The Times/News presents a summary of action on bills by Highline-area lawmakers in the Washington Legislature.

For complete information, go to www.WashingtonVotes.com - a free, non-partisan Website that is the source for this report.

Highline is represented by:

District 11-Sen. Margarita Prentice; Rep Zack Hudgins; Rep. Bob Hasegawa.

District 33-Sen. Karen Keiser; Rep. Shay Schual-Berke; Rep. Dave Upthegrove.

District 34-Sen. Joe McDermott; Rep. Eileen Cody; Rep. Sharon Nelson.

IN THE SENATE E2SSB 5278 - Removes the ban on the use of public funds for local elections. The legislative authority of any county, city, town, or district is authorized to establish a program allowing the use of public funds to finance campaigns for elective offices of its governments through adoption of an ordinance or resolution. The ordinance or resolution must be submitted to and approved by a vote of the people at the next general election in the form of a referendum for those jurisdictions that have referendum power, and in the form of an advisory ballot for those jurisdictions without referendum power. A county, city, town, or district that establishes a program to publicly finance local office political campaigns may only use funds derived from local sources to fund the program.

Passed 29-20. Prentice, Keiser, McDermott voted yes. The bill is now in the House for further consideration.

ESB 5751 - Requires the State Liquor Control Board to establish a pilot program to allow beer and wine tasting at licensed grocery stores. The pilot program shall consist of 30 locations equally allocated between independently owned grocery stores and national chain grocery stores. The State Liquor Control Board is responsible for adopting rules and procedures for the administration of the events, including choosing locations, timing, and other qualification requirements for participation. Also included is a requirement that a grocery store must have food available at tasting events.

Passed 32-15. Prentice, Keiser, McDermott voted yes. The bill is now in the House for further consideration.

SSB 6309 -Requires the Department of Ecology to develop and implement a greenhouse gas emissions disclosure labeling program for new passenger cars, light duty trucks, and medium duty passenger vehicles offered for sale beginning with the 2010 model year. Disclosure labels should use an index or rating system that compares the vehicle's greenhouse gas emission levels with the average greenhouse gas emissions levels of all vehicles offered for sale in the same model year. In addition, the index or rating system should identify the vehicle model with the lowest greenhouse gas emission levels for the model year. Automobile manufacturers may apply to Ecology for approval of an alternative to the disclosure labeling requirement, provided the alternative is as effective as the disclosure label required by Ecology.

Passed 32-15. Prentice, Keiser, McDermott voted yes. The bill is now in the House for further consideration.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

SHB 2567 - The Open Public Meetings Act requires that all meetings of the governing body of a public agency must be open and public for anyone to attend. A "meeting" is defined as meetings where the transaction of official business, including, but not limited to, public testimony, deliberations, discussions, considerations, reviews, evaluations, and final actions takes place. A member of a governing body that is present where action is taken in violation of the statutory requirements of the Open Public Meetings Act, and has knowledge that the meeting was in violation, is subject to a civil penalty. This bill increases the civil penalty from $100 to $250 - $1,000.

Passed 77-19. Hasegawa, Hudgins, Schual-Berke, Upthegrove, Cody, Nelson voted yes. The bill is now in the Senate for further consideration.

House Bill 1031 - Makes it class C felony for a person that intentionally scan another person's identification device remotely, without that person's prior knowledge and prior consent, for the purpose of fraud, identity theft, or for any other illegal purpose. Remote identification devices include, but are not limited to, Radio Frequency Identification, a tagging and tracking technology that uses tiny electronic devices equipped with antennae, which can transmit identifying information to a remote reader and facial recognition technology, a type of technology that attaches numerical values to a person's different facial features and creates a unique faceprint. Provides exceptions to the prohibition on scanning identification devices under medical or law enforcement emergencies. Also restricts the collection and retention of certain types of data by a governmental or business entity, unless the person associated with the data consents.

Passed 69-28. Hasegawa, Hudgins, Schual-Berke, Upthegrove, Cody, Nelson voted yes. The bill is now in the Senate for further consideration.