WA GOP representatives explain why they couldn't vote for the Blake fix

In the last hours of the session on Sunday night in Olympia, the state House failed to pass a critical fix to Washington's drug possession law. The state Supreme Court threw out the old felony drug possession penalty back in 2021.

The temporary stopgap, which classifies drug possession as a misdemeanor, is due to expire July 1.

After going back and forth between the House and Senate with different versions of a new law, Democrats, who control both chambers of the Legislature, thought they had a compromise bill ready to pass the House last weekend. They thought wrong.

Fifteen Democrats defected, and every Republican voted against the bill. So it fizzled and set up a potentially chaotic future for drug laws in the state.

On Monday, Soundside spoke to Speaker of the House Laurie Jinkins about what happened in those final hours. Jinkins is a Democrat representing the 27th District.

She expressed surprise that not a single GOP member got on board with this bill.

"It was kind of a shocking turn of events to see that Republicans who had been articulating that they needed to have a gross misdemeanor crime for possession of drugs, and that was achieved in the bill decided instead to vote to legalize methamphetamines and fentanyl and heroin across the state of Washington," Jinkins said.

Listen to Soundside's interview with Speaker Jinkins here.

Rep. Greg Cheney, a Republican who represents the 18th District, said that's not an accurate characterization of what happened.

"I think there was broad bipartisan support that the Senate Democrats, the House Republicans and the Senate Republicans had negotiated, those three caucuses, if you will," Cheney said. "Unfortunately, it seemed that there was a group within the House Democratic Caucus who would not vote for any bipartisan measure. And ultimately, my view is that's why the bill failed."

Cheney is also an indigent defense criminal attorney. He was concerned that the bill didn't have the necessary safeguards for individuals that repeatedly violate the terms and conditions of their diversion agreement.

"I think there was real concern that in the bill, as presented in the Conference Board," he said, "someone could repetitively violate the terms of their diversion with no real ability for a drug court or a judge to hold that person accountable."

Cheney voted in favor of House Bill 5546 on April 11, before switching his vote April 23. He said the latest version of the bill was missing clear language about accountability for people who violated their treatment conditions.

"Ultimately, you have to look at the bill that's before you and the language that's before you. And I just felt that didn't have sufficient procedural safeguards to keep the community safe," Cheney explained.

When Soundside spoke to House Speaker Jinkins earlier this week, she specifically discussed Republican Rep. Gina Mosbrucker, who, in a press conference following the vote, said, “We’ve had all session to come up with a workable plan that gets addicted people off the streets and into treatment. I think many lawmakers on both sides of the aisle felt this 11th-hour conference bill was wholly inadequate.”

Jinkins said that it was difficult to hear that perspective from Rep. Mosbrucker, noting that Mosbrucker was sent copies of drafts and requests for feedback over the last month, and had not provided any.

"I think we were very open to hearing feedback and to negotiating, but you can't negotiate against silence," Jinkins stated.

Soundside reached out to Rep. Mosbrucker for a response.

“Respectfully, we did negotiate," Mosbrucker said. "I spoke with Democratic Representative Jamila Taylor multiple times about coming to an agreement. We previously had a three-corner agreement — with the Senate Democrats and Republicans, and House Republicans. But we just didn’t get there with the House Democrats.”

Mosbrucker noted concerns including her desire to require public hearings for new drug treatment facility locations, require prosecutor consent when sentencing people to treatment programs, and letters from a variety of Washington law enforcement agencies urging her to vote no on the bill.

Mosbrucker said this bill should never have been a partisan issue, and she wants to find a statewide solution. She also said she’s willing to come back for a special session to sit down together and find something that works for everyone in the state of Washington.