Democratic state Rep. Shelley Kloba is so concerned about our ability to keep prying technological eyes off of our private lives that she hosted a series of coffee-shop meetings with her constituents in the 1st legislative district to listen to their own concerns, and their ideas. The result is an omnibus data-privacy bill now moving through the Legislature. We'll talk about that today in "Capitol Ideas."
Feb 05, 2020•15 min
Democratic state Rep. Tina Orwall has learned a lot about ultrafine particles, tiny pollutants (800 times smaller than the thickness of an average strand of human hair). She spearheaded a recent study to find out how prevalent they are in her district, which includes one of the nation's busiest and fastest-growing airports. The results? They're very, very prevalent. She also talks about ongoing efforts to site a new or expanded regional airport to take some of the pressure off of SeaTac Internat...
Jan 30, 2020•12 min
Democratic state Rep. Melanie Morgan visits "Capitol Ideas" in this first episode of 2020 and the first of the current legislative session. Morgan, who was recently elected by her fellow Democrats to serve as deputy majority floor leader in the House, talks about rental reforms, school nutrition, the push to establish a new Office of Equity in Washington, and her efforts to designate an official state dinosaur.
Jan 16, 2020•15 min
Democratic state Rep. Beth Doglio visits "Capitol Ideas" in this episode to talk about climate action, housing, transportation, and other priorities as we approach the January 13 opening of the 2020 legislative session.
Dec 19, 2019•18 min
Democratic state Rep. Mari Leavitt was a military kid who grew up to be a small-business owner, the deputy director of Pierce County Human Services, a PTSA leader and, with a doctorate in community college leadership, a college administrator for more than two decades. Today we talk about that journey and how she's putting her experience to good use representing her constituents in Washington's 28th legislative district in Pierce County.
Oct 22, 2019•16 min
As a Boeing engineer, Lisa Callan helped create the best airplanes in the world. Now that she's a member of the majority Democratic Caucus in the Washington state House of Representatives, she's putting her creative skills to use to help build a better Washington. In this edition of Capitol Ideas, she talks about being a brand-new lawmaker, fixing a nototious traffic chokepoint in her district, giving Washington kids the best schools around, and more. Give her 16 minutes; you'll be glad you did.
Apr 06, 2019•16 min
This special edition of Capitol Ideas focuses on the opioid epidemic and features two interviews: One with Debra Maher, whose son, Sean, died of a heroin overdose last year despite his eligibility to be involuntary committed to treatment under the terms of Ricky's Law, and the second with Rep. Lauren Davis, who helped create Ricky's Law before her election to the Legislature in 2018, and who is now sponsoring legislation to address the situation that allowed Sean to fall through the cracks, desp...
Mar 22, 2019•21 min
Rep. Amy Walen is the 48th-district's newest legislator, but she knows her way around government. She's a former Kirkland city councilmember, and before her swearing in as a Democratic state representative she was mayor of that thriving King County city on the eastern shore of Lake Washington. She's CEO of a car dealership, practiced law in Australia, cares about housing and transportation and the environment and firearm violence, and if you give us 13 minutes today, you'll be glad you got to kn...
Feb 26, 2019•14 min
Rep. Larry Springer works for the people of the 45th legislative district, a King County district that comprises Duvall and Woodinville, and parts of Kirkland, Redmond, and Sammamish. He’s deputy majority leader of the House of Representatives, has been a member of that body since 2005, and for more than 30 years he’s owned and operated a retail wine store in Kirkland. That last fact is key to today's conversation. Give it a listen.
Feb 20, 2019•10 min
House Majority Leader Pat Sullivan (D-Covington) was instrumental in solving the state's shortfall in basic-education funding, and now he's turned his attention to higher ed. In the 2019 session he's the force behind the Washington Student Loan Program, a low-cost, state-funded, self-sustaining program that could save generations of students from being indentured to high-interest creditors for much of their adult lives.
Feb 05, 2019•11 min
10th-district state Rep. Dave Paul showed up in Olympia with a long list of goals, and it's likely he'll accomplish a lot of them. In this brief conversation he touches on higher education, naturally, but also veterans' issues, tourism, the economy, the environment, electric cars and ferries, and more.
Jan 29, 2019•12 min
Rep. My-Linh Thai is a lot of things: a pharmacist, a successful businesswoman, a former member of the Bellevue school board . . . and, incidentally, a refugee who fled Vietnam with her family at age 15 and found a home in the U.S. She's the first refugee to be elected to the Washington state Legislature since statehood -- in other words, ever -- and she's got a story to tell.
Jan 29, 2019•21 min
In this installment of "Capitol Ideas" we meet Rep. Lauren Davis, midway through her second week as a state representative. With a resume that begins with Head Start teacher and goes on to include international development work in West Africa, advanced studies in Ghana as a Fulbright fellow, several non-profit startups and a stint with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, it's hard to accept that she is one of the youngest members of the Washington state Legislature. For all that, her most per...
Jan 25, 2019•11 min
Today's "Capitol Ideas" is a relatively brief but powerful introduction to Rep. Debra Lekanoff, who became the Washington's first Native American state representative after 40th-district constituents tapped her for the job last fall. The new lawmaker from Bow, a tiny community in Skagit County, is part of the most diverse Democratic majority in state history, and her story is a good one.
