http://www.StandUpFederalWay.com/

Stand Up Federal Way, Federal Way, Federal Way, WA (2026)

09/01/2026

VOTERS DESERVE FACTS, NOT LABELS

Election season is here, and so is the rhetoric.

Words like “unhinged,” “dangerous,” “extreme,” and “fake,” and accusations of “cheating the system to hold on to power” may make for strong campaign messaging.

But labels aren't a record.

If someone is accused of cheating the system, show the evidence. Who cheated? How? What system was manipulated? What power were they trying to hold onto?

That's a particularly important question when the party being accused has not been the dominant governing party in Washington for years.

Meanwhile, those who have exercised governing power have a record voters can examine.

What policies did they pass? What were the results? When policies weren't working, what did it take to get them changed?

Stand-Up Federal Way has endorsed candidates. Our endorsements reflect their values and advocacy and our examination of the records and priorities of those currently representing us. We believe it's time for change.

But don't take our word for it.

Read our voter guide. Examine the record. Make your own decision.

Labels don't tell the story. Records do.

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08/31/2026

Bad Bill of The Day

TWO VISIONS FOR FEDERAL WAY

Federal Way had a vision for its future. What did our state lawmakers prioritize?

For decades, Federal Way residents have wanted something our city has never really had:
A true downtown.

A place to live, work, shop and gather — bringing businesses, jobs and private investment while strengthening our tax base.

Then came a huge opportunity:
Light rail was coming downtown.

In February 2022, Federal Way launched Town Center master-development planning around city-owned downtown property and the future Sound Transit station.

The city was asking:
How do we finally build the downtown residents have wanted for decades?

At the same time, Olympia was reshaping Washington's response to drug possession and addiction.

2021 — WASHINGTON CHANGED DRUG POLICY

After the state Supreme Court struck down Washington's felony drug-possession law because it didn't require knowing possession, lawmakers passed SB 5476.

Rather than simply adding that requirement, lawmakers reduced possession from a felony to a misdemeanor and shifted the response toward treatment, referrals and diversion.

Our 30th District lawmakers voted:
Claire Wilson — YES
Jesse Johnson — YES
Jamila Taylor — YES

Taylor described the bill as a “down payment on rebuilding communities.”

But the new system had an accountability problem.
TWO REFERRALS — NO STATEWIDE TRACKING
The law required police to offer referrals for services on at least the first two encounters before referring the case for prosecution.

Federal Way Police Chief Andy Hwang warned that there was no statewide system for police to track those referrals.

Someone could receive two referrals elsewhere and then receive additional referrals in Federal Way because officers couldn't necessarily see the earlier ones.
Hwang said the approach provided:
“little accountability for the offender.”

Meanwhile, Federal Way residents were seeing increasingly visible open-air drug activity, often intertwined with theft, property crime, trespassing and disorder.

Residents were also asking whether services were being distributed fairly. When the community asked King County Public Health to compare hypodermic-needle distribution in South King County with East King County, Public Health said it didn't have the comparative data.

And local first responders described another problem: when someone was finally ready for intensive treatment, a treatment bed wasn't necessarily available.

Treatment when people are ready. Accountability when crimes continue. Fair regional distribution.

2022 — WILSON PUSHES TO EXPEDITE A MOBILE METHADONE UNIT IN FEDERAL WAY

Just weeks after Federal Way launched its downtown planning effort, Sen. Claire Wilson was working with city officials to help Acadia Healthcare deploy a state-supported mobile opioid-treatment unit in Federal Way.

Wilson wrote that Acadia had a unit “ready to deploy” to provide “immediate care” and emphasized “low barrier access.”

Acadia proposed operating approximately four hours a day, six days a week and sought a more streamlined permitting approach.

During the email discussion, the mammography van operating at The Commons in Federal Way's downtown was raised as a comparison: if that mobile medical service could operate there, why couldn't the mobile opioid-treatment service be handled similarly?

Wilson pressed for speed:
“This is a need that we could be addressing right now.”
“ASAP.”
“more expeditiously.”

At virtually the same time, Federal Way was trying to use light rail and its downtown property to build the economic center residents had wanted for decades.

