2018 Platform of the 32nd District Democrats

2018 Platform of the 32^ndDistrict Democrats - ADOPTED 3/24/18 * FLAGGED BULLETED ITEMS ARE NOT ADOPTED - FLAGGED FOR DISCUSSION ON APRIL 11, 2018

2.
3.	Plank	Lines
4.	Preamble	24 – 42
5.	Agriculture	43 – 105
6.	Civil Rights and Human Rights	107 – 175
7.	Corporate Power	177 – 207
8.	Economic Justice, Jobs and Tax Fairness	209 – 280
9.	Education	282 – 327
10.	Environmental Justice, Climate Change and Energy	329 – 412
11.	Foreign Policy	414 – 458
12.	Government and Political Reform	460 – 507
13.	Gun Safety and Reform	509 – 534
14.	Health Care	536 – 575
15.	Housing Justice	577 – 616
16.	Human Services	618 – 655
17.	Immigration	657 – 691
18.	Labor	693 – 756
19.	Law and the Justice System	758 – 812
20.	Media Reform	814 – 850
21.	Military	852 – 886
22.	Transportation	888 – 922
23.	Tribal Relations and Sovereignty	924 – 971

Preamble
“Without equality there can be no democracy.” - Eleanor Roosevelt
In the current era of political upheaval and intensifying ideological animosities, what sharply
distinguishes us is that we proclaim our unshakable loyalty and dedication to creating the best
government we can achieve in the service of all, not just the few.
“The legitimate object of government is to do for a community of people whatever they need to
have done but cannot do at all, or cannot do as well, for themselves.” - Abraham Lincoln
A just society is based on the principles of equality and solidarity, values human rights, and
recognizes the dignity of every human being.
We reaffirm our determination to pursue equal opportunity for all in every realm of life, and to
expand our dreams of excellence with each step forward, aiming ever higher toward that grand
goal set out in the Preamble to our Constitution: “to form a more perfect Union.”
To that end, we offer this Platform.

43. Agriculture

Food is essential to human survival, and forest products for survival in reasonable comfort;
accordingly, agriculture must remain of vital importance in Washington, and Washington in our
nation’s agricultural production.

48. We support:

Programs that ensure the availability of high-quality and organic food, strengthen rural
communities, preserve family farms and maintain the viability of the land and soil into the
Equitable distribution of water rights that respects senior appropriator water rights and
Quantifying our surface and ground water resources and characterizing their hydraulic
Expansion of SNAP benefits to increase purchasing power and access to fresh fruits and
Local food and beverage producers, and that government should develop
strategies for promoting local products.
Requiring all food to be labeled to disclose whether or not it includes genetically modified
organisms (GMOs).
Explicit food labeling, including date harvested or packaged, nation of origin, irradiation,
and organic certification.
Increased funding for and inspection of domestic and imported foods and livestock to
ensure safe food.
Measures that promote and sustain family farms.
Measures that sustain farming when calamities occur and that ensure farmers and farm
workers receive a fair return on their efforts, safety in doing that work, and are able to
produce food that is safe to eat.
Bringing sustainable farming to our urban communities, including community and
backyard gardens and local farmers’ markets.
Encouraging the use of locally grown food in school meal programs through local
farmers’ markets.
Policies consistent with the Washington State Growth Management Act that preserve
agricultural land and natural resources critical to the viability of food, fuel, and forest
production into the future.
Protecting waterways and habitat by reducing the use of herbicides, pesticides, and other
hazardous materials.
Decisions about water resources based on sound, credible scientific and economic
information, including local concerns.
Ensuring that farm subsidy programs benefit family and organic farms.
Incentives to encourage the agricultural skills, careers, and lifestyles that are essential to
our country’s survival.
Protection of productive farmland and wetlands from residential, industrial, and other
types of development.
Farming and forest management practices that encourage in soil conservation and soil
carbon sequestration.
Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOS) to mitigate ground and surface water
and drinking water pollution caused by contaminants emanating from manure lagoons and
spray fields as well as strict monitoring of water quality and enforcement of compliance

93. We oppose:

Experimenting with genetically modified organisms (GMOs) by field-testing.
Intentional infringement of existing senior appropriator certified water rights.
Cutting of funding to agricultural programs that support closely held family farms.
Toxic chemical sprays and the devastating effects on public health and safety.
Reduction of SNAP benefits and forcing families into a one-size-fits-all option that removes
consumer choice.
Subsidies for large conglomerates – such as Monsanto – which chokes out small farms and
devastates local economies.
The exclusion of agriculture workers from overtime pay and minimum wage laws.
Intentional infringement of existing senior appropriator certified water rights.
“Ag Gag” laws that criminalize the exposure of inhumane and unhealthy animal production
practices, such as Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs).

107. Civil Rights and Human Rights

We must remain at the forefront of the struggle to extend social, political, economic and legal
rights to all persons, and we oppose policies that would tend to reverse or impede those gains in
human dignity. Food security, housing, medical care, education, and equal employment are basic
human rights.

