Washington State Senate Democrats: David Frockt

A session review from Olympia

Senate Democrats — Thu, 10 May 2012 18:16:41 GMT

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

Thank you for subscribing to my e-newsletter. The legislative session is now over and the budget recently signed by the governor. So, I want to first take the opportunity to thank all of you who contacted me this session, and for sharing your ideas and priorities. Many of you came down to Olympia to visit, and even more of you took a few minutes out of your day to write and/or call. I very much appreciate your outreach to me.

As I look back on this past legislative session, I want to share my thoughts on the budget process as well as some of the key policy bills I worked on as a new member in the Washington State Senate.

To put it simply: There was a huge budget fight in Olympia this session. I was not happy with the proposals put forward when the other party took control of the Senate in early March. In particular, their budget made millions in cuts to education and higher education, including cuts to financial aid (after tuition has gone up dramatically in recent years). But, I believe our efforts to reverse those proposals did eventually pay dividends.

To give this some context, since the 2007-09 biennium, funding for Washington’s higher education institutions has been cut by $689 million. That’s a 45-percent reduction. By the end of the 2011-13 biennium, the state’s share of the cost of educating a student at our institutions will have dropped from around 81.4 percent a decade ago to approximately 34 percent. Enough was enough, and I made holding the line on higher education - including financial aid programs like work study - one of my top budget priorities this session.

When the 2012 special session came to a close on the morning of April 11th, the legislature passed a final budget that closed the remaining operating deficit but made zero cuts to either higher education or k-12. While this budget doesn’t make up for the cuts of the recent past, we at least stopped the bleeding.

Our higher education institutions continue to raise tuition, as you may have recently read. So, my hope now is that we will be in a position to reverse the trend of declining state support so that we can actually see tuition move back to levels that will not put as great a debt burden on our students as they come into the workforce.

Along with education, the final budget maintained current funding levels for a number of key safety net investments including the Basic Health Plan, Disability Lifeline, Adult Day Health, supported living for those with Developmental Disabilities, family planning services and medical interpreters.

We also maintained and even expanded outreach for Apple Health for Kids. Ninety-four to 97 percent of Washington children have health care coverage, in significant part due to Apple Health. More than a million of our adult citizens have no health insurance (much work to do there), but we have done a pretty decent job of making sure that a high percentage of Washington children have access to care so that they can go to school healthy. This budget holds the line on that front.

Apart from the operating budget, the Legislature passed a capital budget expected to invest $1 billion into infrastructure and other construction projects that will create nearly 20,000 jobs across the state. Such an investment is the kind of boost that the state needs to help restore the critical but hard-hit construction sector.

In our district, these projects include an important addition at North Seattle Community College, in the form of funds for a needed investment in the new Technology Building project. I met recently with the president of North Seattle Community College who emphasized that this investment will improve NSCC’s ability to offer students quality instruction in engineering and the hard sciences like biology and chemistry – all geared toward growing a trained workforce in engineering, as well as healthcare-related fields.

Additionally, the capital budget provides $9.4 million in direct funds for three Seattle public schools to be renovated for reopening. This includes John Marshall, which is expected to relieve some of the overcrowding at Eckstein Middle School. I was proud to lead the efforts of the Seattle delegation to secure these critical funds.

I am also pleased that several of the bills I sponsored or helped shepherd through the Senate made it to the desk of Gov. Chris Gregoire for her signature. Among others, these bills included legislation designed to help students better manage their student debt loads, provide more fairness for homeowners upside down on their mortgages, and ease the burden on parents looking for reliable and affordable childcare.

SB 6226 establishes a 12-month authorization period for the state’s Working Connections childcare program, reducing bureaucratic overhead and providing more certainty for low-income families who will have steady and dependable childcare in order to allow them to find steady work. The bill is considered a win-win-win by advocates because it saves the state money, helps parents and children, and aids providers by ensuring reliability as they accept children into their care. Overall, this change is good policy.

SB 6315 is also known as the Fair Tenant Screening Act. This breakthrough legislation overcame several years of stalemate. It requires landlords to disclose information about tenant screening processes to prospective tenants and provides a way for tenants to respond if housing is denied on the basis of information in those screening reports.

SB 6121 provides a counseling curriculum of information and “best practices” to better prepare students for long-term debts they may incur while financing their education. This bill was the result of several meetings I had last interim with students who described a lack of real information they were receiving on the debt they were taking on in college. Student loan debt is a major problem nationally and it is growing locally for the reasons I described above. So, we are very excited about this bill. It passed the legislature almost unanimously, indicating that it had widespread appeal across the two parties.

