Click here to watch “The Impact” 2/1/2017
This week on “The Impact:
Members of the House Judiciary Committee weigh in on bills to ban, restrict, or place new licensing requirements on assault weapons and high capacity magazines.
“They are highly violent, highly effective at harming and killing people,” said Rep. Laurie Jinkins, D-Tacoma.
“Creating additional databases of firearms owners raises constitutional issues. It also raises law enforcement issues. The background check initiative has been an abysmal failure,” said Rep. Jay Rodne, R-Snoqualmie.
Democratic and Republican lawmakers dig into the details of two competing plans to fund basic K-12 education. Meanwhile, the clock ticks towards the deadline for a court ordered solution.
“I would call this the biggest progressive tax change we’ve seen in a long time in the state of Washington and it’s kind of ironic that the area of the state that insists on tax reform to make it more progressive when that progressive tax reform affects them, they get a little skittish,” said Sen. John Braun, R-Centralia. “This isn’t just about R districts or D districts. You know 40 of the 49 legislative districts in the state come out as overwhelming winners in this proposal.”
“Shifting taxes so that one part of the state has a higher burden than another part so that the other part can get more funding for their schools is just fundamentally unfair and that’s the push back that you’re seeing from the Puget Sound region right now,” said Sen. Christine Rolfes, D-Bainbridge Island. “The kids in Seattle are not necessarily wealthy children.”
We also highlight a handful of school safety proposals.
One bill would outfit school buses with seat belts to protect students and traffic cameras to catch risky drivers. Another would put panic buttons in schools across the state.
We cover the lawsuit filed by Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson in response to a recent executive order issued by President Donald Trump.
Then you’ll hear from Senate Transportation Committee members about several topics including: Real ID legislation,
a pilot project to tax drivers based on mileage, a bill to make helmets optional for motorcycle riders over 18, infrastructure & earthquake preparedness, and a bill to raise the speed limit to 75 mph on a long stretch of I-90.
