding citizens, they are caused by criminals with guns they already are not legally allowed to have. Imposing the kind of liability will do nothing but further infringe on the rights of citizens. This is akin to making car manufacturers and dealers liable for drunk drivers.

Fortunato bill would restrict sex offender placement after Enumclaw debacle

Residents in the city of Enumclaw are outraged after learning that the state is placing unsupervised sex offenders in their community.

As part of legislation that was approved in 2021, local jurisdictions have to provide what is called “less restrictive alternative” or LRA housing to accommodate offenders where they were originally convicted.

State Sen. Phil Fortunato is concerned that the process of communicating the releases, siting these group homes, and overall deinstitutionalizing of sex offenders with a high likelihood to reoffend is putting communities at risk.

“The situation is unacceptable and part of a pattern from some in Olympia that want to treat hardened criminals with kid gloves,” said Fortunato. “We’re seeing that with the police pursuit debate, and now with the quiet release of predators into neighborhoods. Just look at what the state is doing in Lynnwood against the residents’ wishes with the drug rehab near a Boys and Girls Club.”

Fortunato is introducing legislation, Senate Bill 5729, that would restrict where LRAs can be located. Currently, they are allowed within 500 feet of a school. Under his proposal, they could not be located within two miles. In addition, the proposal would require the Department of Social and Health Services, which oversees the program and offenders, to provide notices rather than law enforcement. Two other provisions include required notification of elected officials, as Fortunato says he learned about the problem directly from constituents.

In an email, DSHS officials indicated they extended an offer to meet with legislators more than two months after notifying law enforcement of the release and a month after the offender moved into the unsupervised Enumclaw house.

“I get that DSHS is following the law. That’s not in question. What I’m trying to fix is a bad law that is letting high-risk sex offenders live unsupervised in unsecured facilities in our communities, near kids. It’s absurd,” Fortunato said.

With just under 10 days for bills to receive public input and be approved by the policy committees where they originally were assigned, Fortunato is hopeful that the groundswell of opposition to the sex offender placement practices in Enumclaw and recently in Tenino, will spur Democratic majorities to fix the problem fast.

“This is not a controversial or partisan issue,” Fortunato added. “Public safety is a priority and committee chairs can get this done easily to keep our communities safe. Let’s get this bill heard and voted on.”

Democrats switch course, adopt Republican-led homeless approach

Gov. Jay Inslee recently held a news conference in Spokane, touting the work of a new approach to dealing with the state’s daunting homelessness crisis. The only problem? The policies being touted as effective were originally part of a package that homeless advocates and Democratic lawmakers sought to kill.

The ranking Republican on the Senate’s housing committee is calling out the hypocrisy and urging adoption of his proposals this coming legislative session.

“We need a comprehensive homeless plan that helps our cities and counties deal with the influx of homelessness, largely caused by Democratic policies,” said Sen. Phil Fortunato. “It is estimated that the state and counties, not including cites, spend in the vicinity of $3 billion, more than 4 percent of the state’s budget. The recent report by the state auditor on how homeless dollars are being spent is a strong indictment of the status quo. The problem isn’t that we are not spending enough on homelessness, it is how we are spending it.”

Much of what the governor is touting is covered under Fortunato’s SHELTER Act, and Senate Bill 5591, which would create guidelines for prioritizing rapid rehousing for persons with disabilities, families, pregnant women and people over 60 years old.

“I hope that the governor and my Democratic colleagues working on this issue can put partisan politics aside and do what works for our communities and those experiencing homelessness. It is not compassionate to have people live on the street in cardboard boxes,” said Fortunato, R-Auburn

Opposition from the more than 400 homeless advocates to the SHELTER Act during its 2020 committee hearing focused on provisions that required secure fencing, police security, and prohibiting drugs or alcohol. They also derided enforcement measures, such as making it a misdemeanor for camping on public property.

