Washington State Legislature
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The Washington State Legislature is the state legislature of Washington. It is a bicameral body, composed of the lower Washington House of Representatives, comprised of 98 Representatives, and the upper Washington State Senate, with 49 Senators.
The State Legislature meets at the Legislative Building in Olympia.
The legislature begins each legislative session annually on the second Monday in January. In odd-numbered years, such as when the state budget is debated upon, the State Legislature meets for 105 days, and in even-numbered years for 60 days. The Governor of Washington, if necessary, can call legislators in for a special session for a 30-day period at any period in the year. Legislators also can call themselves into special session by a two-thirds vote by both the House of Representatives and the State Senate.
History
The Washington State Legislature traces its ancestry to the creation of the Washington Territory in 1853, following successful arguments from settlers north of the Columbia River to the U.S. federal government to legally separate from the Oregon Territory. The Washington Territorial Assembly, as the newly-created area's bicameral legislature, convened the following year. The legislature represented settlers from the Straits of Juan de Fuca to modern Montana.
Votes for women
From nearly the start of the territory, arguments over giving women the right to vote dogged legislative proceedings. While some legislators carried genuine concerns over women deserving the right to vote, most legislators pragmatically believed that giving women suffrage would entice more Eastern women to immigrate to the remote and sparsely populated territory. In 1854, only six years after the Seneca Falls Convention, the issue was brought to a vote by the legislature. Women's suffrage was defeated by a single vote.
A decade later, the Wyoming State Legislature would become the first body in the United States to grant women's suffrage in 1869.
The issue over female suffrage did not diminish. In 1883, the issue returned to the floor, this time with the Territorial Assembly successfully passing universal suffrage for women. It quickly became one of the most liberal voting laws in the nation, giving female African-American voters the voting franchise for the first time in the U.S.. However in 1887, the territorial Washington Supreme Court ruled the 1883 universal suffrage act as unconstitutional in Harland v. Washington. Another attempt by the legislature to regrant universal female suffrage was again overturned in 1888.
After two failed voter referenda in 1889 and 1898, the now-Washington State Legislature approved full female voting rights in 1910.
Statehood
With more than two decades of pressure on federal authorities to authorize statehood, on February 22, 1889, the U.S. Congress passed the Enabling Act, signed into law by outgoing President Grover Cleveland, authorizing the territories of Washington, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Montana to form state governments. The Territorial Assembly set out to convene a constitutional convention to write a state constitution.
Following its successful passage by the legislature, Washington voters approved the new document on October 1. On November 11, 1889, President Benjamin Harrison authorized Washington to become the 42nd state of United States. It was the last West Coast state of the Continental U.S. to achieve statehood. The modern Washington State Legislature was created.
Transparency
Records exemptions
The Washington state legislature is one of several states that exempts many of its own records from public disclosure. According to the state's Public Records Act, legislators are not required to reveal all their e-mail correspondence and other internal communications to the public. Adam Kline, according to the Seattle Times, has expressed hostility toward the idea that these records should be public.[1],[2]
Television coverage
Debates within both the House and Senate, as well as committee meetings and other special events within or relating to the legislature are broadcast throughout Washington on TVW, the state public affairs network.
Senate
The Washington State Senate is the upper house of the Washington State Legislature. The body consists of 49 senators, each representing a district with a population of nearly 120,000.
Senators serve four years terms, without term limits. Senators are elected from the same legislative districts as House members, with each district electing two representatives but only one senator.
Like other upper houses of state and territorial legislatures and the federal U.S. Senate, the state senate can confirm or reject gubernatorial appointments to the state cabinet, commissions and boards.
Leadership of the Senate
The Lieutenant Governor of Washington serves as the President of the Senate, but only casts a vote if required to break a tie. In his or her absence, the President Pro Tempore presides over the Senate. The President Pro Tempore is elected by the majority party caucus followed by confirmation of the entire Senate through a Senate Resolution. The President Pro Tempore is the chief leadership position in the Senate. The majority and minority leaders are elected by their respective party caucuses.
Current make-up
| Affiliation | Members | |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic Party | 31 | |
| Republican Party | 18 | |
| Total | 49 | |
House of Representatives
The Washington House of Representatives is the lower house of the Washington State Legislature, the legislature of the U.S. State of Washington. It is composed of 98 Representatives, two from each of Washington's 49 districts. All members of the House are elected to a two-year term without term limits.
Leadership of the House
The Speaker of the House presides over the House of Representatives. The Speaker is elected by the majority party caucus followed by confirmation of the full House through the passage of a House Resolution. As well as presiding over the body, the Speaker is also the chief leadership position, and controls the flow of legislation. Other House leaders, such as the majority and minority leaders, are elected by their respective party caucuses relative to their party's strength in the House.
Current make-up
| Affiliation | Members | |
| Democratic Party | 63 | |
| Republican Party | 35 | |
| Total | 98 | |
| Majority | 28 | |
External links
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