113. We support:

The right of all women to have autonomy over their own bodies, to be free of government,
corporate, or religious interference in their reproductive decisions, including birth control
and abortion, and to have safe, legal, protected, affordable and accessible health care that
enables them to make those choices according to their own wishes.
Privacy as a basic human right that the government and the private sector at all levels
must acknowledge in their rules and regulations.
The right of every adult to marry another person without regard to gender, and to enjoy the
same civil and legal rights accorded to all married persons.
Our Constitutionally guaranteed religious freedom that prevents the government from
imposing or suppressing religious beliefs, or favoring or funding any set of beliefs.
Anti-discrimination laws that sustain human dignity in all aspects of life.
Full employment at a livable wage.
Providing universal access to safe and affordable housing.
Freedom from hunger.
Restorative justice to provide a more constructive, humane, and less punitive correctional
Equal pay for equal work.
Upholding and defending every U.S. working person’s right to organize, negotiate
collectively, protest, and strike.
Enacting an immigration policy based on human, civil, and labor rights, acknowledging that
the U.S. imposed trade agreements compel migration into this country.
Universal health care for all, ensuring no one is excluded.
Enriching and equitable education system.
Ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment.
Strict separation of church and state.
Adding enforcement provisions to the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended
An immediate end to human trafficking for the sex trade, and all other forms of involuntary
Strong legislation, treatment programs and education designed to reduce harassment,
intimidation, domestic or sexual violence, gun violence, and bullying.
Honoring the rich diversity of society, and efforts to reflect that diversity in our Party,
including special consideration for the rights of such currently and historically marginalized
communities as people with disabilities, immigrants, peoples of color, indigenous peoples,
poor people, LGBTQ+ people, and religious minorities and atheists. People subjected
to discrimination must be afforded the legal means and economic opportunities to overcome
such injustices.
Policies and actions that will strengthen our country by affirming the value of all
individuals, and by eliminating systemic conditions that perpetuate inequality, oppression,
and lack of equitable access to opportunities.
Defending our constitutionally guaranteed rights to free speech and free association,
peaceable assembly, and protest, which supersede all state and local jurisdiction
Legislation defining “Conversion Therapy” to alter sexual orientation as a destructive and
damaging act of fraud.

158. We oppose:

Every law, regulation, or practice that tends to diminish, by intent or effect, the
Constitutional rights of citizens.
Discrimination in voting, employment, housing, public accommodations, healthcare,
military service and veterans’ status, insurance, licensing, or education based on race,
ethnicity, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, size,
socioeconomic status, political affiliation, and national origin or immigration status.
Any “bathroom bill” that attacks the rights of Trans-Queer-Gender non-binary peoples.
Any claim of religious liberty to justify or protect discriminatory practices.
Discrimination against LGBTQ+ people on parenting rights or opportunities.
Warrantless wiretapping and searches that violate the 4th Amendment of the U.S.
Constitution or Article 1, Section 7 of the Washington State Constitution.
Arbitrary limits, such as “Free Speech Zones”, which inhibit the right to disrupt business as
usual to express grievances and demand redress from our government.
Extreme and unconstitutional provisions of the PATRIOT Act which allow the government
and corporate surveillance of individuals, activist groups, and media.
Denial of women’s health services by governmental, insurance, or healthcare corporations,
local pharmacies, or military benefits programs.

177. Corporate Power

Our government was created of, by and for its people, not corporations. As artificial entities,
corporations are not entitled to the political rights of human beings, yet have gained undue
influence over our government and political process.

182. We support:

A Constitutional amendment to establish that corporations shall not be considered as
“persons” for purposes of political activity, and to reverse the pernicious notion that
money equals speech as is purported in the Citizens United decision.
As an interim step until Citizens United is reversed, institution of stringent
corporate campaign-contribution reporting requirements and prohibitions on such
contributions without specific advance approval by stockholders who are U.S. citizens.
Rigorous enforcement of anti-trust and consumer protection laws.
Effective penalties for corporations and the persons who control them, including prison
terms as warranted, when those corporations violate the law.
Transparency in all corporate accounting.
Separation of investment banking from retail banking, and subjecting all banking to
tighter regulation, transparency, and accountability.
Corporations receiving bailouts with taxpayer funds becoming publicly owned entities
operated for the public good.
Corporate officers being held personally liable and aggressively prosecuted for corporate
crimes and fraud.
Salary caps for corporate executives at 20 times the average wage of employees.

201. We oppose:

Transferring performance of the government’s customary functions into private hands.
Direct or indirect subsidies, whether through the federal tax code or by other means, to
any corporation that moves American jobs offshore.
U.S. corporations going offshore in order to evade U.S. taxes and other laws.
Unlimited and undisclosed campaign contributions.
Handing over of public service to the private sector called “outsourcing”.

209. Economic Justice, Jobs, and Tax Fairness

Justice in economic affairs is essential for the people to be able to fulfill their highest
Government must so align its policies and finances, and so conduct its affairs, that
its economy is strong and its entire population has a fair opportunity to prosper. Working people
have a right to a good standard of living, collective bargaining in the workplace, reliable pensions
and social security benefits, and an equitable tax system. “Taxes are the dues we pay for the
privilege of membership in an organized society.” - President Franklin Roosevelt.

