1/ I get to speak with so many passionate, dedicated people during legislative session. Today was no exception. (thread) #waleg
3/ Next, Trudi and I joined @WaGunResponsib in their fight for common-sense gun legislation. We agree - weapons of war have no place on WA streets. #waleg
4/ Then I joined @washingtonea on the Capitol steps. They are fighting to give WA educators the tools they need to give our kids the education they deserve.
I’m proud to stand with them in that fight. #waleg
@washingtonea 5/ Trudi and I took a quick detour to visit Rosa Franklin, the first black woman elected to WA State Senate.
She served in state government for 20 years after a 42 year career as a nurse. #waleg
@washingtonea 6/ We joined @cair_wa to talk about the importance of the Muslim community in WA.
We are committed to fighting Islamophobia whenever and wherever it occurs. #waleg
@washingtonea@cair_wa 7/ I met with a group of youth advocates against vaping. They showed up to protect their peers from a lifetime of nicotine addiction and other vaping related heath issues. #waleg
@washingtonea@cair_wa 8/ I joined a passionate group of young people with @PPVNH who support comprehensive sex education, funding for family planning, reproductive freedom and access to quality care for all.
Leaders like them help move the ball forward on these crucial issues. #waleg
@washingtonea@cair_wa@PPVNH 9/ I was delighted to speak to leaders young and old. People like them help make this state the best state in the country.
Thanks to everyone who came from all corners of WA to advocate for a better future. #waleg
2/ I started my day speaking at the Tacoma #MLKDay celebration.
In WA, we will continue the fight for racial, social and economic justice that Dr. King led.
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COVID cases are skyrocketing, in large part due to the Delta variant. The best way to protect everyone is to get vaccinated and wear a mask.
Today I announced a vaccine requirement working in K-12, most childcare and early learning, and higher education.
It has been a long pandemic, and our students and teachers have borne their own unique burdens throughout. This virus is increasingly impacting young people, and those under the age of 12 still can’t get the vaccine for themselves. We won’t gamble with the health of our children.
K -12 educators, staff, coaches, bus drivers, volunteers and others working in school facilities will have until Oct. 18 to be fully vaccinated as a condition of employment. This includes public, private and charter schools. This does not impact students, regardless of age.
Starting Tuesday, all Washington counties will move to Phase 3 of the Healthy Washington plan. We will stay at 50% capacity for most indoor activities until after June 30.
However, if statewide ICU capacity reaches 90% at any point we will rollback activities to save lives.
The recent shootings in Atlanta and Boulder remind us that COVID-19 hasn’t stopped the crisis of gun violence.
At the state or federal level, we must act to stop the preventable gun violence that happens every day, especially when easy access to firearms mixes with violence, hate and racism.
This is a moment that calls for leadership. As President Biden said, we can ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines in this country – I was proud to do so when I represented central Washington in 1994. It was the right policy for our country then, and it still is.
Today FEMA approved the state and the Yakima County Health District’s application for a mass vaccination site. READ: governor.wa.gov/news-media/fem…
We are appreciative to @fema and our other federal partners for working with us to make significant additional resources available to the people of the Yakima Valley.
This will provide 1,200 vaccinations daily and will be a tremendous boost to our vaccine equity efforts and will also reach out directly to Washingtonians who don’t have the means of transportation to a fixed vaccination site.
I stand today with our state’s Asian and Pacific Islander communities, which have come under increased racist attacks over the last year.
This violent hate is not new – our Black, Indigenous and other communities of color have been victims of this insidious brand of cultural violence and white supremacy for centuries – but it remains no less urgent to defeat it.
To do that, we must continue to build respect for one another, respect that is reflected in our shared quality of life and our shared values of dignity.
Today, we’re taking action to make sure that every child in Washington state has an option for onsite learning. I will be issuing an emergency proclamation that will give every K-12 student the opportunity for on-site learning.
This has been a long year for Washington’s children. More than half of our schools have returned to some form of in-person instruction, but there are still hundreds of thousands of students who have not had access to in-person learning.
The impact of this pandemic on our children’s mental health has created a crisis among our young people. Now is the time for all schools to return to in-person learning.