1. Follow this link to the state’s legislative website page on Participating in the Legislative Process: https://leg.wa.gov/legislature/Pages/Participating.aspx
2. In the Participating in a Committee Hearing box on the upper right, your three options are listed with links – all links go to the same sign up page: https://leg.wa.gov/legislature/Pages/Participating.aspx
- Testifying in a virtual hearing
- Submitting written testimony to a committee
- Get your position on a bill noted for the legislative record
3. For all types of participation, follow these general instructions to find the bill:
- Where is the bill being heard? Choose “House” or “Senate”
- Click on the drop-down arrow under Committee and choose the committee where the bill is being heard. Under Meetings, select the meeting day and time.
- Under “Select agenda item,” select the bill on which you want to offer an opinion.
4. When you have selected the bill number, select the type of engagement you would like to make:
- The easiest option is to select “I would like my position noted for the legislative record.” This allows you to say you are pro, con, or other on this bill and list your contact information.
- You can also use this page to sign up to deliver live testimony during the hearing. Once you sign up, committee staff will send you a link and additional information. Testimony is limited to 3 minutes or less depending on the number of testifiers.
- The third option is to provide a written statement to the committee. This statement is typed (or copied) into the form and is limited to 5,000 characters. You will need to indicate if you are pro, con, or other on the bill.
If you would like to see who else has signed in pro/con on a bill, or who is signed in to testify, click on the “See who has signed up for this agenda item” box.
Emails: alternatively, you can send an email directly to your legislators. Email addresses can be found here. You can look up who your legislators are by inputting your home address here.
The benefit of commenting on or signing in pro or con on a bill before a committee is that your position goes to all of the committee members, not just your legislators.
Help: if you need help, contact Samantha: samantham@aiaseattle.org or 206-957-1926.