217. We support:

Institution of a progressive tax system in our State, relying on a personal income tax
(including capital gains), reduced sales and property taxes, and replacement of the B&O
tax with a tax on business net income.
Making the federal tax system more progressive, including higher taxes on capital gains
and other investment income.
Imposing a federal tax on every stock exchange sale or purchase, based upon a percentage
of the price of the sale or purchase.
Tax cuts for the middle class and tax credits for those who live in poverty, to stimulate
the economy and create jobs.
Preserving Social Security as a Trust Fund, and removing the cap on income subject to
Social Security tax.
Establishment of a publicly-owned State bank.
Targeted economic-development incentives that provide verifiable, immediate, and
lasting benefits to our communities, subject to their being reviewed at least biannually
and promptly terminated if not fulfilling their intended purposes.
Increasing accountability for tax exemptions and preferences by requiring each recipient
to demonstrate annually that the state is realizing the promised benefit, and by treating
each such preference as a budgeted expenditure.
Creation of living-wage jobs and initiation of significant improvements to our
Multilateral trade agreements if they (1) are conditioned on strict health, safety and
environmental standards, human rights and workers’ rights, and (2) support transparent
democratic processes, including federal, state, and local laws, and (3) do not give special
privileges to foreign corporations over domestic companies, and (4) do not disadvantage
American workers, and (5) do not include an investor-state-dispute process which favors
corporations over sovereign national governments.
Aid for small businesses, including tax credits, low interest loans, and nonprofit micro-
Enforcement of usury laws, including capping payday loans at an 18% APR.
Increased transparency of federal and state financial institutions and their policies.
A windfall-profits tax on businesses that take unreasonable or excessive profit.
Withholding government contracts from corporations that establish a corporate presence
in a different jurisdiction for tax-avoidance purposes.
Preparation for a just post-automation economy by taking steps to study and then
implement a universal basic income funded via progressive revenue sources.
Reversing the causes for the gross disparity in wealth and income.
Fair-trade reconfiguration of global free trade agreements by publicly and transparently
renegotiating globalization rules to benefit working people and ecosystems of all countries.
Expand and improve Social Security by raising the cap on payroll taxes.
Promoting an economy that prioritizes real goods and services over high-risk financial
instruments and derivatives trading.
Reinstatement of the Glass-Steagall Act.
Breaking up banks considered “too-big-to-fail".
A diverse banking environment including public banks, community banks, and credit

264. We oppose:

Predatory lending and misuse of private data by financial institutions.
Exploitation of migrant, temporary, and contract workers.
The Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) because it prevents our elected Congressional
members from debating and/or amending the content of international trade agreements.
International trade agreements, such as WTO, NAFTA, CAFTA, and the TPP, that contain
provisions such as the Investment-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS), Section B of the
Investment Chapter of the TPP, which abrogate our judicial sovereignty over resolution of
disputes between foreign corporations concerning our own laws.
All efforts to undermine minimum wage laws.
A tax system that rewards investment over hard work.
The use of credit scores in hiring or insurance rating.
Privatization of workers’ compensation or Social Security, or reduction of Social Security
benefits by any means – including subjection of cost of living adjustments to the “Chained”
Consumer Price Index.
Hiring policies that discriminate against unemployed applicants.
Austerity measures that transfer wealth from the 99% to enrich the 1%.

Education
Educational opportunity is a basic right of all Americans. An excellent, quality public education,
preschool through post-secondary, with equal access for all, is fundamental to maintaining a
healthy democracy. It is the paramount duty of our State to make ample provision for the
education of all children.
We support:
A rigorous, comprehensive, scientifically and historically accurate curriculum.
Smaller class sizes based on effective student-teacher ratios.
Head Start and Early Childhood Education, special education, meal support, and other
assistive programs.
Inclusion of music, fine arts, civics and physical education in the curriculum.
Full federal and State funding of all basic, gifted, vocational, technical, alternative,
special education, English Language Learners, and other educational mandates, including
the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
Adequate financial resources and infrastructure for the education of Fircrest Residential
Habilitation Center children and other individuals with disabilities.
Educator salaries, cost of living increases and retirement and health care benefits equal to
those of other professionals of similar experience and qualifications, in order to attract
and retain quality public-school employees.
Teacher-led reforms for better outcomes in the classroom.
Increased public funding of higher education and more full-time instructional faculty, and
improved salary, benefits, and professional opportunity for part-time or non-tenured
Overturning state funding of charter schools.
Medically accurate and comprehensive sex education in schools, including healthy
relationships and models of consent.
Full staffing of non-classroom support such as counselors, librarians, nurses, psychologists,
to meet the social, emotional, health, safety and educational needs of all students.
Equitable and comprehensive services for students including those who have special needs,
English language learners, foster or homeless youth, highly capable, low-income, LGBTQ
and students of color.
Increased opportunities in diverse and low-income communities to earn post-secondary
credit in high school through exam classes, career & technical education, apprenticeships,
and internships.
Tuition-free public colleges, universities, and vocational schools.
State-funded universal pre-school, as well as affordable before and after-school programs.

320. We oppose:

Standardized testing as the primary means of accountability.
Government funding of charter schools not subject to the governance of a local public
school board, at all levels of government.
Profit-driven education reform characterized by standardized curriculum and testing,
vouchers and charter schools.
Commercial marketing or military recruiting in public schools.
Predatory student loans that cannot be discharged in bankruptcy.

329. Environmental Justice, Climate Change and Energy

We depend on clean air, clean water, and a healthy natural environment. Nothing in environmental
resources management makes sense except in the light of scarcity. Significant and devastating
effects of climate change are already impacting ecosystems, economies and communities. The well-
being of every nation requires intelligent management of growth, limiting of urban sprawl, and
preservation of farmland, wildlife habitat, and natural resources. Accordingly, protective laws and
regulations must be vigorously enforced, and strengthened where needed.