SB 6215 establishes an optional Transportation Benefit District rebate authority for Seattle. This measure could help to address the regressive nature of some local option funding mechanisms for transportation and transit packages. This will allow the districts to make roads better, sidewalks safer, and transit more convenient, while giving a portion of the payment back to the families who are struggling to make ends meet.

Other key bills that I sponsored or helped move in the Senate included:

HB 2614 provides consumer protections for short-sale homeowners. Working closely with House sponsor Rep. Phyllis Kenney, we have created a notice mechanism for short-sale homeowners to be informed of whether a bank will pursue remaining debt if a home is sold for less than the amount owed. The bill also cuts in half the amount of time, from six years to three years, during which lenders may pursue that deficiency.

HB 2216 was the companion to a bill I sponsored that increased sentencing for DUI vehicular homicide cases. Current law provides a sentencing range of 31 to 41 months, with a typical work or home release in 24 months. This struck many (including me) as too low given the severity of the crime and the loss involved when a DUI led to a death of an innocent victim. It was one of the major priorities for prosecutors as well as the families of several recent high-profile, DUI-related tragedies in Seattle and around the Puget Sound region.

HB 1652 will provide a civil legal remedy for people harmed through e-personation on social networking and online bulletin board sites. This bill is the second of its kind in the country and was supported by the Washington Technology Industry Association. I first sponsored this bill as a member of the House and was pleased to see it signed into law this year.

HB 2239 establishes a new type of corporate form in Washington: the social purpose corporation. I was the prime sponsor of the Senate bill and worked with my former House colleagues to move the legislation to the governor’s desk. This measure establishes a new and innovative optional corporate form that will allow entrepreneurs and companies more flexibility to adopt corporate goals that don’t involve maximizing profits as the sole basis for all corporate decisions. We are the 8^th state in the country to pass legislation of this type.

HB 2319 establishes Washington’s Health Care Exchange. This important legislation will create a new mechanism for hundreds of thousands of Washington residents to have access to health care coverage. This bill is a critical step in our efforts to expand coverage to the one million men, women and children in our state who lack medical insurance and face the prospect of financial catastrophe if they fall ill. In addition, this bill will also bring badly needed assistance to the hospitals and clinics of our health care community, which deal with more than $1 billion in costs for uncompensated care every year. That is a crisis that cannot be solved unless we bring all the residents of our state under the umbrella of health care coverage.

Thank you again for your letters, phone calls and e-mails throughout this legislative session. It is an honor to represent the 46^th district in Olympia.

Warm Regards,

Sen David Frockt

46^th Legislative District

Governor signs Frockt bills for consumer protection, higher education and transit

Senate Democrats — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 15:46:00 GMT

OLYMPIA - Having been appointed in November after a tragic loss to the district, Sen. David Frockt’s first session in the Washington State Senate was a whirlwind that resulted in over a half-dozen bills being sent to the desk of Gov. Chris Gregoire, who completed her regular session bill signings last Friday.

“My goal this session was to step in and hit the ground running on several of the core priorities of our district including higher education, health care, and transit. Additionally, I was pleased with my contributions on the health exchange bill as well as a number of consumer protection measures,” said Frockt.

In recent weeks, Gov. Gregoire signed the Fair Tenant Screening Act, SB 6315, break through legislation brokered by Frockt that overcame several years of stalemate. It requires landlords to disclose information about their tenant screening processes to prospective tenants and provides a way for tenants to respond if housing is denied on the basis of information in those screening reports.

Given the continued shift of higher education costs to students and families in Washington State, Frockt made holding the line on higher education funding and financial aid a key component of his efforts on the budget this session. He offered a bill to restore work study as well as a number of education related amendments to the 9^th order budget a few weeks ago, including the only one accepted that night which restored a scholarship fund that was cut in the original Republican budget.

The Governor also signed Frockt’s SB 6121, to provide a counseling curriculum of information and “best practices” to better prepare students for the long term debts that they may be taking on to finance their education.

“There is a growing student debt crisis around the country and this bill flowed from several meetings I had last interim with students who described a lack of real information they were receiving on the debt burden they were taking on in college,” said Frockt.

Additionally, Frockt worked across party lines with Rep. Hans Zeiger on HB 2313, to require more transparency for Regents meetings in the higher education system. Frockt added an amendment to the bill that requires a 21-day notice by Regents before any hearing on potential tuition increases in order to give students more time to organize and respond. This was a top priority of student organizations this session.

Working with Representative Ruth Kagi, Frockt was able to pass SB 6226 establishing a 12-month authorization period for the state’s Working Connections childcare program. The bill, several years in the making, will reduce bureaucratic overhead and will provide more certainty for low-income families who know that they will have steady and dependable childcare in order to allow them to find steady work. Recent studies from WSU and the federal government supported this policy change.

