Bill to prohibit child marriages passes House on first day of session. Here’s what else happened

State lawmakers convened Monday for the first day of the 2024 legislative session with an opening ceremony followed by the passage of three bills.

Legislators will have a short 60-day window to pass a supplemental budget and any policy bills and address (or not) six initiatives that could have a major impact on certain laws they have passed in recent years.

The House session opened with a rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner, before a prayer was read by Rabbi Seth Goldstein from Temple Beth Hatfiloh in Olympia.

Squaxin Island Tribal members also sang a traditional song and offered a blessing during the opening ceremony in the House. Kris Klabsch Peters, Council Chairman for the Squaxin Island Tribe, spoke to House members.

Newest House member Rep. Greg Nance, D-Bainbridge Island, was then welcomed with a standing ovation by other House members. Nance was appointed to his seat in the 23rd Legislative District in 2023 after former Rep. Drew Hanson was appointed to the Senate to fill an empty seat.

Speaker of the House Laurie Jinkins, D-Tacoma, then delivered a speech to House members, with recognition of the “global context of this moment.” She noted the rise in antisemitism and Islamophobia leading to attacks on Jewish, Muslim and Islamic communities.

“We will continue to fight antisemitism, Islamophobia, xenophobia, anti-Asian hate, anti-Blackness and the other social ills that put the safety and prosperity of Washingtonians at risk,” Jinkins said.

The House Speaker added that she was “optimistic and determined about the next 60 days.”

Jinkins referenced “victories” from the 2023 legislative session such as several bipartisan housing bills that passed with broad support from both chambers, but noted that more needs to be done to address the need for more affordable housing.

She also noted the need for more affordable childcare in the state.

“Our economy may be strong, but there’re also too many families out there who are struggling to find childcare, and even if they do find it, they can’t afford it,” Jinkins said. “The childcare crisis is bad for both workers and employers in Washington because even though our economy is creating good-paying jobs, without access to childcare, too many qualified workers can’t fill those jobs. That’s bad news for the workforce shortages that we’re already grappling with.”

Housing and childcare are “integral” to keeping Washington’s economy strong, she said.

Jinkins said lawmakers will continue to tackle behavioral health issues, including expanding access to services. She said she is “particularly excited” about a new behavioral health teaching hospital through the University of Washington, set to open in June, because it will increase available beds and be a boon to the behavioral health workforce.

Additionally, the Speaker said opioid and fentanyl education will be addressed this session, as will expanding access to treatment and recovery support for addiction.

Tribal communities have been the most severely impacted by fentanyl, she said, but noted that Tribes are “leading the way with model programs that remove barriers to treatment, and we’d be wise to listen to their voices and learn from their approach.”

Although Jinkins was optimistic about the upcoming session, House Minority Leader Drew Stokesbary, R-Auburn, was critical of the Democrats’ approach.

“Despite everything Washington has going for it, I’m afraid that we are confronting a catalog of crises here in Washington state. In too many ways the state seems to be going in the wrong direction,” Stokesbary said.

He added that the state has the fourth highest rate of homelessness, a high cost of living and at one point over the summer had the highest gas prices in the country. He also noted the high sales tax rate as well as the high rate of deaths from fentanyl.

“We must fix these crises. We must fix Washington,” said Stokesbary.

He then highlighted some pieces of legislation he believes would make a difference, such as House Bill 1363, which would reinstate vehicular pursuit laws. The bill has broad bipartisan support.

Stokesbary also highlighted legislation that would enhance the penalties for fentanyl distribution to reduce the “flow” of drugs into communities, as well as legislation that would allow Washington State Patrol to fight “sophisticated drug rings.”

“It’s not just drugs and public safety that are our concern, but so is the affordability in Washington,” he said.

High taxes, he said, have driven up the cost of living. He also noted that housing and transportation cost significantly more in Washington than other states. Additionally, the state’s Climate Commitment Act has increased gas prices, he said.

Stokesbary echoed the Speaker’s concerns about the need for more affordable childcare in the state, and described some of the issues public education is facing, such as lagging test scores in certain subjects.

“Over the next 60 days I hope that we have the honesty to admit when we’re wrong, and the humility to be willing to try new approaches,” Stokesbary said. “Meanwhile we must avoid hubris and think that good intentions are a sufficient condition for good policies.”

House passes three bills during first day

Lawmakers also brought back three bills from the 2023 legislative session during the opening floor session and passed them before adjourning for the day.

Mari Leavitt, D-University Place, introduced House Bill 1012, which addresses responses to “extreme weather events.” She said that the legislation helps local jurisdictions help the most vulnerable in their communities.

The bill directs the Military Department to develop and implement “an Extreme Weather Response Grant Program for the purpose of assisting political subdivisions and federally recognized tribes with the costs of responding to community needs during periods of extremely hot or cold weather, or in situations of severe poor air quality from wildfire smoke.”

Republican Rep. Mike Volz from Spokane spoke against the bill, saying it lacked specificity and didn’t give enough parameters.

The bill passed by a vote of 68-30.

A bill to eliminate child marriage in Washington state then passed the House unanimously.

Rep. Monica Stonier, D-Vancouver, sponsored House Bill 1455, which prohibits courts or anyone else acting on behalf of a minor from consenting to marriage for those under the age of 18, she said. Ten other states including Connecticut, New York, and Michigan have all outlawed the practice.

“This is important because young people who are married before they are legal adults do not have access to the full range of legal services, counseling, therapy, financial support they might need if they were in a coercive and abusive relationship…,” Stonier said.

Rep. Jim Walsh, R-Aberdeen, also spoke in support of the bill.

“We believe there are some elements of life that a child is not capable of entering into, or deciding about, on his or her own,” Walsh said.

He said the bill acknowledges that minor children “cannot consent to all of life’s choices.”

Lawmakers passed one other bill before adjourning.

Rep. Andrew Barkis, R-Olympia, sponsored House Bill 1245 that allows lot splitting for single residential lots while prohibiting cities from regulating certain aspects of split lots.

Barkis said that’s important because “we have the need for additional available lots to increase the supply of housing.”

Combined with a bill to allow Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) and a bill to increase middle housing, both passed last year, Barkis described the lot-splitting bill as the “sweet spot.”

Rep. Strom Peterson, D-Edmonds, said that although much work was done last year for housing, there’s still more to do. He said that Barkis’ bill will help housing on the supply side, which is “one of the three legs of the stool” to support building housing stock as well as find avenues for affordable housing.

The bill passed the House 94-4.

All three bills will now head to the Senate for consideration.

On Tuesday, Gov. Jay Inslee will deliver the State of the State at 11:45 a.m.

The Legislature will adjourn March 7.