337. We support:

Aggressive action now to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases in order to immediately
retard, and ultimately prevent, further global climate change and ocean acidification.
The development and greater use of clean and sustainable alternatives to fossil fuels, by
such strategies as: (1) Government-subsidized research into wind, solar, ocean and
geothermal power, along with biomass and other innovative technologies; (2) Higher fuel-
efficiency and anti-pollution standards for all vehicles, and increasing the percentage of
Alternative-fuel vehicles in use; (3) Tax incentives, including imposition of a carbon tax and
repeal of tax breaks for oil companies; (4) Prohibition of new or expanded nuclear power
plants without proof that their operation will be “clean” and waste dealt with responsibly.
Intensified international efforts to prevent the release of chlorine gases, in order to protect
the ozone layer.
Creating incentives for conservation of energy, water and other resources, and for reuse and
recycling in order to reduce the waste stream while assuring safe disposition of hazardous
Strengthening the State’s Growth Management Act.
Reforming the State’s excessively liberal land-use vesting rules.
Protecting environmentally sensitive areas, including the continental shelf, from exploration
and/or extraction of oil, gas, and other substances, and from the disposal or treatment of
Production of renewable energy on farms, including biofuels, solar and wind power, to
reduce greenhouse gases in ways that are sustainable and do not compete with food crops.
Management and preservation of Wilderness areas and other public lands as national
treasures, and according state and national parks the funding needed for their preservation
and public enjoyment.
Increased federal and state protection of wild and scenic rivers.
A fair system of paying for growth, including assessment of impact fees on developers.
Preserving green and open spaces in urban environments even as density increases so as to
protect the quality of life for urban residents in terms of their physical, emotional and mental
health, as scientific research has demonstrated this need (see, e.g.,
https://depts.washington.edu/hhwb/Thm_Mental.html).
Revising state laws to require greater participation by and authority of residents to approve
major changes in zoning that affect more than one property.
Producer responsibility for packaging and waste products.
ASARCO funds and funds from the Model Toxics Control Act being used only for toxic
site cleanup, including the 20,000 developed and undeveloped parcels slated for cleanup.
Implementation of storm water reduction to address polluted runoff, including
daylighting streams and creeks where possible.
Restoration of endangered species and their habitats, which support biodiversity and
sustainability, and incorporating the recovery management agreements into the endangered
species act.
Comprehensively quantifying Washington State water resources and managing them with a
policy that is science-based, transparent, and effective.
Transitioning to 100% renewables.
Ensuring that 80% of the remaining global fossil fuel reserves must remain in the ground.
Net metering in residential solar.
Requiring that Environmental Impact Statements include climate change impacts.
Adopting and sharing best practices in energy conservation and production to improve
global innovation towards climate mitigation and solutions.
Enforcing requirements that all corporations pay for the true costs of carbon emissions,
chemical pollution, and waste-stream management in production.
Making containment of existing and future nuclear waste a top priority and require this
industry to pay for clean-up.
Enhancing air, water, and soil quality protections by strengthening the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA).
Protecting public lands and the public commons from destructive extraction industries and
corporate exploitation.
Requiring companies to increase safe use of their waste and byproducts for energy
production and as raw materials for new products.
Enforcing and strengthening our state's Growth Management Act to protect against further
urban sprawl that consumes farmland, forests, wildlife habitat and natural resources.

399. We oppose:

Coal power generating plants anywhere, and coal transportation by any means.
Increased shipment of oil by train without increased safety measures.
The construction of potentially hazardous pipelines through environmentally
sensitive areas, especially areas containing aquifers.
Undermining Initiative 937’s renewable-energy goals.
Mountaintop removal for extraction of natural resources.
Hydraulic fracturing for natural gas and mountaintop removal for extraction of coal and
other natural resources.
Spraying known toxins and carcinogens into public parks and greenspaces, including but
not limited to: glyphosate and neonicotinoid.
Low-income and Native American communities bearing a disproportionate load of
polluting industries and otherwise dangerous facilities.
Canada-to-Mexico tar sands pipeline (Keystone XL).

Foreign Policy
Recognizing that our security ultimately depends on peace throughout the world, the United
States will best protect its interests by working within the international community, using the
tools of development, diplomacy and defense, in a spirit of mutual respect and

420. We support:

Fully cooperative participation in the United Nations.
Resolving international conflicts through diplomacy and international institutions, not by
force or threat of force.
Reduction of nuclear arsenals, coupled with international control of fissile material.
Providing our fair share of aid to reduce world poverty and improve health, education,
and access to safe water and food.
Limiting military and other aid to only those nations that have demonstrated their respect
for human and civil rights for men and women alike.
Working closely and persistently with other countries to prevent genocide.
Immediate signing and ratification of the U.N. agreement forming an International
Criminal Court, and recognition of its jurisdiction.
All nations’ strict adherence to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, the Geneva
Conventions, the Biological and Chemical Weapons Conventions, and other international
agreements protecting civilian populations.
Improvement of international financial systems to prevent economic disruptions.
Prompt use of the full influence of the United States, through serious, constructive and
persistent engagement, to promote negotiations and other actions that lead to a successful
and sustainable resolution of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, including mutual
recognition, that ensures security, economic growth, and quality of life for the peoples of
the sovereign state of Israel and a sovereign state of Palestine.
Greater participation with our neighboring states and provinces through the Pacific
Northwest Economic Region.
A secure peace in Palestine and Israel and throughout the Middle East; and oppose the
creation of new settlements in Palestinian territory and demolition of existing settlements.
The President obeying the War Powers Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which provides that
only Congress has the non-delegable prerogative to decide to go to war.

448. We oppose:

Preemptive war.
Overt or covert efforts to destabilize other nations’ governments.
The marginalization of women in any way, in any sphere of human activity, in every part
of the world, whether by law, custom, or culture.
Foreign trade agreements that put the interests of corporations above the rights and
interests of governments or workers and the environment.
The sale of weapons to nations that are utilized in human rights atrocities.
Agents of foreign nations that work to misinform the populace through hoaxes and false
Any and all foreign interference in U.S. election efforts.

460. Government and Political Reform

Our government derives its legitimacy from, and is answerable to, the people. We are committed
to a representative democracy that encourages maximum active participation, a voting process
that is legitimate, fair, transparent, and open to all citizens, and a requirement of responsibility
from voters and accountability from those they elect. No American citizen should be removed
from the voting rolls or otherwise constrained from participating in an election for which they
are eligible.

