Tag Archives: Sen. Shelly Short

Kirsten Hallock serves as page for Sen. Short

Kirsten Hallock, a junior at Mead High School, spent a week working as a page for the Washington State Senate at the Capitol in Olympia. Kirsten was one of 30 students who served as Senate pages for the eighth week of the 2018 legislative session.

She was sponsored by 7th Legislative District Sen. Shelly Short, who serves Ferry, Stevens and Pend Oreille counties and parts of Spokane and Okanogan counties.

“We’re glad Kirsten was able to learn so much during her week here,” Short said. “I hope she enjoyed experiencing the legislative process up close and getting to know everyone!”

The Senate Page Program provides an opportunity for Washington students to spend a week working at the Legislature. Students transport documents between offices, as well as deliver messages and mail. Pages spend time in the Senate chamber and attend page school to learn about parliamentary procedure and the legislative process. Students also draft their own bills and engage in a mock session.

“Getting to know how the government works and getting to see how everything is actually done was really interesting,” Kirsten said. She added that it was a great experience, and she enjoyed getting out of her comfort zone and meeting so many new people.

Kirsten, the 16-year-old daughter of Bob and Erica Hallock of Spokane, enjoys playing volleyball and lacrosse.

Students interested in the Senate Page Program are encouraged to visit: https://leg.wa.gov/Senate/Administration/PageProgram/ .

Alexandria Stickney serves as page for Sen. Short

Alexandria Stickney, a freshman at Colville High School, spent a week working as a page for the Washington State Senate at the Capitol in Olympia. Alexandria was one of 30 students who served as Senate pages for the eighth week of the 2018 legislative session.

She was sponsored by 7th Legislative District Sen. Shelly Short, who serves Ferry, Stevens and Pend Oreille counties and parts of Spokane and Okanogan counties.

“Ali was a great page, I’m happy she got to meet so many people and make new friends,” Short said. “What a great opportunity for her to experience the legislative process up close and am glad that she had such a wonderful time at the Legislature.”

“Being on the floor and talking to Sen. Short was my favorite part of the week,” Alexandria said. She added she’ll always remember all the friends she made while paging at the Legislature.

Alexandria, the 15-year-old daughter of Larry and Polly Stickney of Addy, enjoys soccer, track, leadership and Rocket Club.

Students interested in the Senate Page Program are encouraged to visit: https://leg.wa.gov/Senate/Administration/PageProgram/ .

Short blasts Democrats for supporting raid of voter-approved rainy-day fund

Calling it an irresponsible gimmick that threatens Washington’s future budget stability, 7th District Sen. Shelly Short criticized Senate Democrats for approving legislation that would raid the state’s savings account that is set aside for budget emergencies.

Short, R-Addy, said the Democrats’ passage of an amendment to Senate Bill 6614 to get around the need to obtain a 60-percent majority would brush aside voters’ wishes by violating the intent and spirit of voter-approved state budget protections to put extraordinary revenue into the state savings account called the rainy-day fund.

Using money from this fund generally requires a 60-percent “yes” vote by the Legislature.

SB 6614 was passed 25-23 Wednesday night, on the next-to-last day of the 2018 legislative session.

“The Senate Democrats’ proposal not only is absolutely reckless and incredibly irresponsible, it also ignores the will of a strong majority of Washington voters who created the rainy-day fund more than a decade ago and strengthened it a few years later,” said Short. She said the Democrats’ plan could put the state’s bond rating in jeopardy by unnecessarily shrinking the emergency account even though the state’s economy is generating an unexpectedly high level of tax revenue.

“Over the years, Washington has earned strong marks from debt-rating agencies thanks to a record of being fiscally responsible and maintaining strong reserves,” Short added. “The Democrats’ move to raid the state’s savings account sends a bad message to the bond industry that Washington is willing to spend recklessly instead of saving responsibly. This could come back to haunt us by weakening our bond rating, which would hurt not only our state but also our local cities, counties and school districts.”

The state’s chief economist has indicated the state will collect about $2.3 billion more than anticipated since the Legislature passed its 2017-19 state operating budget last June.

The Democrats’ proposed rewrite of the bill would funnel $935 million in property-tax revenues to the education legacy trust account. Redirecting the money lowers state general fund revenues, which circumvents the law by reducing the amount of money going into the state’s rainy-day fund by more than $700 million.

“A strong, healthy rainy-day fund helps in time of disaster or emergency and protects important state services from deep cuts in bad economic times like we have endured in the past, and most recently in 2008. Our state has experienced economic peaks and valleys that cause the state’s revenue collections to rise and fall. That’s why it’s so important to build and maintain a cushion when – not if, but when – the next downturn hits Washington,” Short said.

Short said the Democrats’ plan also would cause future extra revenue that would go into the rainy-day fund to be diverted elsewhere.

“Moving future excess revenue away from this account is a dangerous move that could leave our state budget vulnerable in case of an economic downturn,” Short said.

