News & Stories
Policy is personal. So, we want to share more than just data.
Stay up to date with our legislative updates, organizational news, media mentions, and more.
Women and families in the U.S. are facing so many challenges these days, it’s hard to know how to focus our energy. Women who have worked hard, paid taxes, and raised families in this country for years, torn from their children by immigration authorities. Congress and state legislatures restricting women’s access to birth control and […]
We depend on immigrants, make that ourselves, whether we/they are doctors, farm laborers, carpenters, hotel workers, programmers or columnists.
The Seattle City Council’s Civil Rights, Utilities, Economic Development & Arts Committee met for a “Lunch and Learn” session to discuss a plan to “Trump-Proof Seattle” (i.e. Seattle’s budget) by taxing unearned income (capital gains, interest and dividends) for households with incomes above $250,000, helping to safeguard opportunity for all Seattleites, and not just the […]
The Transit Riders Union, Economic Opportunity Institute and other local organizations are launching a campaign called “Trump Proof Seattle” to start a city income tax on wealthy households. Transit Riders Union General Secretary Katie Wilson said the campaign is a response to the threat of Seattle’s losing federal funding under President Donald Trump. But the […]
Our state is just getting played by Boeing.
In the decade since Washington state’s House Appropriations Committee last heard a paid family leave bill, we’ve learned a lot about how the first year of life sets the foundation for lifelong health and well-being, how our aging population and the gender wage gap affect our whole economy, and about the positive outcomes – and shortcomings – […]
Proposal awaits vote after public hearing in House Appropriations Committee Yesterday the House Appropriations Committee held a public hearing on House Bill 1116, which would create a comprehensive paid family and medical leave proposal for all working families. Sponsored by Rep. June Robinson (D – Everett), HB 1116 is now awaiting a committee vote before it […]
Legislators should reject Senate Bill 5541, which proposes lowering the minimum wage for teens in Washington state. Teenagers work for all sorts of reasons, including to pay for college, to support themselves, and to support their families. A recent Urban Institute study of youth who left high school and went to work found that the […]
Our constitution doesn’t distinguish between temporary or permanent jobs, and it doesn’t afford a special exemption for Republicans elected to the legislature.
Giving employers legal permission to impose more limits on discussing compensation than on talking about the Seahawks or the weather, as Senate Bill 5344 proposes, takes us backwards. We know the stats – at every age, education level, in nearly every occupation – women are paid less than men, and women of color are paid least […]
In November, Washington voters approved Initiative 1433 to raise the state minimum wage to $11 per hour ($13.50 by 2020) and allow all workers to earn some paid sick and safe leave. Republican legislators and business groups opposed I-1433. They argued that it would hurt businesses, teenagers, nonprofits, rural counties…you name it. Voters rejected those […]
Washington legislators are now considering salary history legislation (HB 1533), sponsored by Rep. Laurie Dolan (D-Olympia), that would prohibit employers from asking applicants, during the initial interview, what their wages were in previous jobs. (Employers could get that information once they offer the job and the salary that goes with it.) Massachusetts passed similar legislation in […]
This is such a common-sense policy, it’s hard to see why there would be any opposition.
Join John Burbank, EOI’s Executive Director, at The Urbanist’s free monthly social event to discuss possible paths toward local income taxes, andhow they can safeguard opportunity for all people, and not just the very wealthy. Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Belltown Pub (2322 First Avenue, Seattle). Presentation begins at 6:30 p.m. […]
After a decade of stalling, Washington lawmakers are ready to make their state the leader in paid family leave policy. State Democrats last week introduced a paid family leave bill that would be by far the most generous and progressive proposal in the country — if passed. The proposal calls for six months of paid family leave […]
Workers, business owners, health care experts, and community groups testify in support of bill to create Paid Family and Medical Leave Program Today the House Labor and Workplace Standards Committee heard public testimony on the Washington Work and Family Coalition’s proposal for paid family and medical leave in Washington. House Bill 1116, sponsored by Rep. […]
One item has gone nearly unmentioned in the media about the repeal of the Affordable Care Act: it would be a massive tax cut for wealthy Americans. “One of the main ways the ACA makes health insurance affordable is by providing families earning less than 400 percent of the poverty line (i.e., less than $85,000 for […]
Listen to a panel discussion and learn about the paid family leave policy that will be considered by state legislators in 2017. Panel guests include Marilyn Watkins of the Economic Opportunity Institute; Rich Fox, President of the Seattle Restaurant Alliance; and Danielle Hulton Co-Owner of Ada’s Technical Bookstore and Cafe. Listen: http://www.spl.org/Audio/16_11_15_Paid_Parental_Leave_Forum.mp3
Washington’s cities are the engines of the state’s economy. But given an uncertain political and economic forecast ahead, what can cities do to stay out of economic peril? Some of our local economies are still struggling to rebound from the downturn — others (like Seattle) can’t seem to build quickly enough to keep up with growth. To […]
The thing about the Affordable Care Act is that if you pull one string, the whole blanket will fall apart…. And there goes health coverage for millions.
SEATTLE – Today the Washington Work and Family Coalition announced their policy proposal for paid family and medical leave in Washington. Under the proposed bills, Washington workers would be able to use extended paid leave for events like the birth of a child, a personal health emergency, or to take care of an ill family […]
What does this initiative do? The first thing it does is show up in minimum wage workers’ pay checks.
It’s time to get bold.