Jan 17, 2019•12 min
As a school and mental health counselor, Rep. Lillian Ortiz-Self knows more about the dark side of childhood than most of us, but on that job and as a state lawmaker, she's in a unique position to understand problems, and to solve them. That's what today's "Capitol Ideas" is all about.
Jan 10, 2019•17 min
Few lawmakers can match Representative Tana Senn's passion and effectiveness as a voice for children and families in the Legislature. Today we're talking about how and why she came by that distinction, and we'll get a glimpse of her goals for the 2019 session as the new chair of the House Human Services and Early Learning Committee.
Jan 08, 2019•17 min
Rep. Mike Chapman represents one of Washington's most rural districts, and he's leading an effort to create good jobs and increase access to higher education in his and other districts from Seattle, Tacoma, and the other cities along the I-5 corridor who have prospered as the state recovers from the Great Recession. He talks about that effort today on "Capitol Ideas."
Jan 08, 2019•13 min
This is Rep. Shelley Kloba's second visit to "Capitol Ideas." She's that good. Today she'll talk about easing Washington's transportation crisis, improving special education in our K-12 schools, fine-tuning the rules surrounding recreational cannabis, and perhaps most interesting of all, how and why she got into public service.
Jan 07, 2019•15 min
Outside the Legislature, Rep. Nicole Macri has devoted her career to, in her words, "ensuring that people have the opportunity to live in safe, healthy homes that they can afford." It's not surprising that she brought that focus to Olympia when she was elected in 2016. Nicole is back for a new session, and today she talks about how she'll be approaching the issue, and others, in 2019.
Jan 07, 2019•13 min
State Rep. Gerry Pollet isn't shy about the need to upgrade special education in Washington's K-12 schools. In this fast-paced conversation he outlines the key problems and offers a set of legislative solutions.
Jan 04, 2019•13 min
We got to visit today with Rep. John Lovick, the 44th-district Democrat who serves as Speaker Pro Tem in the state House of Representatives. He was a state patrol office for more than 30 years, a state representative for nine, a county sheriff, a county executive, and then a state representative again. We talk about that and more in today's Capitol Ideas.
May 05, 2018•13 min
DNA evidence gathered from victims of sexual assault can be law enforcement's most effective tool in identifying rapists, solving cold cases, and preventing future attacks. But when Washington state rep. Tina Orwall toured a police evidence locker several years ago, she saw untested kits gathering dust and stacked high on shelves. Her subsequent research led to a disturbing discovery: Washington alone had more than 6000 untested kits, and nationwide nearly half a million kits had never been test...
Oct 11, 2017•12 min
The last time she was featured on Capitol Ideas, today's lawmaker was Representative Monica Stonier of the 17th legislative district. That was almost three years ago. Since then Monica lost her reelection bid, moved into the 49th, and resumed her public-education career as a middle-school instructional coach. Two years go by. A seat unexpectedly opens up for a 49th-district rep, Monica goes for it . . . and here we are, about to review her second time around as a freshman lawmaker.
Jun 15, 2017•13 min
This story started a long time ago, and it's looking like the end might possibly be coming into sight. The I-5 bridge spanning the Columbia River between Vancouver and Portland turned 100 years old this past Valentine's Day. Efforts to agree on and pay for a replacement have been going on for years, but as Washington state Representative Sharon Wylie explains, it's complicated. In this edition of "Capitol Ideas," she traces the past and points toward a promising future.
Jun 07, 2017•14 min
Today we look at a pair of bills sponsored by Rep. Noel Frame (D-Seattle). One would shortcut the currently cumbersome route college students with disabilities have to take when transferring between schools. The other looks at a high-tech alternative to college textbooks that can cost hundreds of dollars for a single course. Rep. Frame is joined by Washington Student Association members Anna Nepomuceno (UW-Tacoma) and Maresa Miranda (WSU-Vancouver).
Mar 22, 2017•16 min
Washington state pumps about 95 million metric tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every year. That's more than twice the targeted volume for the year 2050, and we're behind schedule to meet that goal. Burien Democrat Joe Fitzgibbon chairs the House Environment Committee in Olympia, and he's introduced a bill to speed up the process by taxing carbon polluters at a rate of $15 a ton. We'll talk about his bill, and why it matters, in this edition of "Capitol Ideas."
Mar 19, 2017•12 min
Violence against Muslims, Jews and people of color continues to increase, and one conversation about it doesn't seem to be enough. This week Rep. Derek Stanford and Aneelah Afzali, director of the American Muslim Empowerment Network, pick up where the last "Capitol Ideas" left off.
Mar 15, 2017•14 min
Overt acts of anti-Semitism are increasingly common around the U.S. and here in Washington state. Mosques are burned and vandalized. People who look vaguely Middle Eastern are targeted by violent xenophobes, and racist bullies do what racist bullies do. Is hate the new black? We hear today from a lawmaker and a rabbi to get their take on increasing threats to America's sustaining values, and what they're doing about it.
Mar 08, 2017•13 min
House Majority Leader Pat Sullivan (D-Covington) might be the most dedicated advocate for public schools in Olympia, and he's a leader on the state’s education-funding task force. But like every lawmaker, he’s also answerable to the constituents in his home district. In this case, that’s the 47th, and in today’s brief conversation he touches on both of these roles.
Jun 11, 2016•6 min
Rep. Roger Goodman, D-Kirkland).
May 25, 2016•15 min