468. We support:

Vote-by-mail and other electoral procedures that increase voter participation, including
same-day voter registration and an end to felon disenfranchisement.
Instant Runoff elections.
A full and thorough 2020 census count that ensures all residents, regardless of residency,
citizenship status, sexual orientation or gender identity, are counted.
Full representation of all United States territories in Congress.
Voting rights to all Washington residents regardless of incarceration status, felony status,
LFO repayment status, or community supervision status.
Gender neutralization of the state constitution using they/them pronouns.
Redistricting commissions that are fair and independent of political influence.
Public financing for political campaigns.
Adherence to open public meeting laws, with genuine opportunities for public comment
on policy proposals, and to public disclosure laws.
Accounting for tax exemptions as expenditures in the State budget.
Prompt production of documents requested under the federal Freedom of Information Act
and its state and local counterparts.
Encouraging women, minorities, and other traditionally underrepresented persons to seek
political office.
Electing the U.S. President by popular vote, not a so-called "electoral college”.
Redistricting in a fair and rational manner, independent of political influence and conducted
by nonpartisan bodies.
Making voting easier for members of the military and other citizens located overseas.
Adherence to open-meeting laws at all levels, with genuine opportunities for public
comment on policy proposals.
Exclusion of lobbyists from any meeting or session of a federal or state legislative or
regulatory body or committee, from which the public is excluded.
Drastic reduction of the exemptions to our state's Public Records Act.
Enforcing the Whistleblower Protection Act, which guarantees that government and
corporate whistleblowers shall be protected from job loss or retaliation.

499. We oppose:

The top-two “winnowing” primary.
Onerous voter ID requirements and other techniques of voter suppression.
Laws that require a supermajority vote to raise revenue.
Expansion of Presidential powers, including the use of “signing statements” that purport
to invalidate a portion of legislation being signed into law.
The privatization or outsourcing of any essential governmental function.
Government officials and employees becoming corporate lobbyists through the “revolving
door” without a "cooling-off period" between government service and private employment.

509. Gun Safety and Reform

We believe that the right to own firearms is subject to reasonable regulation. Too many families in
America have suffered – and continue to suffer – from gun violence. Over 30,000
Americans die every year from gun violence, including over 10,000 homicides. The time to
act is now to address this public health crisis.

518. We support:

Mandatory registration, licensing, and certification of all firearms.
Mandatory periodic safety training and certification for all gun owners, as well as
safety locks and secure storage for all guns.
Maintaining the total ban on automatic weapons in Washington State.
A total ban on semi-automatic rifles.
Background checks and waiting periods enforced for all gun and ammunition purchases.
Keeping firearms out of the hands of those who present a danger to themselves or others.
Holding firearm owners liable when crimes are committed with their unsecured gun(s).
Banning firearm accessories that enable sustained high rates of fire, including bump stocks
and magazines holding more than ten cartridges.

530. We oppose:

Arming school teachers, administration, and faculty members, and other attempts to
introduce or increase the presence of firearms in the classroom.
Resale of guns seized by law enforcement.
Illegal trafficking of guns.

536. Health Care

Health care is a basic human right. Our government should assure, and guarantee by law,
accessible and affordable health care for all, making healthcare in Washington State a right for
every person, and securing a patient’s right to choice of licensed provider type.
We support:

542.	● Establishment of a comprehensive, publicly funded single-payer national
543.	health care system for all, emphasizing preventive and primary care and chronic disease
544.	management and relying on evidence-based guidelines, at a cost individuals and society
545.	can afford, with specific benefits that address all the patient’s health needs without being
546.	subject to arbitrary exclusions or termination.
547.	●
548.
549.	● Use of government purchasing power to negotiate reduced prices for prescriptions that
550.	include drugs, medical supplies and equipment.
551.	● Increasing the supply of primary-care providers, especially those who will work with
552.	underserved communities and populations. In the 2015 Washington State legislative
553.	session, funding was restored to the Washington State Health Professionals Loan
554.	Repayment Program (HPLRP). We recommend continued funding for this program to
555.	support underserved communities in recruiting and retaining primary care providers.
556.	● Ample funding of medical research under the National Institutes of Health, based on
557.	scientific merit, and basing Public Health policy on sound objective scientific guidelines.
558.	● A unified electronic medical record system to reduce errors and enable a seamless
559.	transfer of information among institutions, while providing a more accurate way to assess
560.	clinical outcomes and compare treatment approaches, consistent with safeguarding of
561.	patient privacy.
562.	● A Patient’s Bill of Rights guaranteeing (1) respect for people’s wishes regarding their
563.	medical care, especially at the end of life, and for a patient’s right to refuse life-
564.	sustaining interventions when it is the will of the patient or parent/guardian to choose that
565.	approach, (2) the right of patients and loved ones to voice grievances to health care
566.	institutions without fear of retaliation, and (3) a patient’s right to die in a non-institutional
567.	setting.
568.	● Increased funding for global family planning, including comprehensive sex education and
569.	contraception.
570.	● Availability of reproductive health and abortion services at medical institutions, with
571.	guaranteed insurance coverage.
572.	● The use by all health care entities that receive any federal, state or city funds – including
573.	but not limited to clinics, emergency rooms, pharmacies, hospitals, nursing homes – of the
574.	scientific best practice principles for care and treatment regardless of religious affiliation
575.	or belief of the providers, and honoring advance directives of all patients in their care.
576.