2023 — LAWMAKERS REVISITED THE BALANCE

An early Senate version of SB 5536 kept treatment options but required jail sanctions in certain circumstances when someone convicted of possession refused treatment, abandoned treatment or repeatedly failed to comply.

Claire Wilson voted NO.

Days later, Wilson described the legislation's goal as:
“emphasizing care over criminalization.”

The final compromise kept treatment and diversion, made knowing possession and public drug use gross misdemeanors, removed the mandatory minimum jail provisions and eliminated the original two-referral requirement.

This time:
Claire Wilson — YES
Kristine Reeves — YES
Jamila Taylor — YES

SO HERE'S THE QUESTION

Our lawmakers have supported some important Federal Way infrastructure projects. Those investments should be acknowledged.

But when Sen. Wilson believed another treatment resource was urgently needed in Federal Way, her own emails show how personally and persistently she pushed:

“immediate care.” “right now.” “ASAP.” “more expeditiously.”

A state lawmaker can't build our downtown or force businesses to come here.

But lawmakers can fight for state money, push state agencies, cut through red tape and make Federal Way's priorities a priority in Olympia. Most importantly our lawmakers should put policies in place AFTER infrastructure has been set up, and in such a way that it creates a downtown that facilitates investment.

Federal Way residents have spent decades asking for:
A downtown. Businesses. Jobs. Private investment. Public safety. A stronger tax base.

So the question is:

Have our lawmakers shown that same sustained urgency in helping Federal Way build the economic future residents have been asking for?

Federal Way needs a safety net and an economic engine. We deserve both.

08/29/2026

BAD BILL OF THE DAY: HB 2266

FEDERAL WAY FOLLOWED THE RULES. THEN OLYMPIA CHANGED THEM.

First, what is STEP housing?

Shelters
Transitional housing
Emergency housing
Permanent supportive housing

Olympia increasingly groups these very different types of housing under one friendly-sounding acronym.

When you hear “STEP,” it's worth asking:
Which one?

2021 — OLYMPIA SETS THE RULES

Washington passed HB 1220, requiring cities like Federal Way to accommodate these housing types.

But the law also expressly allowed cities to create reasonable spacing, occupancy and intensity rules to protect public health and safety.

At the same time, Federal Way was facing a real local example.

King County was proposing to purchase the Extended Stay hotel in Federal Way through its Health Through Housing program.

At a packed July 2021 community meeting, residents raised concerns about drugs, crime, safety, operating rules and impacts on surrounding businesses and neighborhoods.

These weren't hypothetical questions. Residents were asking what would happen at a specific property in their community.

Sen. Claire Wilson later questioned why residents reacted differently to the King County proposal than they had to FUSION, asking whether it was because “a white person is running the organization.”

But there was an important difference:
FUSION had guardrails.

Its family shelter prohibited drugs, alcohol and weapons and had screening and expectations for residents.
Those rules protected neighbors — but they also helped protect the vulnerable families and children living inside.

The community's question was straightforward:
What are the rules, and what happens when something goes wrong?

2021–2024 — FEDERAL WAY DOES THE WORK

Federal Way followed HB 1220.

The city spent years developing zoning, spacing, transit-access, licensing and operating safeguards.

Residents submitted extensive questions. Staff researched them. The Planning Commission and City Council worked through concerns involving drugs and overdoses, treatment, police and fire impacts, criminal histories, behavioral-health crises, schools, concentration, security and operator accountability.

Federal Way was implementing the mandate using the local authority Olympia had provided.

ANOTHER COMPLICATION — THE RED LION

King County also purchased Federal Way's former Red Lion for homelessness housing.

Methamphetamine contamination was discovered and required extensive remediation, delaying its use.

Importantly, the contamination existed before the new homelessness program opened and should not be blamed on future residents.

But the delay mattered. The Federal Way Day Center continued serving people during the day without sufficient nearby overnight shelter.

2023 — THE SPACING RULE GETS TESTED

Catholic Community Services proposed converting the Stevenson Motel into an overnight emergency shelter near its existing Federal Way Day Center.

CCS saw having the facilities close together as an advantage.

Nearby businesses saw it differently. They were already concerned about drugs, disorder and impacts around the Day Center and feared another nearby facility could turn a daytime problem into a day-and-night problem.