After the Legislature failed to act on an effective homelessness strategy, local jurisdictions began implementing their own versions of Fortunato’s proposal. Shortly after the hearing, Mercer Island adopted an ordinance with even harsher penalties such as jail time and hefty fines. The City of Auburn passed an ordinance levying a $1,000 fine and/or 90 days in jail for those convicted of criminal trespass for camping on public property. In November of this year, Tacoma approved a controversial public camping ban that is nearly identical to Fortunato’s proposal.

The 2023 legislative session begins Jan. 9 and is scheduled to last 105 days. Fortunato has introduced Senate Bill 5016, a comprehensive homeless plan incorporating many of the Republican homeless strategies into a single bill.

The proposal, called “From Homelessness to Housing,” would provide temporary shelter, transitional housing and work opportunities, with the goal of moving people through the continuum toward homeownership, generating wealth for low-income families to escape poverty, Fortunato added.

“The housing affordability problem in our state is real, people are feeling it and it goes beyond homelessness,” Fortunato said. “The state’s response should be to move people through this housing continuum with the goal of affordable home ownership. That can’t happen if we let people languish in this drug, alcohol and mental health crisis while simultaneously restricting housing options for everyone else.”

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Abortions in Washington might be legal, but Inslee made them less safe, says Fortunato

In a recent statement, Gov. Jay Inslee touted his work to keep Washington a pro-abortion state, vowing to “fight to ensure safe, affordable access to every person who needs it,” on the heels of a leak of a draft decision overturning the controversial Roe v. Wade abortion case at the U.S. Supreme Court.

State Sen. Phil Fortunato contends that recent legislation signed by Inslee might keep the procedure legal but won’t keep women safe.

“The reactionary tone is predictable and misleading,” said Fortunato. “The governor and pro-abortion lawmakers are doing a great job parroting polarizing talking points while trying to hide the fact that in their quest to expand access to this life-ending procedure for a baby, they’ve also made it more dangerous for women.”

Fortunato is referring to a bill passed this session that lowers the standard of care for those administering an abortion. Washington state previously required a licensed physician to perform an abortion, but House Bill 1851, signed by Inslee into law, changes the definition of who can terminate a pregnancy and removes liability for a botched procedure.

“Making the decision to terminate a pregnancy is probably the most difficult decision a woman could make, and I wish that it didn’t happen,” Fortunato said. “As a policy, the state should promote life and provide supports to encourage the joys of motherhood. This latest policy in our state flies in the face of women struggling with this and makes their health outcomes more uncertain. The governor’s stance will bring little comfort to a woman who has no recourse if she becomes sterile from this life-altering procedure.”

Sen. Fortunato calls on governor to relax vaccine requirements for volunteers

OLYMPIA…While most of the nation has moved beyond vaccine mandates, Washington state remains an outlier, and a policy hidden in one of Gov. Inslee’s executive orders is putting a damper on cleaning up the state’s highways.

Sen. Phil Fortunato sent a letter to the governor asking him to relax the rules that require even volunteers in outdoor settings to provide proof of vaccination status to pick up garbage as part of the state’s Adopt-a-Highway program.

“It’s absurd that the state is requiring volunteers to provide proof of vaccination to clean up garbage outdoors,” said Fortunato, R-Auburn. “I was told there are concerns about safety, but the governor doesn’t seem to care about the vaccination status of people illegally camping on public right of ways who are creating the litter problem.”

Last year, the governor signed legislation sponsored by Fortunato aimed at cleaning up the state’s littered roadways. Senate Bill 5040, known as the Welcome to Washington Act, streamlines the process for road clean-ups and creates a process for local jurisdictions to get reimbursed for their own litter control activities on state highway ramps.

Local officials brought this issue to Fortunato’s attention after a local service organization was barred from participating in its Adopt-a-Highway clean-up.

“As I said in my letter, we can have disagreements about the necessity of the governor’s continuing emergency powers, but I believe that he should follow the example of other states and start to relax some of these more outlandish requirements and allow these volunteers to help make Washington beautiful again,” added Fortunato.

You can read the entire letter here.