Housing Justice
Housing is a human right. We believe that the housing crisis must be addressed with real world
solutions that provide for the needs of people. We realize that the private housing market has failed
to adequately provide for those at low to middle income ranges. It is the right and proper role of
government to provide permanent stable housing to people experiencing homelessness, to expand
the stock of supportive, low income, and affordable housing, and to use all tools available to
control the astronomic explosion of the cost of housing.
We support:
Immediate construction of publicly funded and owned housing in an adequate amount to
provide housing for all.
Providing enough clean, livable, temporary shelter to ensure people experiencing
homelessness do not go unsheltered until stably housed in permanent housing.
Housing first and low-barrier housing strategies that require as few barriers or restrictions as
possible, recognizing that being stably housed is the first step to stabilization.
Ensuring that both private commercial housing and public housing are maintained in a safe,
livable condition.
Protections against discrimination in housing on the basis of race, country of origin,
religious or non-religious status, gender or gender identity, sexual orientation, veteran status,
source of income, political beliefs, or relationship status.
Aggressive state and local action funded with progressive revenue sources to secure housing
as a human right for all in Washington with or without federal cooperation to these ends.
Aggressive federal action funded by progressive revenue sources to secure housing as a
human right for all nationally.
Repeal of Washington State’s prohibition on rent control.
Requiring private developers to set aside 25% of units for affordable housing on a
permanent basis in up-zoned developments.
Relaxation of zoning which prevents construction of tiny houses, duplexes, and accessory
dwelling units on single lots as well as restrictions on co-housing.
Halting and reversing the growth of regressive residential property taxes in favor of more
progressive forms of revenue collection.
We oppose:
Dehumanization and victim blaming of our neighbors experiencing homelessness.
Any policy of “sweeps” aimed at our unsheltered neighbors.
Hostile urban architecture that serves no purpose other than to keep people in extreme
poverty removed from certain areas.
Criminalization of people who are experiencing homelessness.
Anti-nuisance ordinances which force people to choose between their safety and being

Human Services
One of the highest priorities of government is to provide a safety net of social services that meets
the basic needs of people who may be on the margins of society, whether they be elderly,
impoverished, homeless, mentally ill, disabled, or have chemical dependency, to enable them to
attain their full potential. The only genuine welfare reform is one that reduces poverty, not just the
welfare rolls.

625. We support:

Quality, affordable childcare, education, training, medical care and substance-abuse
treatment as cost-effective methods of helping working parents and others get off welfare
and escape poverty.
Public assistance to safeguard those unable to provide for themselves.
Maintaining Social Security benefits for dependent survivors and the disabled.
Alternatives to nursing homes for people who do not need full-time skilled nursing care.
Increased funding for and access to fully-funded mental health and substance-abuse
Making more public facilities accessible under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Investigating all reports of abuse and neglect in adult family homes, boarding homes,
group homes and other assisted living facilities.
Providing appropriate housing and care for the mentally ill and the developmentally
Maintaining state mental hospitals and residential habitation centers, including Fircrest
and Rainier School.
Adequate training for all staff who work with vulnerable populations.
Community Health Engagement Locations (CHELs), also referred to as safe consumption
sites, and requiring first responders to be trained and equipped for overdose response.
Reinvesting a significant portion of the military budget into family support, living-wage job
development, and work training programs.

647. We oppose:

Erosion of the social safety net.
Discharging hospital patients or residents from state-operated residential facilities to
homeless shelters or group homes without adequately trained staff, medicines and
services, including safety oversight to make sure vulnerable people are not at risk of
Using the criminal justice system to incarcerate the mentally ill and the developmentally
Privatization of Social Security.

657. Immigration

America is a nation of immigrants. Immigrants strengthen America. All immigrants should be
afforded full human rights and a fair, safe, and timely path to legal status. Children of
immigrants should be accorded the same educational opportunities as other children. We
encourage state and local government to continuously respect and honor diversity in our

664. We support:

Comprehensive immigration reform that protects the integrity of our borders while
recognizing the basic human rights of immigrants and providing them a clear pathway to
legal status and citizenship if desired.
Ensuring that immigrants obtain due process in all proceedings and have access to bail
Policies that integrate and support immigrants as members of our communities, including
preparation for citizenship, and establishing statute of limitations to barriers for citizenship.
Requiring state and local government to provide interpretation services or translation of
government documents.
Education of all children regardless of immigration status.
Sanctuary jurisdictions adopting sanctuary policies.
Legal residents having the same rights as American citizens concerning waiting time for
their legal spouses to join them in the U.S.
Giving ID documents and driver’s licenses to immigrants regardless of status.

680. We oppose:

Demands for immediate production of documents regarding one’s status in the United
States, other than as part of federal immigration enforcement.

Removal of DACA until a clean DREAM Act is passed.
The construction of a wall on the Mexican border.
Giving ICE arresting powers without a warrant within 100 miles of the border.
Companies that import workers and do not pay them minimum wage.
Separating children from their parents while in immigration proceedings.
Cooperation by local or state governments with federal efforts to detain and/or deport
undocumented community members.
Detention of immigrants for crimes which citizens would not be detained for.
The use of private facilities for immigration detention.

693. Labor

Organized labor is essential to the social, economic, and political health of our democracy. The
tremendous improvement in the overall standard of living that occurred in the years after World
War II was due to the preceding and ongoing struggles of unions and working people who fought,
sacrificed, and died to gain the right to organize and bargain collectively for better working
conditions and a share in our prosperity. The decline of real wages over the past three
decades, accompanied by powerful anti-union political attacks, has intensified the need for a
strong union movement.