Federal Way had a 1,000-foot spacing requirement adopted under the authority Olympia provided.

Stevenson was approximately 921 feet away — 79 feet too close.

Federal Way denied the application.

The city was using the authority Olympia had given it in the bill.

2024–2025 — LOCAL ACCOUNTABILITY

The Day Center itself later faced neighborhood and City Council concerns.

Federal Way didn't shut it down.

Instead, the City Council temporarily withheld a recommended $50,000 grant while the operator addressed problems and licensing/code compliance.

Improvements followed.

In May 2025, the Council unanimously restored the funding.

That's local accountability: support the service while still expecting problems to be fixed.

2026 — OLYMPIA CHANGES THE RULES

Then came HB 2266.

Olympia deleted the broad authority it had given cities in HB 1220 to impose reasonable occupancy, spacing and intensity-of-use requirements to protect public health and safety.

HB 2266 also says conflicting local regulations are:
“superseded, preempted, and invalidated.”

Federal Way's current 30th District lawmakers supported the change:

Rep. Jamila Taylor — HB 2266 sponsor + YES
Rep. Kristine Reeves — HB 2266 sponsor + YES
Sen. Claire Wilson — Senate companion sponsor + YES

Taylor and Wilson had also voted for HB 1220 in 2021.
Federal Way followed Olympia's rules.

The City of Federal Way spent years listening to residents and developing safeguards under authority Olympia expressly provided.

Then Olympia concluded that local regulatory barriers were constraining this housing.

So Olympia changed the rules.

That's the local-control problem with HB 2266.

08/28/2026

🚨 BAD POLICY OF THE DAY

WHAT HAPPENS ON DAY 11?

Washington has worked for years to reduce suspensions, restraint and isolation of young students.

The goal makes sense: keep struggling children in school and use safer alternatives whenever possible.

But there's another question:

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE DANGEROUS BEHAVIOR DOESN'T STOP?

For students in K–4, Washington allows only 10 cumulative days of short-term or in-school suspension per academic term.

After that, schools can't simply keep suspending a student for additional behavior.

Schools can use emergency removal when a student poses an immediate and continuing danger.

But that's a temporary emergency safety measure — not an 11th suspension day or a long-term solution.

So what happens when a student repeatedly:
Hits. Kicks. Bites. Threatens. Injures others.
Day after day?

AND HERE'S THE DATA PROBLEM.

Washington tracks suspensions.
It separately tracks restraint and isolation.

But those numbers tell us what the school did in response — not necessarily how many violent incidents actually occurred.

Student hits a staff member → suspended
➡️ Creates a discipline record.

Student hits a staff member → de-escalated, no suspension or restraint
➡️ That assault does not automatically create the same statewide discipline/restraint record.

So when we hear:
📉 Suspensions are down.
📉 Restraint is down.
📉 Isolation is down.

There's another question we should be asking:

ARE ASSAULTS AND INJURIES DOWN TOO?

We don't get that answer simply by looking at discipline rates.

And there's another number public reporting doesn't readily show:

HOW MANY OF THESE ARE REPEAT CASES?

100 suspensions involving 100 students is one problem.

100 suspensions concentrated among 20 repeatedly involved students is a very different problem.

Yet the headline numbers can obscure that distinction.

LAWMAKERS HAD A CHANCE TO IMPROVE SCHOOL-SAFETY DATA.

In 2025, HB 1637 proposed a public dashboard reporting school-safety incidents including teacher assaults, fighting, physical aggression and weapons.

THE BILL NEVER EVEN RECEIVED A HEARING.

A narrower school-safety dashboard proposal introduced in 2023 didn't receive a hearing either.

30th District Rep. Kristine Reeves was a member of House Education when HB 1637 was referred there.

She didn't vote against it — there was never a hearing or vote.

So here's a fair question:

DOES REP. REEVES SUPPORT PUBLIC REPORTING OF ACTUAL SCHOOL-SAFETY INCIDENTS?

We should absolutely care about keeping struggling children connected to school.

But we should also be able to answer two very basic questions:

DID THE DISCIPLINE GO DOWN?

OR DID THE DANGEROUS BEHAVIOR GO DOWN TOO?

Children in crisis deserve help.

