Tagged: Legislature

OLYMPIA, Wash. - Three months ago, 23 Republicans and two breakaway Democrats seized control of the Washington state Senate. At the time, Majority Leader Rodney Tom, one of the Democrats, pledged a new spirit of bipartisanship.

“The public out there is hungry for us to come together, to work together in a collaborative manner and that’s exactly what this coalition is trying to accomplish,” he said.

But as the halfway point of the legislative session approaches, the Washington state Senate has become a hotbed of partisan recriminations.

Washington lawmakers convene for the start of the 2013 session. They face a $2 billion budget problem, an unusual political dynamic in the state senate and hot button issues like gun control. Olympia Correspondent Austin Jenkins has this preview.

Oregon lawmakers return to Salem Monday for a legislative session that's expected to be full of debate over economic and public safety issues. Democrats will control both chambers of the legislature and the governor's office, but that doesn't mean there won't be disagreements. Salem Correspondent Chris Lehman reports.

The Special Session of the Oregon legislature lasted just one day. The unusual lame-duck gathering Saturday was meant to assure sports apparel giant Nike that the state would not change the way it calculates income taxes for the Oregon-based company. Salem Correspondent Chris Lehman reports.

A new report gives Washington state lawmakers a “D” grade on their work on racial equity. As Paige Browning explains, the report card is based on policy decisions in the 2011-2012 session that advance or reverse racial and economic equity.