“This is a unique bill since it can be characterized as a win-win-win,” said Lonnie Johns-Brown of the Washington State Headstart and ECAP Association. “It saves the state money, helps parents and children by providing them with outstanding childcare services and aids providers by assuring them reliable placement of children.”

“If we want people to transition into the workforce and off of public assistance, we have to provide them a little help with their childcare. This bill is evidence based and improves our system,” added Frockt.

Frockt also worked to pass SB 6215 establishing an optional Transportation Benefit District rebate authority for Seattle. This measure could help to address the regressive nature of some local option funding mechanisms for transportation and transit packages.

“Seattle voters disliked the balance of 2011’s transportation measure, and the regressivity of the flat tab fee made them additionally uncomfortable," stated David Miller, local transportation advocate and Chair of Sidewalks and Streets for Seattle. "Our 2011 campaign promised we could do better. This legislation to help address the regressive nature of tab fees is the first part of fulfilling that promise. We're thankful to Senator Frockt for being the prime sponsor," Miller added, "and working to secure passage of this legislation to give Seattle an additional tool to use as we work to make our roads better, sidewalks safer, and transit more convenient."

HB 2614, which provides consumer protections for short sale homeowners, was the companion to a Senate bill sponsored by Frockt. Frockt worked closely with House sponsor Rep. Phyllis Kenney on the bill and led negotiations on the measure when it came over to the Senate. The bill creates a notice mechanism for short sale homeowners to be informed of whether the bank will pursue remaining debt if the home is sold for less than the amount owed. The bill also reduces the amount of time, from six years to three years, in which lenders may pursue that deficiency. “We are making sure that homeowners have full information and the knowledge that they can push back on their lenders by demanding a full release, while statutorily shortening the time that banks can hold any deficiency over their heads”, said Frockt.

Other key bills Frockt sponsored or helped move in the Senate included:

HB 2216, the companion to a bill sponsored by Frockt which increased sentencing to the manslaughter range for DUI vehicular homicide cases. Current law provided a sentencing range of 31 to 41 months, with a typical work or home release in 24 months. This was one of the major priorities for prosecutors as well as the families of several recent high-profile DUI-related tragedies in Seattle and around the Puget Sound region.

HB 1652 providing a civil legal remedy for individuals impersonated on social networking and online bulletin board sites. This bill is the second of its kind in the country and was supported by the Washington Technology Industry Association. Frockt first sponsored this bill as a member of the House.

HB 2239 establishing a new type of corporate form in Washington: the social purpose corporation. Frockt prime sponsored the Senate companion (along with Senators Chase and Kilmer) and worked with his former House colleagues Jamie Pedersen and Roger Goodman to move the legislation to the governor’s desk. This measure establishes a new and innovative corporate form that will allow entrepreneurs and companies more flexibility to adopt corporate goals other than maximizing profits.

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For more information: Ian Cope, Senate Democratic Caucus, 360-786-7535

For interviews: Sen. David Frockt, 360-786-7690

Sen. Frockt statement on the signing of the healthcare exchange bill

Senate Democrats — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 20:58:00 GMT

OLYMPIA- Sen. David Frockt released the following statement on the governors’ signing of House Bill 2319, establishing Washington’s healthcare exchange:

“This is an important day for the hundreds of thousands of Washington residents who will potentially have access to health care coverage through this new healthcare marketplace. This bill is a critical step in our efforts to provide that coverage to the one million men, women and children in our state who lack medical insurance for the most basic of needs and face the prospect of financial catastrophe if they fall ill.

“Along with the benefits to the families of Washington, this bill will also bring badly needed assistance to the hospitals and clinics of our health care community, which deal with nearly $1 billion in costs for uncompensated care every year. That is a crisis that cannot be solved unless we bring all the residents of our state under the umbrella of health care coverage. This bill starts us down that path.”

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For more information: Ian Cope, Senate Democratic Communications, 360 786 7535

For interviews: Sen. David Frockt, 360 786 7690

VIDEO – Sen. Frockt speaks on health care concerns for women

Senate Democrats — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 18:37:00 GMT

On March 20th, Sen. David Frockt spoke at a press event concerning women’s health care and the recent statements and issues concerning coverage of contraceptives.

Governor signs Fair Tenant Screening Act

Senate Democrats — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 00:39:00 GMT

OLYMPIA - Governor Chris Gregoire has signed a bill into law which is designed to clarify the process an applicant goes through to rent a home or apartment.

When a person pays for an application to rent a home, they have the right to know what their application will be seeking and who will be carrying it out. That is one of the goals of the Fair Tenant Screening Act, which was signed by the governor on Thursday.

