This story was originally published by the Washington State Standard.

As the Trump administration pursues its hard-line immigration agenda, Democratic lawmakers in Washington are trying to take steps to protect immigrant communities in the state. 

Rep. Sharlett Mena is sponsoring House Bill 1321, which would limit other states’ National Guard troops from deploying in Washington without the governor’s permission — unless they are mobilized by the president. 

“I think the last thing we want to see is folks feeling scared in their communities or feeling like they’re going to get rounded up at work or at school,” Mena said. 

The bill is a response to 26 Republican governors releasing a joint statement in December saying they were “ready to utilize every tool at our disposal — whether through state law enforcement or the National Guard” to support President Donald Trump’s immigration policies. 

“It is my concern that there would be other states wanting to enforce federal immigration law,” Mena said. 

In recent years, states have sent their National Guard troops to other states to support immigration enforcement. 

Two months after former President Joe Biden took office, Texas launched “Operation Lone Star,” aimed at increasing security along the state’s section of the U.S.-Mexico border.

The program, which has cost more than $11 billion to date, has used federal funds and the Texas National Guard. But multiple Republican states, like Florida and Montana, have used their own budgets to send National Guard troops to support Texas. 

The National Guard is a state-based military force when not activated for federal service and is under the command of the state governor and the president of the United States. Some states also have State Guards, which are under state control.

The National Guard operates under three statuses. Under “state active duty” the Guard is under control of the governor in the state where it’s based. Under “Title 10 status” it is under the control of the president and temporarily becomes part of the federal armed forces. And under “Title 32 status” the National Guard is under control of the governor but may perform certain duties specified by Congress or missions requested by the president. 

This bill would only prevent the National Guard from entering Washington when it is being operated under state active duty and Title 32 status. It would not affect Title 10 status, in which a president calls on the National Guard for an operation. 

It would also not prevent the state military from training or readiness or impede the ability of the National Guard to provide support during an emergency or natural disaster. 

Many states, including Republican strongholds like Texas, Idaho, North Dakota and Oklahoma, already have laws on the books that are similar to the proposal Mena is pushing.  

“I actually don’t think it has to be a partisan issue, because the political winds and the other Washington change so frequently that other states have seen the need for this,” Mena said. 

Gov. Bob Ferguson supports the bill, highlighting it in his inaugural address earlier this month. Nathan Bays, deputy policy director for the governor’s office, testified in support during a House committee hearing Wednesday, saying the bill is a necessary precautionary measure. 

House Speaker Laurie Jinkins, D-Tacoma, has highlighted the bill as a proactive measure the state could take in response to Trump-era policies. 

But Rep. Jim Walsh, R-Aberdeen, a member of the House State Government and Tribal Relations Committee and also state Republican Party chair, described the bill as a solution in search of a problem. He doesn’t see a scenario where it’s needed.

“The important thing is it doesn’t affect the federalization of the National Guard,” Walsh said. “If the president decided there (was an) immigration enforcement crisis and nationalized Guard units, then they could be implemented at the border if that ever happened.”

“This bill wouldn’t prevent that,” he said.

Jacquelyn Jimenez Romero is a WSU Murrow Fellow at the Washington State Standard. The Washington State Standard originally published this story on Jan. 30, 2025.

This article originally appeared in the Washington State Standard.

Emily Alvarado moved from the House to the Senate in the state Legislature on Tuesday after the King County Council appointed her to replace Joe Nguyen, who Gov. Bob Ferguson tapped last month to lead the state Department of Commerce.

Alvarado, a Democrat, was sworn into the Senate shortly after the Council selected her for the seat in the 34th Legislative District, which includes West Seattle, Vashon Island, White Center, and part of Burien.

Alvarado was elected to the House in 2022. She’s worked as an executive with an affordable-housing nonprofit and as the director of Seattle’s Office of Housing. 

“I believe we all have a shared obligation to provide high-quality public services to our communities,” Alvarado said. 