Teachers, paraeducators, administrators and other students deserve safety too.

WHAT HAPPENS ON DAY 11 — AND ARE WE EVEN COUNTING IT?

08/25/2026

🚨 BAD BILL OF THE DAY — HB 1479 / SB 5559

WHEN DE-ESCALATION FAILS — THEN WHAT?

Some students have severe behavioral challenges:
Hitting. Kicking. Biting. Destroying classrooms. Eloping from supervision.

They deserve support.

BUT EVERYONE DESERVES TO BE SAFE.

In 2023, Washington Superintendent Chris Reykdal asked lawmakers to dramatically change how schools could respond to students in crisis.

Sen. Claire Wilson sponsored the Senate version.
Supporters pointed to troubling practices like locked closets and restraint devices such as pepper spray.

Those concerns were legitimate.

BUT THE ORIGINAL BILL WENT MUCH FURTHER.

It would have prohibited isolation — broadly defined to include staff using their body or an object to block a student from leaving a room.

Physical restraint was reserved for an:
“IMMINENT LIKELIHOOD OF SERIOUS HARM.”

In plain English: the threat of physical harm had to be close at hand — not distant or remote.

HOW CLOSE TO CRISIS SHOULD STAFF HAVE TO GET BEFORE THEY CAN INTERVENE?

🚪 Student repeatedly elopes?
Blocking the doorway could qualify as prohibited isolation.

👊 Student escalating toward violence?
Physical restraint required the imminent-harm threshold.

🪑 Student destroying the classroom?
Property destruction alone wasn't included in the proposed serious-harm definition.

Yet a room clear was allowed — remove everyone else from the classroom.

CLEAR THE CLASSROOM — BUT DON'T BLOCK THE DOOR?

WHAT HAPPENED?

Lawmakers substantially rewrote the bill.

Claire Wilson sponsored the original Senate proposal, but it never reached a Senate floor vote.

Kristine Reeves and Jamila Taylor did NOT vote on Reykdal's original version. Both later voted YES on substantially revised House versions.

HB 1479 ultimately died in the Senate.

BUT THE IDEA DIDN'T DIE.

The state continued funding efforts to reduce restraint and eliminate isolation.

Then in 2026, lawmakers passed a new bill — HB 1795 — further regulating restraint and isolation in Washington schools.

Schools can still use restraint or isolation under specified emergency conditions involving an imminent likelihood of serious harm, with additional restrictions.

The new law also begins phasing in tighter limits on isolation, particularly for younger students.

And here's the measurement problem:

A student can hit, kick, bite or injure someone and ultimately be de-escalated without restraint or isolation.

That doesn't automatically become a restraint/isolation report.

So:
LESS RESTRAINT DOESN'T AUTOMATICALLY MEAN LESS VIOLENCE.

We should be asking:
Did violence decrease?
Did staff injuries decrease?
Did student injuries decrease?

Protecting students from unnecessary restraint matters.

BUT SO DOES PROTECTING EVERYONE WHEN DE-ESCALATION FAILS.

HOW CLOSE TO CRISIS SHOULD STAFF HAVE TO GET BEFORE THEY CAN INTERVENE?

08/23/2026

🚨 BAD BILL OF THE DAY — PART 2

WHAT DID THREE-STRIKES RESENTENCING ACTUALLY LOOK LIKE?

In Part 1:

2019: Robbery 2 removed from Three Strikes

2021: Lawmakers made the change retroactive

So what happened in actual cases?

These examples come from published Washington appellate court records.

THIRD STRIKE:
ATTEMPTED 1ST-DEGREE KIDNAPPING WITH A FIREARM

Earlier strikes included: Robbery 2

After Robbery 2 stopped counting:

LIFE WITHOUT PAROLE
REDUCED TO 13¼ YEARS
————————————
THIRD STRIKE:
COMMERCIAL SEXUAL ABUSE OF A MINOR

Earlier strikes: Robbery 1 and Robbery 2
Also convicted of 3rd-degree r**e of a child.