“What we’ve done is ensure that they are going to know the kinds of information that they are going to screen for and how to correct things that are erroneous on their reports and where to go to do so,” said Sen. David Frockt, the bill sponsor.

Frockt says the new law will provide a step forward for tenants and clarify the expectations of potential landlords. As part of the new law, a board of tenants and landlords groups will meet in the coming months to address issues of surrounding applications costs, portability of screening results and any new concerns that may arise.

RADIO – Sen. Frockt discusses budget with KOMO Newsradio

Senate Democrats — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 21:36:00 GMT

On Thursday, Sen. David Frockt discussed the budget debate on KOMO Newsradio's "Newsline PM" with Ken Schram.

Governor signs financial aid counseling bill into law

Senate Democrats — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 22:55:00 GMT

OLYMPIA – College students applying for financial aid will receive more information on the contract they are entering into under a bill approved by the Legislature and signed into law by the governor.

Senate Bill 6121, sponsored by Sen. David Frockt, was signed by Gov. Chris Gregoire on Wednesday. The new law will require colleges and universities to provide financial aid counseling to assist students as they seek the money to pay for their education.

“With cuts in higher education funding and the shift of responsibility to students and their families, we are experiencing a student loan debt crisis,” Frockt said. “As students take on an increasing amount of debt to pay for their education, they can now expect to be well informed as to the requirements of their commitment.”

“The more information we give our students and parents the better,” says Scott Copeland with the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges. “With access to this information, students and families can better understand what they are getting into and make informed decisions.”

The curriculum will include student loan performance requirements and repayment rules, an overview of financial literacy, including basic money management skills and perspectives from a diverse group of students who have received financial aid in the past.

”Students have always trusted that higher education is a smart investment but the burden students take on is often difficult to understand and it is more important than ever that students have easy access to information that will help them understand the costs and benefits associated with earning a degree,” said Adam Sherman, vice president of the University of Washington Graduate and Professional Student Senate. “Sen. Frockt gets it. His effort to help students make smart and informed investment decisions about their future is a huge step in the right direction."

The governor’s action comes just days after a report released by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, indicated that 27 percent of the 37 million college students and graduates with financial aid accounts, have past due notice on their accounts.

“This is more than a problem for Washington students. This is a problem for the entire nation,” said Frockt. “It is my hope that the actions of the Legislature and the governor will help to stem that tide of past due notices and help these students to better plan their applications and their studies.”

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For more information: Ian Cope, Senate Democratic Caucus, 360-786-7535

For interviews: Sen. David Frockt, 360-786-7690

Frockt E-impersonation bill signed by governor

Senate Democrats — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 22:21:00 GMT

OLYMPIA - Victims of electronic impersonation will be able to find redress through the civil court system under a bill signed by Gov. Chris Gregoire on Wednesday.

House Bill 1652 will address some uncertainty under current law in the area of online impersonation by allowing those who have been defamed online to seek damages through a civil suit.

“This is a bill that brings Washington’s court system up to date with online offenses,” said Sen. David Frockt, the sponsor of the E-impersonation legislation. “If a person’s life, finances and good name can be ruined in the online world, then the victim should have every means at their disposal to pursue the person responsible.”

“The passage of the bill puts Washington among the forefront of states creating remedies for the misuse of internet networking sites to harass, threaten, intimidate, humiliate or defraud someone. The legislation updates our privacy protections for the challenges of the modern age,” said Professor Mary D. Fan, Assistant Professor at the University Of Washington School Of Law. “Other states and scholars will likely be looking to Washington's example in crafting legislation that balances freedoms and protections from harm based on input from a wide array of community and industry stakeholders.”

Under the bill, a person may be liable in a civil action if:

· they intentionally impersonate a person on a social networking site or online bulletin board;

· use that impersonation to harass, threaten, defraud or humiliate another person; or

· the impersonation causes physical, financial or professional harm to the victim.

Frockt first sponsored the bill in 2011 as a freshman member of the House of Representatives. While the bill was passed by the House, it failed to pass out of the Senate, until being revived in 2012 and approved by the House and Senate on 95-0 and 47-0 votes respectively.

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For more information: Ian Cope, Senate Democratic Communications, 360 786 7535

For interviews: Sen. David Frockt, 360 786 7690

Sen. Frockt speaks in favor of amendments to benefit education

Senate Democrats — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 02:12:00 GMT

During Friday's debate on the supplemental budget proposal, all but one amendment proposed by Senate Democrats was defeated. However, every amendment featured stirring arguments in favor of their adoption, including these by Sen. Frockt, speaking in favor of an amendment to invest in teacher training and to maintain the National Board and Professional Teaching Standard Certification Bonus.

Sen. Frockt speaks in support of the newly created healthcare exchange

Senate Democrats — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 17:39:00 GMT