Nguyen was first elected to the state Senate in 2018 and reelected in 2022. He was the first Vietnamese American elected to the Washington state Senate.

The council also approved Brianna Thomas as Alvarado’s replacement in the state House of Representatives. 

Thomas currently works as the senior policy and labor advisor for the Seattle mayor’s office and previously was chief of staff for former Seattle City Council member Lorena González.  

“I’m not here for a power grab, I’m here to hold the door open for the same people that held the door open for me so more folks like me have those opportunities,” Thomas said. 

The Council also chose Janice Zahn to replace Tana Senn, former state representative for the 41st Legislative District, who Ferguson picked to lead the Department of Children, Youth, and Families.

Zahn is the chief engineer at the Port of Seattle and has been serving on the Bellevue City Council, which she was first elected to in 2017. 

“I bring unique perspectives as an immigrant, engineer, elected and staffer, with extensive and broad experience at every level of government,” Zahn said. 

Senn first joined the state House in 2013 when the King County Council appointed her to the seat in the 41st District, which covers parts of Bellevue, Issaquah, Mercer Island and other communities.

Both the House and Senate positions will be on the ballot in a special election in November, with the winners serving through 2026.

The Washington State Standard originally published this article on Jan. 22, 2025.

House Democrats introduced a new bill to bolster and broaden the state’s authority to inspect private detention facilities amid recent legal battles over the monitoring of the Northwest ICE Processing Center (NWIPC) in Tacoma.

Rep. Lillian Ortiz-Self, D-Mukilteo, the bill’s primary sponsor, said the updates are designed to expand a 2023 bill to include private detention facilities such as the Martin Hall Juvenile Detention Facility in Spokane County. Previous legislation applied only to the Tacoma immigration center, and the company that runs it sued the state claiming discrimination as the only site of its kind in the state. 

“The biggest thing is allowing inspections so we can have eyes in there and know what’s happening,” Ortiz-Self said, mentioning that she heard reports of a chicken pox outbreak but cannot know how it’s being handled without Department of Health access. “There’s that lack of transparency that’s paramount in all of this.”

Separately, a judge ruled on Thursday against GEO Group, the company operating the NWIPC, in another lawsuit. The decision from the Ninth Circuit Court found that the company violated state minimum wage laws when it paid detainees $1 per day, and requires GEO Group to pay nearly $20 million in back wages.

DOH and Labor & Industries attempted to inspect the Northwest ICE Processing Center after a bill passed in 2023 regulating private detention centers and codifying “routine, unannounced inspections.” Court records state that the facility administrator for NWIPC denied both agencies entry, and the issue ended up in court. DOH is still in litigation, but L&I gained access under a different statute. The inspection yielded no violations. 

Newly introduced House Bill 1232 includes defining abuse and neglect, escalating actions for failed inspections, outlining food and staffing requirements and granting the Department of Health access to inspect at any time. 

“There shouldn’t be any fear of letting our agencies in to make sure everything is working the way it’s supposed to if you’re following the law,” Ortiz-Self said. “Our concern has always been that: Why are you so afraid of transparency?” 

Rep. Chris Corry, R-Yakima, who voted against the 2023 bill, said he believes managing NWIPC should be up to the federal government, arguing there are more pressing issues for the state to focus on. 

“These bills are less about these private detention facilities than it is about this political hot potato that is ICE and detention of people who are in the country illegally,” he said. 

The new bill is currently in committee. 

Democratic staffers in the Washington state Legislature unanimously approved a two-year contract days before the start of the 2025 session, but the terms will not go into effect until this summer.

Legislative assistants, communications staff and policy analysts in both chambers began unionizing after winning the right to organize in 2022. Republican staffers were the first to approve a contract when they reached a deal in September. 

Democratic staffers, who are represented by the Washington Public Employees Association, had voted down a previous offer. 

“These agreements secure vital protections and improvements for current staff, and make significant progress towards a stronger, more supportive work environment,” WPEA President Amanda Hacker wrote in a statement on Jan. 10 announcing the agreement.

