QV Webspinner Dear Supporters of the Friends Committee on Washington Public Policy, Friends have been a leading voice for prison reform for over 350 years. But our voice has never been needed more than it is today, when our nation has a higher reported rate of imprisonment than any other country in the world. So we invite … Read more
Friends–Another friendly nudge from you and we may end up with two more good bills passed this session: SB 6790 on prison education and HB 2026 on military recruiting in the schools. Thank you. Post-secondary Education for Prisoners. SSB6790 is an exciting bill that attempts to reintroduce highereducation into the prison system by starting small. It authorizes … Read more
House Bill 2879 creating new terrorism crimes and expanding the death penalty, and House Bill 2416 greatly expanding wiretap authority in anti-terrorism investigations, passed the House with large majorities in mid-February. HB 2879 was heard in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday the 28th. Chairman Kline did not let the bill out of Committee, killing it. … Read more
Friends—Global changes and their impacts on our state and communities are critical issues which FCWPP will be including in its legislative focus. This week is an important one, with four major bills before the legislature dealing with how we can build more sustainable communities . Climate change and fossil fuel energy peaking are real and … Read more
Friends–This week is an exciting one, with a chance for us to make progress in criminal justice reform. If you can make some calls or write some emails right away, this is an excellent time. Questions? Don’t hesitate to call me at 206-276-9128 or email me at redtuffy@embarqmail.com. And thank you! — written by … Read more
SB 5070, the state omnibus reentry bill to salvage lives and reduce recidivism for the benefit of offenders, their families, and our communities, is in the House awaiting floor action before tomorrow’s cutoff deadline. Please urge your representatives to help bring this important bill to a vote, and to only support amendments that will mitigate unnecessarily harsh sanctions and make … Read more
Sen. Margarita Prentice from the 11th District (Renton), is chair of Senate Ways & Means, and is the key figure in the progress of the corrections ombudsman bill, SB 5295. To progress further, the bill must have a hearing and be reported out of Ways & Means by next Monday, March 5, which is the cutoff … Read more
We have been successful in obtaining a hearing on SB 5295, the corrections ombudsman bill, which will be heard this Friday, Feb. 9 at 8:00 a.m. by the Senate Human Services & Corrections Committee, which meets in senate hearing room 1. We will have to make a very substantial showing to get this significant … Read more
Please call or email Sen. Jim Hargrove, chair of the Senate Human Services & Corrections Committee, to urge him to give SB 5295, the Corrections Ombudsman bill, a hearing. Sen. Hargrove’s district 24 covers Clallam, Grays Harbor, and Jefferson counties. Calls from people in those counties are particularly needed, but calls from throughout the state will also be helpful … Read more
Sen. Jim Kastama (D-25th District) has filed a bill to establish acorrections ombudsman, which would fulfill one of FCWPP’s major goals for this legislative session.Current co-sponsors include Sen. Dan Swecker (R-20th District), Sen.Karen Fraser (D-22nd District), Sen. Chris Marr (D-6th District), Sen.Jeanne Kohl-Welles (D-36th District), and Sen. Debbie Regala (D-27th District). Please thank them. Other senators can … Read more