Climate Action This Week:
  • Natural Resources
  • Comprehensive Planning
  • Weatherization Health Plus Program
  • Peace Officers/Use of Force
  • Recycling and Waste Reduction
  • Business Emissions Reductions 
  • Greenhouse Gas/Facilities  
  • Basic Income Trust
  • Wealth Tax
  • TANF Time Limit Extensions
Thanks for taking action with us!

If you're viewing this on a smartphone, make sure you're in your browser.

Question Title

* Your information

Here are our first three actions.  We think these will take about 10-15 minutes.

Question Title

* 📜 1. Adding a new section to the Washington state Constitution to conserve and protect the state's natural resources - HJR 4209

This bill will add to the state’s constitution the right to a clean and healthy environment, including pure water, clean air, healthy ecosystems, and a stable climate, and will make the state a trustee for the preservation of the natural, cultural, scenic, and healthful qualities of the environment. For truly important rights, it is worth having them protected at the highest level in our state. 

Joint Resolutions need a two-thirds majority and, therefore, bipartisan support to pass. It’s important to show our support!

We are following the lead of 350 WA and Green Amendments for the Generations on this bill.

Scheduled for a public hearing in the House Committee on Environment & Energy on Tuesday, February 1, 8:00 AM.

✏️ Please sign in here to support HJR 4209 before Tuesday, February 1, 7:00 AM and select “Pro” in the position button.   

The 350 WA Green Amendment Team is helping support virtual testimony and written comments -- follow this link for registration links and talking points. The deadline for providing written comments is Wednesday, February 2, 8:00 AM.

Question Title

* 📜 2. Adding Climate to the Growth Management Act - HB 1099

This important bill will add climate change and resiliency goals as elements that have to be included in certain cities’ and counties’ comprehensive plans, developmental regulations and regional plans, identifying actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and vehicle miles traveled. Reductions and resiliency actions must be prioritized in communities that suffer or will suffer disproportionate impacts from environmental impacts. This bill has already passed the House. We now need to get it through the Senate!

We are following the lead of Futurewise on this bill.

Scheduled for a public hearing in the Senate Committee on Housing and Local Government on Tuesday, February 1, 8:00 AM. 

✏️ Please sign in here to support HB 1099 before Tuesday, February 1, 7:00 AM and select “Pro” in the position button.

Question Title

* 📜 3. Community Sign-On Letter for Weatherization Plus Health Program in Washington.

Weatherization Plus Health was established by the Washington State legislature in 2015. Since then, the state has invested more than $63 million dollars to keep children and adults healthy in their homes. By combining improvements to conserve energy, such as installing insulation, with health measures, such as replacing old floor covering and improving ventilation, the legislature has made a win-win investment. 

Washington State Community Action Partnership (WSCAP) is asking for community support of the request to our legislators for reinstatement of $10 million and a supplemental budget request of $37 million for the Low-Income Weatherization Plus Health program. 

We are following the lead of Shift Zero. 

Please consider co-signing WSCAP’s letter here as an individual. The deadline is Tuesday February 1, 5:00 PM.

All done? Don’t forget to scroll to the bottom and click the orange “DONE” button to submit your actions!
If you have a little more time, these next three actions will take about 15 minutes.

Question Title

* 📜 4. Concerning the standard for law enforcement authority to detain or pursue persons - SB 5919

We are opposing this bill. This bill would expand the use of high-speed vehicular pursuits, lower the expectations for when officers are required to de-escalate, and expand the use of physical force by police officers. If SB 5919 were to pass, it would reverse or water down gains made in the legislature last year. High-speed vehicular chases are extremely dangerous. Since 2015 two-thirds of high-speed vehicular chases ended in a fatality and half of the deaths were innocent bystanders. Last year’s HB 1054 resulted in a 55% decrease in the number of deaths from high speed pursuits. 

Opposing SB 5919 is crucial to valuing the lives of Black, Indigenous, and other people of color, who are disproportionately impacted by police violence.

We are following the lead of the Washington Coalition for Police Accountability on this bill.

Scheduled for a public hearing in the Senate Committee on Law & Justice on Tuesday, February 1, 10:30 AM.

✏️ Please sign in here to oppose SB 5919 before Tuesday, February 1, 9:30 AM and select “Con” in the position button.

📜 5. Renewing Washington's recycling system and reducing waste - SB 5697

Also known as the RENEW Recycling Act, this bill will make producers of packaging and paper products responsible for their products’ full lifecycle. It will incentivize them to improve by establishing graduated fees based on how readily the packaging can be reused, recycled, or composted.