Josie Ellison, a communications specialist with the House Democratic Caucus, said support swung from 0% to 100% between September and January, largely due to protections the unit won in the grievance process that allow for arbitration over contract disputes.

“We feel really strongly that we need an external third party,” Ellison told Cascade PBS in an interview.

Ellison was surprised the sides reached a deal after staffers turned down the offer in the fall. The contract also includes a wage increase of 3% in 2025 and 2% in 2026, the same offer given to other state employee unions. The contract goes into effect July 1, 2025, after the session is set to end. 

“It’s a big relief,” Ellison said. “It’s a contract a year sooner than we thought.”

Democratic lawmakers in Olympia are once again pushing to cap the amount landlords can raise rents in Washington, a year after a similar effort fell short. 

On Thursday, state Rep. Emily Alvarado, a Seattle Democrat, prefiled House Bill 1217 — a “rent stabilization” proposal that would prevent landlords from raising rent by more than 7% annually for existing tenants. It would also limit various types of rental fees and require landlords to provide at least 180 days’ notice for rent increases over 3%.

During a news conference Friday morning, Alvarado and other progressive lawmakers described the proposal as a key step toward protecting renters and fighting homelessness in Washington. 

The bill is largely identical to the rent stabilization bill Alvarado sponsored last year, which passed the House but died after a contentious battle in the Senate. 

Alvarado and her progressive colleagues said they’re optimistic the proposal has a better shot at passing this year. Two Democrats who played a key role in blocking the bill on the Ways and Means Committee last year won’t be returning to the Senate this year.

“We have a good sense of stronger support in the Senate,” said state Rep. Nicole Macri, a Seattle Democrat who is co-sponsoring the new bill.  

Macri also pointed to the results of a Cascade PBS/Elway poll released Thursday, which found that 68% of respondents favored limits on the amount that landlords can raise rent each year. 

At a legislative preview event on Wednesday, Senate Minority Leader John Braun, a Republican from Centralia, argued that a cap on rent would disincentivize private development and ultimately worsen the housing shortage. He said his Republican colleagues would likely oppose the bill. 

“We may have a good short-term effect … but we will stop the building” of private development, Braun said. 

Alvarado said Friday that her bill takes a “balanced approach” that protects tenants while also encouraging more housing supply. She noted that residential construction would be exempted from the rent cap if it's less than 10 years old, and that landlords could still raise rent any amount between one tenant and the next.

Facing a $12 billion budget shortfall over the next four years, Governor-elect Bob Ferguson announced on Thursday a goal of $4 billion in budget cuts, along with $1.3 billion worth of new programs that he wants to see in the 2025-27 biennial budget.

The $12 billion predicted shortfall is likely the Legislature’s biggest problem in the upcoming 105-day session that begins Jan. 13.

“Washingtonians expect that we will increase revenue as a last resort,” Ferguson said. “I will not start contemplating additional revenue options until we have exhausted efforts to improve efficiency.”

At a Thursday press briefing, Republican legislative leaders contended that the shortfall can be fixed solely by budget cuts with no new taxes. Meanwhile, Democratic legislative leaders countered that some cuts can be made, but some new, yet-to-be-determined taxes are inevitable. Democrats control both the House and Senate.

Governors’ budget proposals are outlines of an individual governor’s suggestions and priorities. The Legislature has the power to set the budget, and the governor has the power to veto some or all of that document.

At the Thursday press briefing, Ferguson called for a cut across all state agencies, averaging about 6%, which would trim $4 billion from the shortfall. Not all agencies would individually have to cut 6%. Some might cut more and some might trim less, he said. 

This $4 billion would be in addition to roughly $3 billion in one-time savings and deferred expenses identified in outgoing Gov. Jay Inslee’s proposed 2025-27 budget. Ferguson also proposes saving an additional $300 million by resolving disputes in a legal settlement with the tobacco industry. He also proposes eliminating another $75 million from the state’s regulatory and civil law enforcement agencies, including from the Attorney General’s Office. Ferguson is the outgoing Washington attorney general.

