DHAW
Advocacy
“When the world is silent, even one voice becomes powerful.”
— Malala Yousafzai —
As healthcare professionals we advocate for our patients' oral health and well-being on a daily basis, but let us not forget that we have an inherent duty to advocate for the dental hygiene profession itself as well.
Click on the button below to find your legislators and read on to learn more about how to be involved!
The Lawmaking Process
How does a bill become a law? There are 6 steps involved in this process:
1. Introduction of a Bill - A bill may be introduced by a legislator in either the House of Representatives or the Senate. Once the bill is filed, it gets a number. Bills may be filed a month before session begins, this is known as "pre-filing", and these bills are officially introduced on the first day of session! Once a bill is read for the first time by title only within the chamber's open session it can then be assigned to an appropriate committee based on its subject by the leaders of the House/Senate. Keep in mind that any bills that affect the state budget must also be reviewed by a fiscal committee.
2. Committee Assignment - The committee that the bill has been assigned to will review it and hold meetings to discuss it. These meetings are typically open to the public where attendance and public comments are encouraged (testimony). The assigned committee can then do the following:
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Pass the bill as is, or with changes
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Create and pass a NEW version of the bill
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Reject the bill
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Take no action on the bill
Anyone can testify with no training required and this may be done remotely, in person, and/or in writing. Those who testify will be subject to the committee's meeting conduct rules to ensure appropriate and respectful behavior.
3. Rules Committee Review - A rules committee chooses which bills the entire House/Senate chamber should vote on. When a bill is received the committee can either schedule it for a second reading in the House or Senate, or they can simply take no action. You can view which bills are scheduled for a reading by clicking the links below:
4. Debate - House/Senate members will debate and vote on bills in up to two separate sessions known as the second and third readings. During the second reading members debate and may vote to change the bill. If they approve the bill it will be scheduled for a third reading where a final vote is taken by the members. If a bill passes this final vote it will go to the other house. You can view how members voted on a specific bill by clicking the link below:
5. Moving to the Next Chamber - The bill will undergo the same steps as the initial house it was introduced to. If the second house makes changes to the bill, the first house must approve them. If both houses disagree on changes to a bill, one of them may ask for a conference committee where members from both sides try to come to an agreement. If an agreement is reached, the conference committee will then make a report. This report must be approved by BOTH houses for the bill to officially pass the legislature.
6. The Governor's Choice - Once the bill has passed both the House and Senate, the legislature sends it to the governor who then decides to either sign the bill into law, or veto all/part of the bill. If the legislature chooses not to override a veto, some or all parts of the bill will not become law. The legislature may override the governor's veto if two-thirds of the members of both houses vote to do so, in which case the entire bill will become a law without the governor's signature. A bill may also become law without the governor's signature if they fail to sign or veto it within a certain time period (bills delivered more than 5 days before the Legislature adjourns have 5 days to be acted on, not counting Sundays; bills delivered within 5 days of the Legislature adjourning have 20 days to be acted on, not counting Sundays). You can view a list of bills that went to the governor by clicking the link below:
Contact a Legislator
Once you have identified your legislative district using the WA District Finder on the government website, a list of your legislators should populate. Clicking on any given legislators name should take you to an informational page about them which includes their contact information such as: personal website, phone, mailing address, email, their legislative assistant(s) name(s), a list of committees they are members of and their corresponding titles, voting records, and bill sponsorship.
Schedule an Appointment
Email/call your legislator to set up an appointment to visit in person!
Attend a Town Hall
Visiting their webpage/social media can reveal scheduled district town hall meetings
Write Them a Letter
Use the address found on their informational page to send a hand-written letter
You can always email your legislator directly if that is your preference! Keep in mind that we only encourage respectful, non-aggressive communication. Feel free to reach out for an example letter if you are having trouble crafting one of your own!
Participate in a Committee Meeting
1 / Sign into a Committee Meeting
You must select which chamber or agency you would like to submit testimony for which can be done by clicking the corresponding buttons found on this page for Committee Sign-In
If you plan to testify in committee hearings often you can create your own Legislative Account and fill out a profile so that when signed in your contact info will automatically be filled in the next time you sign up for testimony or have your position noted on the legislative record for a bill. Click here for instructions on how to create a legislative account.
2 / Register to Testify in a Committee Meeting In-Person or Remotely
Once you have selected the appropriate chamber on the aforementioned sign-in page, instructions on how to register to testify will populate the webpage. You will be directed to choose the committee name and meeting date/time, then choose the desired bill for testimony. You can choose to testify in person or remotely, followed by entering your registration information. You may also state your position on a bill WITHOUT testifying by choosing the option: I would like my position noted for the legislative record and entering your information. *For all of these options, registration closes 1 hour before the start time of the meeting!
3 / Submit Written Testimony
Written testimony is another option that can be elected after choosing the desired committee name and meeting date/time as well as the desired bill for which you would like to register. *Written testimony may be submitted up to 24hrs after the start time of the meeting!
More info on How to Participate in the Law-Making Process
For more information on accessibility, questions or comments for the legislature, and even helpful tips for participating (with one of them emphasizing how important it is to get to know your legislators during the time period OUTSIDE of legislative session!) please click HERE.