Short said she wishes Senate Democrats had offered to provide one-time property-tax relief to Washington property owners without raiding the state’s savings account.

“We had a rare opportunity to provide meaningful relief to property owners who experienced a spike in their property-tax bills this year without using part of the rainy-day fund. It’s too bad the Democrats chose a more reckless direction,” Short said.

In 2007, about 68 percent of Washington voters approved Senate Joint Resolution 8206, which created a constitutionally protected rainy-day fund that requires the Legislature to set aside 1 percent of revenues annually for financially hard times. A majority of voters in every county approved the rainy-day fund measure.

In 2011, 66.6 percent of Washington voters approved another measure, also numbered Senate Joint Resolution 8206, which amended the state constitution by requiring the Legislature to transfer additional money to the budget stabilization account in which the state has received “extraordinary revenue growth.” Again, a majority of voters in all 39 counties approved the measure.

Short bill seeks to raise awareness of need for bone-marrow donors

A Deer Park fifth-grader who survived cancer as an infant is the inspiration for a bill introduced in the 2018 legislative session by Sen. Shelly Short, R-Addy.

Short’s legislation, Senate Bill 6155, would increase awareness of the need for bone-marrow donors by requiring the state Department of Licensing to provide each driver’s license or identicard applicant with written materials regarding bone-marrow donation.

“The goal is to make more people aware of the need for bone-marrow donors and to generate more interest and education in the national marrow-donor program,” Short said. “If this bill becomes law, I believe Washington would be the first state in the nation to do this.”

Senate Bill 6155 received a public hearing in the Senate Transportation Committee Tuesday afternoon. Among those testifying in favor of it were Deer Park resident Jeana Moore and her 10-year-old granddaughter, Jada Bascom.

Jada Bascom (left) and her grandmother, Jeana Moore, during their testimony on SB 6155.

Short said she decided to introduce the bill after learning about Bascom’s moving story. Soon after Bascom was born in April 2007, she was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, an aggressive form of cancer that starts in the bone marrow.

After chemotherapy did not work, her family sought a bone-marrow transplant, but out of 7 million people in the National Bone Marrow Registry at that time, not a single match was found. Bascom’s family widened the search to Europe, and a match was found in Germany. On Nov. 27, 2007, Bascom received the lifesaving transplant.

“Jada’s story is inspiring and has a happy ending, but it also shows how important marrow donations are for leukemia patients and how hard it can be to locate a bone-marrow match. If you are of a multicultural descent, that search is even harder,” Short said.

Short’s 7th Legislative District seatmate, Rep. Jacquelin Maycumber, R-Republic, has introduced a companion measure in the House of Representatives, House Bill 2557, which received a public hearing Tuesday in the House Health Care and Wellness Committee.

Timothy Jasa serves as page for Sen. Shelly Short

Timothy Jasa, sophomore at Academy Northwest, spent a week working as a page for the Washington State Senate at the Capitol in Olympia. Timothy was one of 11 students who served as Senate pages for the second week of the 2018 legislative session.

He was sponsored by 7th Legislative District Sen. Shelly Short.

While Timothy was sponsored by Sen. Short, he had the opportunity to work in Sen. John Braun’s office. This kind of flexibility allows more students to participate in the page program.

“I really enjoyed sponsoring Timothy and meeting him while he paged for the Senate this week!” Sen. Short said. “The Page Program is a great way for students to learn about how the Legislature operates and see it in action.”

The Senate Page Program is an opportunity for Washington students to spend a week working in the Legislature. Students are responsible for transporting documents between offices, as well as delivering messages and mail. Pages spend time in the Senate chamber and attend page school to learn about parliamentary procedure and the legislative process. Students also draft their own bills and engage in a mock session.

Timothy said that being on the Senate floor was really interesting, especially “delivering notes to the senators,” which was his favorite part. He was surprised to learn “how many places a bill can be shut down during the legislative process.”

Timothy enjoys cross country and auto mechanics.

Timothy, 15, is the son of Robert and Jocelin Jasa of Winlock.

Students interested in the Senate Page Program are encouraged to visit: https://leg.wa.gov/Senate/Administration/PageProgram/ .

7th District legislators to hold telephone town hall meeting Jan. 23

Northeast Washington residents are invited to take part in a 7th Legislative District “telephone town hall meeting” on Tuesday, Jan. 23.

The community conversation, which is similar to a call-in radio format, will begin at 6 p.m. and last one hour.

The 7th District’s legislative team – Sen. Shelly Short, R-Addy; Rep. Joel Kretz, R-Wauconda; and Rep. Jacquelin Maycumber, R-Republic – will take listeners’ questions and provide information and perspectives on the 2018 legislative session in Olympia.

To participate, constituents can call 509-404-3053 beginning at 6 p.m. Once connected, they can listen in and press the * (star) key on their telephone keypad to ask questions.

Participants can take part in the community conversation, listen to their neighbors and leave a message for the three lawmakers.

The legislative session began Jan. 8 and is scheduled to end March 8.