Meanwhile, Ferguson’s Thursday news release also listed $1.3 billion in new expenses.

That money includes $100 million in grants to local governments to increase the number of new well-trained law enforcement officers; $5 million to clear the backlog of approximately 15,000 cases at the Washington State Toxicology Laboratory; $600 million allocated to the state’s capital budget to build new homes, while reducing their costs to families; $20 million for ferry crew recruitment and retention; $480 million to guarantee school lunches for every Washington student and $100 million to expand child care eligibility for employees at small businesses.

Gov. Jay Inslee is proposing a new tax on wealthy Washingtonians as part of his last budget proposal, unveiled Tuesday.

The tax proposal comes as the state is potentially facing a shortfall up to $16 billion over the next four years, Inslee said. The increase would affect about 3,400 residents by adding a 1% annual tax on assets over $100 million. He noted that the tax would raise an estimated $10.3 billion in the coming years, and claimed that it would be less volatile than the capital gains tax passed in 2021.

“We are proposing a balanced budget, and that’s important for the fiscal integrity of the state of Washington,” Inslee said. “We have already taken some steps to reduce some of our expenditures, and that’s the first thing we looked at when we were thinking about this proposed budget.”

Although Inslee will no longer be the governor when Gov.-elect Bob Ferguson is inaugurated on Jan. 15, he is still required to submit a budget proposal to the Legislature in December. The incoming governor will release his own budget at a later date. 

Inslee noted Tuesday that the state is already taking steps to close the gap, including freezes on nonessential hiring and expenditures. 

Inslee’s proposal would also call for an increase in the state’s B&O tax, and would temporarily tax businesses with an annual income over $1 million at 20%. According to estimates, the tax would raise about $2.6 billion over the next four years. A 10% B&O tax would also be levied on some businesses in 2027 under the proposal. 

The proposal also includes cuts to programs and services, such as the closing of the Mission Creek Corrections Center for Women in Mason County, three reentry centers, and two residential habilitation centers. 

Proposals to pause board bonuses for educators and to pause expansion of child care assistance eligibility are also included in Inslee’s budget.

In total, Inslee’s proposal would grow state spending to $79 billion for the 2025-27 biennium, an increase from the current two-year $72 billion budget. 

Democratic legislative leaders thanked Inslee in statements Tuesday, and called for building a “responsible, sustainable budget that reflects our shared values.”

“It’s clear we must balance the need to protect essential services with smart, strategic choices that help working families, strengthen our economy, and address growing income inequality,” said Sen. June Robinson, D-Everett, chair of the Senate Ways and Means Committee. 

Republicans criticized the proposal, saying the deficit was “caused by overspending, not by a recession or a drop in revenue.” 

“The governor could have come up with a budget that lives within the additional $5 billion in revenue that is anticipated. Instead, he wants to spend even more and impose additional taxes on Washington employers to help make up the difference. When the cost of doing business goes up, consumers feel it too. His budget would make living in Washington even less affordable,” said Sen. Chris Gildon, R-Puyallup, Republican leader on the Senate Ways and Means Committee. 

Lawmakers will return to Olympia on Jan. 13 to begin the legislative session, and will have 105 days to hash out the state’s budget as well as pass other new laws. 

The state Senate will see two more new faces in January after counties filled positions left open by one retirement and one lawmaker leaving for Congress. 

Deb Krishnadasan was appointed Wednesday at a meeting of the Pierce County Council and Kitsap County Board of Commissioners, and will replace Emily Randall in the 26th legislative district. Both counties were involved in the process because the district encompasses parts of both. Randall resigned on Dec. 8 and will assume her new office as a U.S. Representative for the 6th Congressional District in January.

Krishnadasan is a former Peninsula School Board president and Gig Harbor Democrat. In a statement provided Thursday, Krishnadasan said that due to her experience serving on the school board, she knows that “policy must come from a place of listening to my neighbors — to teachers and nurses, parents and every person in our community.”