The fees raised will be used to fund improvements in recycling infrastructure, provide uniform recycling access for residents across the state, and communicate a clear list of what people can and can’t recycle.  
We are following the lead of Zero Waste Washington on this bill.

Scheduled for an executive session in the Senate Committee on Environment, Energy & Technology on Wednesday, February 2, 8:00 AM.

Question Title

* Please call or email Senate committee members and ask them to support SB 5697 and pass it out of committee. The script is below. 

✏️ Click here to send an email to members of the Senate committee.

 If the above link did not work, please address your emails to:

Chair Sen. Reuven Carlyle (D-36) – (360) 786-7670 – Reuven.Carlyle@leg.wa.gov 
Vice Chair Sen. Liz Lovelett (D-40) – (360) 786-7678 – Liz.Lovelett@leg.wa.gov
Ranking Member Sen. Shelly Short (R-07) – (360) 786-7612 – Shelly.Short@leg.wa.gov

If you’re calling and you reach voicemail, be sure to speak slowly and clearly and say the bill number. And be sure to let them know if you are a constituent of their district!

 📑 Script: I’m writing to ask Senator [Name] to support SB 5697 and pass it out of committee.

 Then choose 1-2 additional sentences from the options below or feel free to write your own.
  • All across Washington, plastic waste litters shorelines and waterways, filling landfills and harming wildlife. Our recycling system needs to be modernized so all packaging can actually be recycled, composted, or reused. The bill requires that by 2031, 100% of the packaging and paper products made or sold into Washington is reusable, recyclable, or compostable.
  • The RENEW Recycling Act incentivizes producers by creating a set of graduated fees on packaging manufacturers based on how readily reusable, compostable, or recyclable their products are. These fees will be used to provide uniform recycling access for residents across the state and create a harmonized, clear list of what people can recycle.
  • The bill mandates new post-consumer recycled content requirements for PET thermoform containers (i.e., clear containers that bakery goods or produce come in), polypropylene tubs (i.e., yogurt containers), and single-use plastic cups.
  • By shifting recycling costs away from ratepayers and onto the manufacturers, this bill will create over 1,650 green jobs and a stronger recycling system, prevent pollution, and reduce greenhouse gasses.
  • The bill establishes an extended producer responsibility system that makes producers of packaging and paper products responsible for the full lifecycle of their products.

  I called I emailed
The whole group
Chair Sen. Reuven Carlyle
Vice Chair Sen. Liz Lovelett
Ranking Member Sen. Shelly Short
📜 6. Business Emissions Reductions - HB 1682

Emissions-Intensive, Trade-Exposed (“EITE”) businesses are core industries, primarily manufacturing, that release large amounts of greenhouse gas emissions and face significant national or global competition for their products. The 2021 Climate Commitment Act (CCA) required the legislature to define the schedule and pace of EITEs’ emissions reductions (“compliance pathway”) for achieving their proportionate share of the state's emissions reductions from 2035 through 2050. The bill also adds to the list of programs available for funding from the climate commitment account.

The bill that was introduced provides for a slower ramp-down of emissions reduction than was requested by the Department of Ecology. Now affected businesses are asking the legislature to weaken the schedule even more. Green groups are asking for the legislature to hold to the proposed compliance pathway in the face of strong industry opposition.

We are following the lead of 350 WA on this bill.

Scheduled for an executive session in the House Committee on Environment & Energy on Tuesday, February 1, 8:00 AM.

Question Title

* Please call or email these members of the Committee before the hearing and ask them not to weaken the proposed compliance pathway. The script is below. 

✏️ Click here to send an email to members of the House committee.

If the above link did not work, please address your emails to:

Chair Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon (D-34) – (564) 888-2362 – Joe.Fitzgibbon@leg.wa.gov
Vice Chair Rep. Davina Duerr (D-01) – (425) 318-1303 – Davina.Duerr@leg.wa.gov
Ranking Minority Member Rep. Mary Dye (R-09) – (564) 888-2380 – Mary.Dye@leg.wa.gov
 
If you’re calling and you reach voicemail, be sure to speak slowly and clearly and say the bill number. And be sure to let them know if you are a constituent of their district!

 📑 Script: I’m writing to ask Rep. [Name] not to weaken the 6% year-over-year emission reduction pathway in HB 1682, Business Emissions Reductions.

