Home  |  About Andrew  |  News & Media  |  Email Updates  |  The Ledger  |  Contact

Print Friendly, PDF & Email


Dear Friends and Neighbors,

I hope this email finds you well! We have reached and surpassed the halfway mark of our 60-day session.

It has been a hectic week under the dome in Olympia! After almost two years of doing the people's work behind the screen of my computer, I am fortunate to be back on the Capitol campus in a part-time capacity.

My priorities for the session – transportation, and housing – are coming full circle. In this e-newsletter, I want to provide a brief update and resources on these issues.

Democrats' release Move Ahead Washington transportation proposal

On Tuesday, Feb. 8, majority party transportation leaders rolled out the Move Ahead Washington transportation proposal. This is a 16-year package with anticipated revenue of $16 billion.

This plan has good intentions; however, it falls short in many concerning ways. This proposal does not raise the state's gas tax, but it would depend on revenue from the Climate Commitment Act (2021). One source of revenue in the CCA is cap-and-trade which will impact the price of gas. There are increases to other transportation-related fees that will also affect all Washingtonians. 

House Republicans have a better vision for Washington state. In December, we introduced a plan that would modernize transportation funding by utilizing the general fund, preserving and maintaining our existing infrastructure, completing the backlog of projects, and redirecting vehicle sales tax to transportation projects – all without raising taxes and fees on anyone or anything.

My resources and shareable information:

Additional resources and shareable links:

The Move Ahead Washington proposal was developed without input from Republicans. It is disappointing that the Democrat transportation leaders chose to ignore our ideas and instead move toward increases in fees and new taxes.

I encourage you to stay engaged in the legislative process. House Bill 2119, the Move Ahead Washington Plan policy bill, will be heard in the House Transportation Committee on Thursday, Feb. 17 at 3:30 pm. If you would like to voice your opinion on this matter, you can sign up to testify or provide written testimony by clicking here.

Our affordable housing and homelessness crisis

In my previous e-newsletter and my latest edition of the Barkis Breakdown, I provided detailed information on the real solutions we need to address our affordable housing and homelessness crisis, including our supply shortage, cost increases, and regulatory burdens.

This week, I had the opportunity to sit down with Austin Jenkins on TVW's Inside Olympia. I was joined by Rep. Strom Peterson, my Democrat colleague from Edmonds. We discussed the affordable housing and homelessness crisis, our personal stories and experiences, and solutions to address this massive and vital issue. You can watch the segment by clicking here or clicking on the photo below.

In my next e-newsletter

On Tuesday, Feb. 15, we will reach the House of Origin cut-off – the last day the House and Senate could pass bills that originated in their respective chambers. We spent long days and late nights debating a wide range of policies to reach this cut-off. In my next update, I will provide details on the wins and losses of our debates on the House floor.

Resources and important links

I hope you will bookmark and save the links below.

As always, if you have any questions, concerns, or ideas regarding your state government or any of the topics and issues mentioned in this update, don't hesitate to reach out to me.

It is an honor to serve you.

In Service,


Andrew Barkis

State Representative Andrew Barkis, 2nd Legislative District
RepresentativeAndrewBarkis.com
427A Legislative Building | P.O. Box 40600 | Olympia, WA 98504-0600
andrew.barkis@leg.wa.gov
(360) 786-7824 | Toll-free: (800) 562-6000