“I look forward to working with my new Senate colleagues to improve education, advance public transportation and infrastructure, and expand economic opportunities for all Washingtonians,” she added. 

On Tuesday, House Speaker pro tempore Tina Orwall, D-Des Moines, was appointed to the Senate to represent the 33rd Legislative District, encompassing parts of King County and including Burien, SeaTac, Des Moines and parts of Kent, Tukwila and Renton. 

Orwall, appointed by the King County Council Tuesday, said in a statement that she was honored to be able to serve her community in a new capacity. 

“I’m incredibly humbled to earn the trust of my community and will continue to do everything I can to improve the lives of all people living in our district and throughout our state,” Orwall said.

Orwall, first elected to the House of Representatives in 2008, will replace longtime Sen. Karen Keiser, who announced her retirement from the Legislature earlier this year. Edwin Obras, a deputy division director at the Human Services Department in Seattle, was also appointed Tuesday to fill Orwall’s vacant seat in the House.

Washington State Democratic Party Chair Shasti Conrad said in a statement Thursday that state Democrats “were proud to ensure the fifth election in a row” that grew their legislative majorities.

“We look forward to these newest members of the Democratic caucus in Olympia working on behalf of all Washingtonians to address housing insecurity, promote public safety, and look to progressive revenue options,” Conrad added. 

The legislative session will begin on Jan. 13. 

The Washington State Legislature has a new Senate Majority Leader after Senate Democrats elected Sen. Jamie Pedersen, D-Seattle, to the position on Monday.

Democrats retain a majority in the state Senate after this year’s general election.

After Monday’s vote, Washington is now the first state in the country to have two legislative leadership roles filled simultaneously by lawmakers who are members of the LGBTQ+ community. In the state House, Speaker Laurie Jinkins, D-Tacoma, has served as the first woman and lesbian in the position since 2020.

Pedersen has been a lawmaker since 2007 when he took office as a state Representative. In 2012 he was elected to the Senate and currently sits on the Senate Early Learning and K-12 Education Committee, the Senate Law and Justice Committee, the Senate Rules Committee, and the Senate Ways and Means Committee. Since 2012 he has served as the Senate Majority Floor Leader.

In a news release Monday, Pedersen said he was humbled to lead the Senate and is eager to build on bipartisan progress.

“We are excited to see our majority grow,” Pedersen said. “I am confident this new energy and passion will help Senate Democrats continue to put people first and tackle the issues Washingtonians care about most – affordable housing, great public schools, behavioral health, gun violence prevention, climate change and more.”

Pedersen has sponsored legislation to reduce gun violence and increase access to the Death with Dignity Act, and publicly sponsored the measure to legalize the sale of cannabis in Washington as well as legalize same-sex marriage. 

Pedersen will take the place of Sen. Andy Billig, D-Spokane, who announced earlier this year that he would retire after 14 years in the Legislature. The legislative session begins Jan. 13. 

Currently Pedersen is the executive vice president and general counsel for McKinstry, and lives with his husband Eric and four sons on Capitol Hill.

Lawmakers came to a late-session agreement on Senate Bill 6194 to outline collective bargaining rights for legislative staffers just before adjourning Thursday.

In 2022, the Legislature lifted the state’s prohibition on the unionization of legislative staffers, allowing them to begin organizing in May 2024. Before May, legislators intended to pass a second bill to outline what unions could negotiate over and the composition of bargaining units.

The initial bill to clarify those issues drew criticism from current and former legislative staffers over limiting the power of any future union by prohibiting bargaining over the hiring or firing of employees, as well as over hours worked. 

Amendments in the House and Senate addressed some of those concerns, allowing bargaining over at-will status — except for when there’s a change due to an election, appointment or resignation of a legislator. The final bill also permitted future unions to negotiate overtime when the legislature is not in session, in the run-up or immediately after a term.