2/4/25 - 35th District Reps Griffey & Couture Conversation With Jeff Slakey

KMAS Radio

Here’s a recap of what 35th District Representatives Dan Griffey, and Travis Couture and I covered in our conversation this week. Rep. Griffey brought up the Hope Card. It’s a really innovative tool for domestic violence survivors, about the size of a driver’s license, that helps law enforcement enforce protection orders. Over 200 of these cards have already been issued since January, and there’s huge potential to get the word out through advocacy centers, like Turning Pointe, and those with various protective orders to get this card.

On education, Travis had some eye-opening stats. Washington is seeing the lowest educational outcomes in over 30 years, even though funding for K-12 has increased by 110% over the last decade. However, he did discuss House Bill 1140, which would let funding follow the student, giving parents more control over their child’s education. What’s important is that this bill doesn’t take money away from public schools—it’s about adding flexibility, and it’s a model working well across the country.

We also talked about school safety, specifically House Bill 1296, which could remove the Parents Bill of Rights Initiative. One big concern? Parents might face a 48-hour delay in being informed if their child was sexually assaulted by school staff. That delay shocked a lot of people in the public, but an amendment by Travis to ensure immediate notification was rejected in the education committee. Beyond that, we discussed how education funding could be better prioritized—right now, both representatives think too much is going to social programs instead of core academics.

Another topic was the Mission Creek Women’s Correction Center after receiving a question from the KMAS audience. There’s been talk about it closing, but Representative Couture confirmed it’s not on the House GOP Budget chopping block. In fact, they’re looking at ways to make it more valuable, like helping with overflow from overcrowded youth detention facilities. I’ll keep asking about that through the session.

Finally, we talked about the bigger picture in education—how to make public schools better, empower school boards, and reduce bureaucracy. There’s also a need to rethink funding models and hold decision-makers accountable. The message is clear: public schools need to succeed, but we also need to give parents more choices to ensure every kid gets the best education possible.

Overall, lots of important issues and some good ideas on the table. If you have any questions to ask the representatives, send me an email, [email protected].

KMAS is the local radio station in Mason County Washington.