After Robbery 2 stopped counting:

LIFE WITHOUT PAROLE
REDUCED TO 25 YEARS
————————————
THIRD STRIKE:
VEHICULAR HOMICIDE

Also convicted of felony hit-and-run after an intoxicated high-speed crash killed a passenger.
Earlier strikes included: Robbery 2

After Robbery 2 stopped counting:

LIFE WITHOUT PAROLE
REDUCED TO ABOUT 33 YEARS
————————————
THIRD STRIKE:
1ST-DEGREE MURDER

Also convicted of 1st-degree arson.
Earlier strikes included: Robbery 2

After Robbery 2 stopped counting:

LIFE WITHOUT PAROLE
REDUCED TO ABOUT 45 YEARS
————————————
IMPORTANT:

The crimes above WERE NOT erased.

What changed was an earlier Robbery 2 strike.

Once lawmakers stopped counting Robbery 2 and made that change retroactive, these offenders no longer had the three qualifying strikes that had resulted in life without parole.

That triggered resentencing.

BUT WHAT DID “ROBBERY 2” REALLY MEAN?

The Washington Association of Sheriffs & Police Chiefs (WASPC) examined 24 cases where Robbery 2 was the third strike.

WASPC found that 17 of 24 — about 70% — involved a gun, another deadly weapon, or a threat to use one.

And some Robbery 2 convictions began as more serious charges before plea deals.

FOR EXAMPLE:

ROBBERY 1 REDUCED TO ROBBERY 2
Home invasion involving a knife held to a victim’s throat.

ROBBERY 1 CHARGES REDUCED TO ROBBERY 2 CONVICTIONS
In one series of business robberies, 6 Robbery 1 charges resulted in 4 Robbery 2 convictions. The underlying incidents involved gun claims and threats to kill.

That’s why “Robbery 2” on paper doesn’t always tell the whole story.

THE QUESTION WE STILL CAN’T ANSWER:

WHAT HAPPENED AFTER RELEASE?

SB 5164 did not require a specific public report tracking the rearrests, reconvictions or recidivism of people released under the law.

If lawmakers retroactively change Three-Strikes sentences, shouldn’t Washingtonians also be able to see the public-safety results?

Sources: Published Washington appellate court decisions • Washington State Legislature • Washington Association of Sheriffs & Police Chiefs

08/22/2026

We hope you’ll take the time to learn more about our endorsed candidates. They share our values and our commitment to a safer, more affordable, and accountable Washington. We believe their leadership will give Federal Way the opportunity to thrive. More importantly we hope you'll take the time to vote in this important upcoming election in November.

08/22/2026

🚨 BAD BILL OF THE DAY

THREE STRIKES — WEAKENED TWICE

Washington’s Three Strikes law was designed to give repeat serious offenders life without parole after three qualifying offenses.

2019 — SB 5288
ROBBERY 2 REMOVED AS A STRIKE

Lawmakers removed second-degree robbery from the Three Strikes list.

Robbery 2 still involves taking property using force or threats of force.

30th District Votes

• Sen. Claire Wilson — YES
• Rep. Kristine Reeves — YES
• Jamila Taylor — Not in office

2021 — SB 5164
THEN THEY MADE IT RETROACTIVE

People already serving Three-Strikes life sentences had to be resentenced if Robbery 2 had been one of the strikes used to give them that sentence.

Some received shorter sentences.
Some were released.
And these weren't all minor criminal histories.

Published Washington court cases include offenders whose records involved:
MURDER • R**E • KIDNAPPING • ARSON • ASSAULT • CHILD SEXUAL EXPLOITATION

30th District Votes

• Sen. Claire Wilson — YES + COSPONSOR
• Kristine Reeves — Not in office
• Rep. Jamila Taylor — YES

THERE’S ANOTHER CATCH: PLEA DEALS

Some convictions recorded as Robbery 2 had actually started as the more serious Robbery 1 charge before being reduced through plea agreements.

So “Robbery 2” on paper didn't always tell the whole story.

AND WHO TRACKED WHAT HAPPENED AFTER RELEASE?

SB 5164 did not require a specific public report tracking the rearrests, reconvictions or recidivism of people released under the law.

Change the sentences.
Release some offenders.
But don't require a public report on what happened next?

Washingtonians deserve to know the results.

➡️ NEXT: What these resentencings looked like in actual Washington cases.

