Washington Governor Jay Inslee has been signing bills that were approved by the legislature during a flurry of action last week. The governor signed a new two-year operating budget just 45 minutes before the new fiscal year began. He has signed an education budget designed to satisfy the state Supreme Court, which has ruled the state has not fully funded basic education. And then yesterday he signed a version of a paid family leave bill that had only partially made its way through the legislative process before resurfacing in a different form last Friday.
“The United States is the only industrialized nation in the world today that does not have a paid family leave policy. So we know that states must lead this common sense policy," Inslee said. "And, as in so many ways in these United States, the state of Washington today is leading the way in paid family leave and I’m happy about that because new parents and those with aging or sick loved ones, today before this law, faced no-win decisions, decisions pitting the need for a paycheck against the need to be there for your entire family.”
The new program will be funded in part by contributions from both employers and employees. Employers can choose to participate or they can opt out if they have their own programs; employees don’t have that option. Employees can take up to 12 weeks of leave during a 12-month period to take care of a newborn or a newly-adopted child. They can be granted leave to care for a sick child or parent or take care of their own health. Military members also have options for leave. The maximum weekly benefit is a thousand dollars; it’s based on a state formula.
The legislation was debated vigorously on Friday in both the House and Senate before being approved in both chambers, 37-12 in the Senate; 65-29 in the House.
During the next several minutes, we’re going to present excerpts from the Senate debate, starting with the bill’s sponsor, Auburn Republican Senator Joe Fain. We'll also hear from Spokane Republican Michael Baumgartner, Lynnwood Democrat Marco Liias and Vancouver Republican Lynda Wilson.