702. We support:

The legal right of public and private sector employees to organize into unions, to bargain
collectively on all matters pertaining to their working conditions and compensation, and
the right to strike without fear of reprisal or replacement.
The automatic recognition of a union, based on the signatures of a majority of those
represented, and punishment of corporations that engage in anti-union efforts.
Enforcement of prevailing wage laws for work under government contracts, and of area
standards for wages and benefits.
A minimum wage that is a living wage, equal pay for equal work, and protection of
overtime pay.
A workers’ Bill of Rights that assures rights of assembly, association and free speech,
due process, freedom from discrimination, and democracy within unions.
Equal participation between labor and employers in the management of workers’
Apprenticeship set-asides, and full funding for enforcement of child labor standards that
limit the hours youths are allowed to be employed during the school year.
Respecting picket lines by not crossing them.
“Best Value Contractor” policies and “Fair Contracting” with “Responsible and
Responsive” bidder language in all public works jobs that include contractor
responsibilities for prevailing wages, health insurance, retirement and training.
Preference for Washington State residents and contractors on public works projects in our
Provision of medical and other benefits to all employees.
Creation and rigorous enforcement of anti-wage theft laws and regulations.
Paid family and medical leave.
A closing of sub-minimum wage loopholes in state, county, and local levels and ending of
4C certifications under the minimum wage.
Passage of an employee non-discrimination act to protect queer, trans, and gender non-
confirming/non-binary people in the workplace.
We support a minimum wage of at least 15 dollars per hour, in 2016 dollars adjusted for
inflation, by 2021 increasing with the rate of inflation annually thereafter.
Full workers compensation and medical treatment for on the job injuries.
Strong whistleblower laws that ensure the protection of workers who report safety hazards,
executive malfeasance, harassment, or other violations of law or regulations in the
Requiring corporations to allocate a percentage of corporate board seats to labor.
The Employee Free-Choice Act, which streamlines union certification for bargaining with
We oppose:
So-called “right-to-work” laws and other anti-union legislation, including the Taft-Hartley
Government officials’ attacks on unions and government employees.
The privatization or out-sourcing of public services.
Under-funding of workers’ pensions by either the private or public sector.
The unilateral redefining of workers as independent contractors in order to reduce labor
costs, render workers ineligible for benefits, or weaken safety standards and other
Foreign trade agreements that put the interests of corporations above the rights of
workers and protection of the environment.
Weakening of either State or federal Family and Medical Leave laws.
Training wages, counting tips towards wages, and any other exceptions to the minimum
Efforts to limit the autonomy of local jurisdictions to enact a minimum wage higher than the
state minimum wage.

758. Law and the Justice System

The rule of law is prerequisite to a civil society. A responsible government provides safety,
security, and even-handed justice for all, with fairness and respect for the individual.

762. We support:

Refocusing the criminal justice system to emphasize prevention, diversion, and
rehabilitation over incarceration, and on preparing prisoners for re-entry into society.
Working to eliminate the conditions that lead to crime, by government investment in
education and social services (including mental health and youth programs) and
promotion of living-wage jobs so as to reduce poverty and homelessness.
Abolition of the death penalty.
Abolition of youth solitary confinement.
Keeping nonviolent crimes off the “Three Strikes” list, with immediate transfer
of inmates to rehabilitation programs.
An end to the “war on drugs”.
The creation and funding of specialized drug courts, and of specialized mental health
courts to arrange for the humane treatment and rehabilitation of mentally ill people
caught up in the criminal justice system.
Vigorous prosecution of white-collar crime, especially that occurring in the financial
Removing Cannabis from Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act.
The end of the prison industrial complex, including the school to prison pipeline.
Ensuring racial and socio-economic diversity on juries.
Application of policing and prosecution that is race-neutral in intent and effect.
Protecting our state prerogative to maintain a safe and legal market for the manufacture,
sale, and consumption of cannabis.
Ending sentences currently being served related to the manufacture, sale, and consumption
of small amounts of cannabis, and expunging said sentences from residents’ criminal
Increasing the funding of legal aid programs to ensure access to the courts for all people,
regardless of wealth.
Increasing the funding of public defender programs to ensure all people, regardless of
wealth, have access to adequate representation in criminal cases, as guaranteed by the
Implementing safeguards to ensure access to courts for all people, regardless of citizenship
The abolishment of money bail for those charged with crimes, the use of statutory-based
detention for those who pose an unacceptable risk to the community, and to expand the use
of pre-trial services.
Mandate charge or disposal of a complaint within 24 hours of arrest by prosecutors.
Prohibition of arrest or detention on behalf of judgements for private debt collection
corporations, also referred to as debtor examination warrants.
Elimination of civil asset forfeiture without criminal conviction outside of state mandated
Improved law enforcement de-escalation training to prevent killing of suspects and
excessive use of force.
Accountability in law enforcement, with effective civilian review.
Providing adequate health care, education, vocational training, and rehabilitation for all
incarcerated persons.
We oppose:
The utilization of public records to hunt undocumented persons.
Private prisons.
Economic incentives which encourage imprisonment and detainment, such as sub-minimum

Media Reform
Essential for democracy to flourish are an informed citizenry, persistently inquisitive media, and
the free flow of information, including Internet neutrality. The public owns the broadcast
airwaves and the Internet, which should be managed to serve the public interest.

819. We support:

Diversity of ownership as a central principle of broadcast licensing.
Strengthening media ownership regulations to avoid corporate domination of our
Encouraging minority and community media ownership.
Ensuring that media license holders provide diverse programming daily.
Increased funding for public broadcasting, including documentary films and
non-commercial news programs.
Adequate, stable public funding, free of political pressure, for public radio and public
Establishing a system for community-level, non-profit and non-commercial radio and TV
Ensuring that rural Americans have access to a modern communications infrastructure.
Reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine for broadcast media during election campaigns
and making it applicable to cable networks to promote greater balance in coverage.
Increasing affordable access to high-speed Internet statewide.
Enhancing content diversity and press freedom by retaining and strengthening
community media voices and messages, in order to foster greater participation in our
community’s shared social, cultural and political life.
Aggressive application of antitrust laws to prevent the formation of monopolies in the
wireless and broadband service industries.
Local governments placing more public information and documents online.
Public access to the Internet and public ownership of Internet infrastructure, emphasizing
development of broadband in rural areas.
Internet neutrality, in which all users and content providers have equal access to Internet
service without discrimination or prioritization based on content transmitted.
Free radio and TV access for candidates and ballot issues before each election.