Sources: Washington State Legislature • Washington appellate court records • Washington Department of Corrections

08/21/2026

BAD BILL OF THE DAY — SB 5644 / HB 1769

THE “HIDE THE CRIME RECORDS” BILL

HIDE THE RECORDS. REMOVE THE OVERSIGHT.

Sen. Claire Wilson cosponsored SB 5644.

Rep. Kristine Reeves cosponsored companion HB 1769.

The bills proposed making ALL records relating to juvenile offenses CONFIDENTIAL — hidden from public view — including DIVERSION records.

This wasn't simply about redacting a juvenile's name or sealing a record later.

It would have changed the underlying rule from juvenile offender court files being PUBLIC UNLESS SEALED to juvenile-offense records ALL being CONFIDENTIAL and hidden from the public, researchers, journalists and watchdogs.

WHY THAT MATTERS

At the same time, King County was:
→ Diverting juvenile cases away from traditional prosecution
→ Expanding Restorative Community Pathways
→ Pushing to close its secure juvenile detention facility
→ Had no systemic way to track repeat offenders

Cases moved out of traditional court.
Records hidden from public view.
Independent oversight reduced.

Police, prosecutors, victims and other authorized parties could still receive information in specified circumstances.

BUT THE GENERAL PUBLIC LOST ITS RIGHT TO SEE THE RECORDS.

Our own public-records work examining how juvenile cases were being handled could have been largely shut down.

And we later learned why oversight mattered: Felony referrals to Restorative Community Pathways were paused, and King County ultimately reversed course and voted to maintain secure juvenile detention.

The bills also created a civil cause of action for improper sharing of sealed or destroyed records, with potential damages of $100 per day or actual damages, plus attorney fees and costs.

AND WHAT WAS THE PUBLIC TOLD?

A Federal Way Mirror opinion column defending the legislation largely framed it as protecting records after proceedings were completed and records were sealed.
But the actual bills went further: ALL juvenile-offense records — including diversion records — would be confidential.

Sen. Wilson's official legislative website later highlighted that column.

Neither bill advanced in 2023.
BOTH CAME BACK IN 2024.
Failed bills can come back.

30th District:
Claire Wilson — SB 5644 COSPONSOR
Kristine Reeves — HB 1769 COSPONSOR
Jamila Taylor — NOT a sponsor or cosponsor; no floor vote occurred.

Rehabilitation matters.

BUT YOU CAN'T HOLD GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABLE IF YOU CAN'T SEE WHAT IT'S DOING.

08/20/2026

🚨 BAD BILL OF THE DAY: HB 1324

LAWMAKERS REDUCED CONSEQUENCES FOR REPEAT OFFENDERS

This one matters for victims and public safety.

Washington has spent years moving more juvenile cases away from prosecution and toward diversion and rehabilitation.

Then, in 2023, lawmakers passed HB 1324.

⚖️ WHAT CHANGED?

BEFORE: If someone committed offenses as a juvenile and later committed a felony as an adult, their juvenile record could increase their adult sentence.

NOW: Most juvenile offenses no longer increase that sentence.
The exceptions are first- and second-degree murder and Class A felony s*x offenses.

⚠️ ADDITIONAL KEY FACT

The offense on a juvenile's record may already be less serious than the original charge because of a plea deal.

So a case can go through multiple filters:
Diversion for some cases → reduced charges in some others → then HB 1324 generally prevents most remaining juvenile adjudications from increasing the sentence for a later adult felony.

WHY IS THAT SO SERIOUS?

Second chances make sense when they help someone change.

But what happens when the criminal behavior continues into adulthood?

HB 1324 means most of that person's juvenile record no longer increases the standard sentencing range for the new adult felony.

That's why we believe this law went too far.

A pattern of repeat criminal behavior matters. Victims matter. Public safety matters.

🗳️ 30TH DISTRICT — HB 1324

Rep. Kristine Reeves — YES
Rep. Jamila Taylor — YES
Sen. Claire Wilson — YES

WHEN THE SYSTEM IS ALREADY LENIENT WITH JUVENILE OFFENDERS, SECOND CHANCES SHOULDN'T MEAN GOING SOFT ON THOSE WHO CONTINUE COMMITTING CRIMES AS ADULTS.

Stand Up Federal Way

09/01/2026

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