Creation Care: Buddy-Up for “Earth Weeks”
Opportunity: Earth Day is April 22. Let’s extend our opportunities from Easter on April 9 to Earth Day by Buddying-Up” and working together on Earth Day Projects.
What: Sign-up on the poster that will be up in the Narthex starting Sunday, March 5 indicating an activity you would like to do with other people. Perhaps you want to work on Osprey Nesting Projects or restoring habitat or an art project or just want help finding a place for recyclables. No specific ideas but want to be involved? Sign up to Buddy-Up with someone else.
Where: Narthex
When: Anytime between Sunday, March 5 to Earth Day April 22.
Note: A full-list of Buddy-Up opportunities will also be on the blog so that you can contact “buddies”.
Contact: Sharon Camblin, camblins@comcast.net.
Faith Action Network Legislative Efforts
The Faith Action Network is First Congregational Church’s daily legislative presence advocating for changes that are important to us. With bills moving out of committees, it’s time to reach out to your district’s legislators to support the bills on our legislative agenda that will have floor hearings. Look at the Bill Tracker, https://fanwa.org/advocacy/bill-tracker/ to find the status of all bills on our agenda.
Good news about bills that passed out of their fiscal committees this past week. These bills will be heard on the floor of the House in the next 12 days.
- HB 1477 Working Families Tax Credit Administrative Fixes, which would extend eligibility to help survivors of domestic violence, increase the time limit to file claims.
- HB 1447 Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) Improvements, which would strengthen the ability of TANF to meet foundational needs of children and families.
- HB 1260 Aged, Blind, & Disabled (ABD) Fix, which would end the requirement that extremely low-income disabled people pay back ABD cash assistance when they qualify for federal assistance (SSI).
- HB 1025 Access to Fairness Act, which would authorize victims of police misconduct and their families to sue for violations of state laws, bypassing the federal shield of qualified immunity.
- HB 1513 Traffic Safety for All, which would end stops for non-moving violations.
- HB 1131 Washington Recycling and Packaging (WRAP) Act, which would create graduated fees for packaging manufacturers.
- HB 1143 Firearm Requirements, which would require a comprehensive background check, safety training, and a waiting period to purchase a firearm.
