CUTOFF SEASON
- February 4 is “Policy Cutoff” in the legislature, the first in a series of deadlines that limit which bills can move forward. Bills must be voted off of the floor of their House of Origin by 5pm on February 17 in order to continue through the process this session.
- SJM 8015/ HJM 4009 – This resolution calling on the federal government to invest in wildland fire response (which also serves as a hook to discuss the need to restore wildland fire funding) was heard in committee last week, featuring testimony from Brady Dier, WPEA Vice President and a steward at DNR. Both House and Senate resolutions are moving. See Brady’s testimony here
- HB 2237 – WPEA’s salary survey bill for Deputy State Fire Marshals had a good public hearing but is unlikely to move forward, mostly due to opposition from OFM. The bill highlighted this issue for lawmakers, however, and we look forward to bringing similar bills forward in the future.
- SB 6325 – This bill would require the legislature to fully fund COLAs for community and technical college staff, and develop a staffing model to make sure that as the need for services grow, colleges are hiring enough people to do the work. The bill was heard last week, and voted out of committee on Monday, February 2.
- These bills (and more!)are all on the WPEA Bill Tracker , updated weekly, and we’ll discuss the latest from the legislature at every Unity meeting during session.