 Then choose 1-2 additional sentences from the options below or feel free to write your own.
  • The Department of Ecology recommended a steeper, faster ramp-down of free allowances (emissions reductions) allocated to Emissions-Intensive, Trade-Exposed (“EITE”) businesses. The slower, gentler path of emissions reductions in the current version of HB 1682 should not be weakened further.
  • At the public hearing the affected businesses pushed hard to be given more modest reductions. That is not appropriate!  It’s time for all affected businesses to commit to their fair share of emissions reductions.
  • Do not accept false solutions when considering amendments to the “best available technology” exemption. Polluting industries need to work on reducing their emissions during the compliance periods before 2035. They should not be given incentives to continue business-as-usual.
  • Between now and 2035 even our most emission-intensive industries should be able to adapt their energy processes.

  I called I emailed
The whole group
Chair Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon
Vice Chair Rep. Davina Duerr
Ranking Minority Member Rep. Mary Dye
All done? Don’t forget to scroll to the bottom and click the orange “DONE” button to submit your actions!
If you still have time, these last four actions will take about 5 -10 minutes.

Question Title

* 📜 7. Greenhouse gas emissions reductions in the design of public facilities - HB 1280

This bill declares that it is the public policy of the state to ensure that greenhouse gas emissions-reduction practices are included in the design of major publicly-owned or leased facilities, and that the use of all-electric energy systems is considered in the design. It also requires that the life-cycle cost analysis guidelines developed by the Department of Enterprise Services for public facilities include provisions that identify all-electric energy systems as an important alternative.

This bill passed the House in 2021, so now it needs to pass the Senate.

We’re following the lead of Shift Zero on this bill. 

Scheduled for a public hearing in the Senate Committee on Environment, Energy & Technology  Tuesday, February 1, 10:30 AM.

✏️ Please sign in here to support HB 1280 before Tuesday, February 1, 9:30 AM and select “Pro” in the position button.

Question Title

* 📜 8. Creating the Evergreen Basic Income Trust - HB 2009

This bill would create a Guaranteed Basic Income (GBI) providing regular, unrestricted cash payments to recipients who meet certain criteria. The bill recognizes that economic inequality continues to widen the gap between the top few earners and working and low-income families, that wages have failed to keep pace with the cost of living, and that centuries of discriminatory policies have resulted especially in black and African American, American Indian and Alaskan Native, Hispanic or Latinx, and other households of color having significantly lower median incomes than white and Asian households. A recent survey of 10,000 grocery workers in the Western US showed that 78% struggled to afford basic needs, like shelter, food, and child care.

We are following 350 WA on this bill. 

Scheduled for a public hearing in the House Committee on Housing, Human Services & Veterans February 1, 8:00 AM.

✏️ Please sign in here to support HB 2009 before Tuesday, February 1, 7:00 AM and select “Pro” in the position button.

Question Title

* 📜 9. Improving the equity of Washington state's tax code by creating the Washington state wealth tax and taxing extraordinary financial intangible assets - SB 5426

Creates a state wealth tax, which would be paid by around 100 ultra-wealthy Washingtonians. Generously, the first $1 billion of a person’s financial assets would be exempt from this tax; above $1 billion, assets would be taxed uniformly at 1%, consistent with our state’s constitution.

We are following 350 WA on this bill. 

Scheduled for a public hearing in the Senate Committee on Ways & Means, February 1, 4:00 PM.

✏️ Please sign in here to support SB 5426 before Tuesday, February 1, 3:00 PM and select “Pro” in the position box.

Question Title

* 📜 10. Temporary assistance for needy families time limit extensions - HB 2048

Temporary assistance for needy families usually ends after 60 months. This bill would expand the pool of recipients eligible for exemption from time limits to include those who are temporarily prevented from working or looking for a job, in need of mental health or substance use treatment, homeless or at substantial risk of losing stable housing or housing support services, or those who are able to demonstrate undue hardship to the recipient or the recipient's family.

We are following 350 WA on this bill. 

Scheduled for a public hearing in the House Committee on Housing, Human Services & Veterans Tuesday, February 1, 8:00 AM. 

 ✏️ Please sign in here to support HB 2048 before Tuesday, February 1, 7:00 AM and select “Pro” in the position button.

Question Title

* Thank you for taking action with us - that was a lot of work!  Please remember to click “Done” when you are finished. And please let us know what you think of our approach to this session.

-- The 350 WA Civic Action Team

P.S. Not on the CAT email list? Sign up here!

T