The bill would require that a health plan issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2015 that provides coverage for maternity care must also provide substantially equivalent coverage for elective abortions. However, no individual health care provider, religiously sponsored health carrier, or health care facility may be required by law or contract to provide for abortion services if they object to so doing for reason of conscience or religion. The bill also provides that no individual or organization may be required to purchase abortion coverage if they object to doing so for reason of conscience or religion. The bill was passed to the Senate Health Care Committee.
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| 31 |
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Rep. Cathy Dahlquist, (Enumclaw) | (R) | N |
| 31 |
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Rep. Christopher Hurst, (Enumclaw) | (D) | N |
Senate Joint Resolution 8213 proposed to amend the state constitution to require a two-thirds majority vote of both the House of Representatives and the Senate to raise taxes. “Raising taxes” means any action or combination of actions by the Legislature that increases state tax revenue deposited in any fund, budget, or account, regardless of whether the revenues are deposited into the general fund. Voters in Washington have enacted or affirmed the two-thirds vote requirement for tax increases five times during the past 20 years, including Initiative 1185 in 2012. The State Supreme Court last year overturned the requirement, but the justices were clear that they were not ruling on the wisdom of the policy itself. Instead they said that ultimately the people should decide. The constitutional amendment proposed by SJR 8213 would have accomplished this.
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| 31 |
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Sen. Pam Roach (Auburn) | (R) | Y |
