January 20, 2011

Calls for Interpreters, Maple Lane, Morgan Center, DOC tolling still needed as supplemental budget heads to full house

We still need calls in on the supplemental budget, HB 1086. We'll give you that updated call to action in a moment.

But first details on where we're at on the supplemental budget:

The House Ways and Means Committee Wednesday evening passed out the supplemental budget that covers the next four months of the current biennium. It is House Bill 1086.

The committee DID NOT adopt the amendment from Rep. Bill Hinkle of the 13th District to stop the fast-track closure of Maple Lane School by June 30 and they DID NOT adopt the amendment from Rep. Joe Schmick of the 9th District to stop the closure of Frances Haddon Morgan Center by June 30.

The committee did adopt the bad amendment on medical interpreter services from the committee's chairman, Rep. Ross Hunter of the 48th District. The bad amendment would largely wipe out our 2,000 interpreters in favor of a pilot project to replace them with video and telephonic technology. There'd be one pilot project in Eastern Washington and one in Western Washington. But live in-person interpreters make the difference, not a video screen.

The supplemental budget now goes to the full House, which is expected to vote on HB 1086 starting at 10 a.m. Friday.

So here's the updated call to action:

PLEASE CALL YOUR TWO HOUSE MEMBERS VIA THE LEGISLATURE'S TOLL-FREE MESSAGE CENTER, 1-800-562-6000.

Tell them on HB 1086:
  1. Save the funding for medical interpreter services at current levels. Otherwise it goes away March 1. Reject the Hunter amendment on pilot projects that replace interpreters with electronics.
  2. Stop the fast-track closure of Maple Lane School and Frances Haddon Morgan Center.

  3. Oppose elimination of the tolling tool in Community Corrections.
Again, call 1-800-562-6000. Tell your House members to restore funding in HB 1086 for medical interpreters at current funding levels, stop the fast-track closures of Maple Lane School and Frances Haddon Morgan Center and oppose cutting tolling in DOC.
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