State Sen. Steve O'Ban and Rep. Dick Muri have introduced military-related bills during the 60-day 2014 legislative session, which began Jan. 13 and is scheduled to adjourn March 13. The two lawmakers will no doubt update the public on the bills, as well as others, at their 28th District town hall events.
The first event Saturday, Feb. 1, will be an in-person town hall meeting at Patriots Landing at 1600 Marshall Circle in DuPont. The gathering will take place in the Olympic Dining Room from 10 to 11:30 a.m. No RSVP is required.
The second meeting is an hour-long telephone town hall scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 4. To take part in the call, residents can dial in toll-free 1-877-229-8493 and enter PIN# 112355. The phone line will open shortly before the call begins. To ask questions of the lawmakers during the call, participants can press star three (*3) on their telephone keypads.
The lawmakers will give a brief update on issues being discussed during the legislative session then open the call up to questions.
Rep. Muri, R-Steilacoom and retired lieutenant colonel in the United States Air Force, introduced two measures that would assist veterans and better serve their disabled children in Washington state. Muri is currently serving his first legislative session as a state representative for the 28th District. House Bill 2343 would allow the option for veterans to have a veteran designation on their driver's licenses and identicards issues by the state Department of Licensing. House Bill 2363 would require the state Department of Health and Social Services to provide services to developmentally disabled children of military servicemembers in the order he or she was on the waiting list in another state, rather than having to go to the bottom of the list for services after relocating to Washington.
Sen. O'Ban R-Pierce County, has several state Senate bills on the table. SB 5969 would help military members and veterans get college credit for the training they received during their service. SB 5970 would grant civilian credit to military members and veterans for skills and abilities they developed while in the service. SB 6049 would help incentivize businesses in Washington to hire veterans by providing those business owners with a business and occupations tax credit, one of the most burdensome business taxes in the state. SB 6084 would allow a senior citizen or service-connected disabled veteran to qualify for a property tax exemption if they are near the poverty line and meet other benchmarks as well.
Residents who are unable to participate in the call can send comments and questions to O'Ban and Muri via e-mail at Steve.OBan@leg.wa.gov and Dick.Muri@leg.wa.gov. Or, they can leave a message for both legislators by calling the toll-free legislative hotline at 1-800-562-6000.