On Monday, January 11, the 2021 Washington State legislative session began—the first-ever virtual session. Like all things during the COVID-19 pandemic, the virtual session has presented a steep learning curve for legislators, legislative staff, advocates, and members of the public. While there are more ways to engage remotely, there are also challenges around technology access and limitations on meaningful engagement with policymakers who are incredibly busy and online all day, every day.
Additionally, legislators are being asked to limit the number of bills they introduce, and Committees have tightened time for public testimony during hearings.
Despite the limitations a virtual session presents, LCYC is closely tracking several bills and budget items, and advocating—through remote and written testimony and advocacy letters to legislators—alongside our partners and fellow coalitions members.
Here are some bills we are paying close attention to this session:
House Bill 1219 would provide legal counsel to dependent children and youth across Washington State. Right now, Washington has a patchwork system for appointing counsel to foster children and youth, which results in “justice by geography.” LCYC strongly believes that dependent children and youth should have access to high quality, well-supported legal counsel in these often years-long complex legal proceedings. In these cases, children’s rights to safety, family relationships, and education are all at stake. We are working closely with youth leaders at The Mockingbird Society, who have been championing this issue for many years.
House Bill 1072 would remove the immigrant restriction on state funded civil legal aid dollars. People’s access to justice should not be limited based on their immigration status in the United States. The current funding prohibition directly conflicts with Washington State’s commitment to and leadership in anti-discrimination efforts. If it passes, the bill will ensure that undocumented people can access civil legal aid—people who are already in a vulnerable position because of their legal status. Removing the restriction will mean that they will have the ability to resolve legal issues, including stabilizing their family situation, preventing eviction, saving their home from foreclosure, protecting themselves from debt collection, avoiding medical care costs in instances of intimate partner violence, and many others.
House Bill 1227, also referred to as “Keeping Families Together,” will help reduce the effects of implicit bias by appropriately increasing the burden of removal for Child Protective Services and shifting legal presumptions around relative placement. It will reduce the overall number of families entering the system, thus reducing the number of families unnecessarily separated. It is undeniable that the child welfare system, nationwide, has clear disproportionate impact on families of color. Implicit bias exists, it permeates throughout the system, unconsciously, dismantling families. Washington State is not exempt from this reality. LCYC hopes that House Bill 1227 will help address the historic disproportionality the child welfare system perpetuates on families of color.
We are also tracking and indicating our support for several bills related to juvenile court, including, among others:
Juveniles’ access to attorneys when contacted by law enforcement (House Bill 1140), which dovetails our support for the Mi’Chance Dunlap-Gittens Youth Rights Ordinance that passed in King County last fall;
Raising the age for juvenile court jurisdiction (Senate Bill 5122); and,
Creating a developmentally appropriate response to youth who commit sexual offenses (Senate Bill 5123).
All bills are up against tight “cutoff” timelines in policy and fiscal committees, as well as the Chamber (House or Senate) where the bill originated. The legislative session, which runs 105 days during “odd” calendar years, is set to adjourn on April 25, 2021.
Finally, as you can see, many legislative proposals this session are responsive to the historical racial injustices that the past year has spotlighted.
LCYC recognizes that racism exists in the open and the shadows of individuals, organizations, and systems, impacting youth and families, including our own and those we strive to support. We are committed to supporting legislative proposals that advance racial justice, and we hope this session remains focused on those issues.
If you want to learn more about our systemic advocacy work this session or how you can get engaged and provide remote testimony on a bill you care about, please contact LCYC’s Deputy Director, Erin Shea McCann: esmccann@lcycwa.org.
Onward!