847. We oppose:

False claims of “national security” to suppress investigative journalism.
Media consolidation, which has a negative impact on communities across the United

852. Military

Those who have answered our country’s call to military service must be accorded the quality
medical care and family/veterans’ benefits promised at the time of their recruitment and
enlistment.

857. We support:

Assuring that our military personnel and veterans receive the very best in physical and
mental rehabilitation wherever needed and without cost.
Military service on our behalf being performed only by men and women accountable to
the public, the law, and the Uniform Code of Military Justice, and not by contractors.
Assuring that all American military personnel are instructed in their rights and
responsibilities, including those under the Geneva Conventions, and that they are
subjected to vigorous prosecution for violations thereof or for other criminal conduct
including sexual assault or harassment.
Ending restrictions on providing abortions or reproductive health services as part of
humanitarian aid.
Independent military prosecutors, not commanding officers, investigating and
prosecuting all allegations of sexual misconduct.
Full funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs.
The expeditious and orderly draw-down of U.S. forces from conflicts abroad.
Maintaining a well-trained and well-equipped military, sufficient for the defense of the
American people, our vital interests, and our treaty partners when all other means of
diplomacy and protection are exhausted.
Congress asserting its constitutional powers to declare war, regulate and govern the
We oppose:
Activation of National Guard personnel for service outside the United States, other than
pursuant to a declaration of war.
Preemptive use of military force.
Nuclear, chemical, or biological weapons and genocidal biological warfare.
Excessive or unnecessary military spending.
The undue influence of the military-industrial complex over national policy.
U.S. training of foreign military or police forces that suppress human rights in their own

888. Transportation

We believe that an efficient, well-planned, multimodal transportation system promotes a healthy
economy, environment and community.

892. We support:

Increased investment in the expansion and maintenance of the State’s transportation
infrastructure, including accessible transportation for all, with safe, affordable, and efficient
bus and rail services.
Land-use planning around existing and planned transportation infrastructure, with the
goal of decreasing the need to drive, while recognizing that there will remain a need for
the personal automobile.
A transportation system safe for all users, motorized and non-motorized.
The creation of pedestrian friendly and cycling master plans as separate pieces of local
government transportation planning.
The construction and maintenance of sidewalks, bike trails, and bike corridors, including
the Burke-Gilman and Interurban Trails.
Increased investment by the federal and State government in public infrastructure that
broadens individuals’ multimodal transportation choices.
Institutions, including employers, providing free or low-cost mass transit passes to their
employees or other constituents.
The development of a high-speed rail system from Seattle to Vancouver and Seattle to
Free and reduced transit fare for people with low incomes.
Reducing barriers for transit ridership, including lower fares and other incentives.
Ecologically sound forms of transportation that minimize pollution and maximize
Design streets to promote safe speeds and safe interaction with pedestrians.
Regularly increase Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards to levels which
challenge automakers to improve fuel efficiency.

918. We oppose:

Increased privatization of public infrastructure and transportation.
Regressive funding of transit, such as flat car tabs and property taxes and fares.
The continuation of massive subsidies to the auto, nuclear power plant, and fossil fuel

Tribal Relations and Sovereignty
Local, state, and federal governments must respect Native American nations on a sovereign
government-to-government basis and must respect the decisions of Native American Nations,
affirm their rights derived from treaties and state compacts, and oppose attempts to diminish
their sovereignty and cultures. We call on local, state, and federal governments to help improve
the social, economic, and health status of all Native American people to a level equivalent to that
of other Americans.

932. We support:

Upholding treaties and tribal agreements by all parties.
Restoration of federal recognition for formerly recognized Tribes, including the
Duwamish and Chinook.
Continued efforts to maintain and restore salmon runs and protect shellfish resources
critical to Native American cultures and economies.
The preservation and protection of sites of historic, cultural and religious significance.
Educating the American public about the inherent and treaty-based rights of Indian tribes,
a step that is vital to respectful and civil relations between Indian tribes and local
communities, the state, and the nation.
Educating students in the local school districts by incorporating more of the history and
culture of Native American Peoples, especially those residing in Washington.
Continued funding of programs that combat social and economic problems such as
poverty and alcoholism.
Fully cooperative relations with Indian Country regarding water.
Recognize that Urban Natives in Seattle make up a higher percentage per capita of the
homeless population and are seven more times likely to be homeless than any other race in
the Seattle area according to the 2016 one-night count.
Providing Police Officer training on cross-cultural Urban Native communication to avoid
discriminatory policing.
Providing Judicial training on the federal Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 and the
Washington State Indian Child Welfare Act of 2013 to prevent the loss of children’s Native
ties and identity.
Increased governmental efforts, including data collection done in consultation with Urban
Natives, to identify American Indian and Alaska Native students who are multi-racial, in
order to address necessary education funding purposes and programs.
Inclusiveness in any education summits put on by state, county, regional and local
governments where Urban Natives have been systematically left out.
Aggressive reduction of carbon emissions at levels that will protect the indigenous/human
rights of future generations, including those dependent on traditional foods.
Support a declaration of the second Monday in October as “Indigenous Peoples Day”.
Fully cooperative relations with Indian Country regarding water.

965. We oppose:

All attempts to diminish Tribal sovereignty or Tribal Treaty Rights of the 29
Federally Recognized Tribes in the State.
All attempts of governments to continue to treat Urban Natives as invisible
due to forced assimilation through prior discriminatory Acts of Congress and
racist policies throughout U.S. history.
The harmful legacy of the use of “Indian mascots” in all sports in the State.

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