“We need leaders who prioritize public health and healthcare that protects our families and community. I’m proud to have led efforts to reduce costs and help ensure our community has access to essential healthcare services.” –Dave Paul

Dave is a bipartisan leader who is fighting to lower healthcare costs for seniors and working families. Working across the aisle, Dave supported:

· Lowering the cost of prescription drugs for our seniors and families (House Bill 1224 and Senate Bill 6088)

· Reducing the cost of insulin, a life-saving drug needed by so many in our community (House Bill 2662)

· Ending surprise emergency room medical billing (House Bill 1688)

· Funding critical mental health and substance recovery services across our region

Dave is leading efforts to improve youth mental health outcomes in our community. Dave’s work has been instrumental in helping young people and coordinating services across healthcare providers, public health agencies, K12 schools, and nonprofit organizations.

After listening to doctors and nursing home experts, Dave Paul fought to increase Medicaid rates to help rural healthcare providers and nursing homes in our District. Dave’s work has helped keep homes open in our community, ensuring seniors get the care they need.

Dave supports women’s reproductive rights, access to family planning, and the right to privacy. He is pro-choice and is endorsed by Planned Parenthood.

“Our Veterans, Active Duty Service Members, and their Spouses are incredibly talented and contribute so much to our community. I’m proud to have led the expansion of services for veterans, active-duty personnel, reservists, and their families at Skagit Valley College. In the State Legislature, it’s been an honor to collaborate with Democrats and Republicans to lead efforts to increase support for veterans and military families.”  -Dave Paul

At Skagit Valley College, Dave Paul led the expansion of services for veterans, including the creation of the Veteran Student Center, the hiring of Vet Corps staffers, and the formation of a student Veterans Club.

In Olympia, Dave is a leader in working across the aisle to increase support for veterans, active duty servicemembers, reservists, and their families by increasing access to education opportunities, affordable housing, and healthcare.

After meeting with veterans and hearing their concerns, Dave sponsored bipartisan legislation to help remove hurdles for military families, including:

· Granting veterans and their children in-state tuition as they transition from military service to civilian life (House Bill 2543 passed unanimously in 2020)

· Ensuring veterans who earned a campaign badge or campaign medal receive full retirement benefits from the state of Washington (House Bill 2544 passed unanimously in 2020)

Dave understands that our state must do more to support the mental health and wellbeing of veterans. It’s a tragic fact that more veterans die by suicide than in their military service and combat. One important step is the passage of HB 1181 in 2022. This bill will help prevent suicide among Washington’s veterans and military service members by providing better resources to community organizations and health care providers to develop suicide prevention grant programs.

Dave is also collaborating with lawmakers and educators to create stronger educational pathways for reservists and veterans, including the expansion the Washington National Guard Post-Secondary Grant to make college and professional training more affordable.

Looking ahead to the next legislative session, Dave will continue his bipartisan work to ensure expeditionary medal recipients receive the public employee retirement benefits they have earned at the national level. In 2022, he sponsored HB 1804, which passed the House unanimously but died in the Senate. He’s already working with Democratic and Republican leaders to reintroduce the bill in 2023—and get our veterans the support they deserve.

“Dave Paul has provided needed leadership for our communities. He cuts through party lines to do what’s best for the people he serves. His work has been essential for public safety!” Kevin Dresker, Oak Harbor Police Chief*

Everyone deserves to feel safe in our community, and Dave is working closely with first responders, local elected officials, and community members to improve public safety.

Our local public safety agencies are understaffed, a problem that is made worse as many police officers, deputies, and fire fighters near retirement. Dave is a leading voice for expanding the Basic Law Enforcement Acadamy. He also supports adding training sites in Snohomish and Skagit counties, which will greatly help local agencies with the recruitment of new police officers.

Dave supports increasing pay for first responders so that they can earn a living wage. In 2022, he cosponsored HB 1785 to ensure Washington State Troopers receive a competitive wage for their dangerous work.

Dave believes that local and state agencies must continue to invest in public safety. Law enforcement agencies should have embedded mental health counselors and social workers to partner with officers when assisting individuals in crisis.

Dave is a strong advocate for modernizing our 911 systems. This is crucial for rural communities like the 10th District. He cosponsored HB 1703, which will assist counties in developing regional approaches to handling 911 emergency calls. This legislation also will help coordinate 911 calls with the new 988 behavioral health emergency system that is being launched this summer. Dave is a leader in our state’s work to strengthen training and support for 911 operators.

Dave also secured the state funding needed to upgrade Skagit County’s 911 emergency communications system, which improves the safety of both the public and law enforcement officials.

Dave has been endorsed by:

· Don McDermott, Skagit County Sheriff

· Kevin Dresker, Oak Harbor Police Chief*

· Washington State Patrol Troopers Association

· International Association of Firefighters Local 66

Dave is proud to prioritize your safety in Olympia. He will continue to commit to the safety of our community in the next session.

*Titles are for identification purposes only and do not imply endorsement.

“The rising costs of gas, food, and housing are having a major impact on working families, residents, and seniors in our community, and our state must do a better job addressing affordability. I’m looking forward to getting back to Olympia to advocate for tax cuts, reduce the cost of college education, and supporting small businesses.”  -Dave Paul

While the economy has improved as a whole—and unemployment is low—many in our community are still struggling to make ends meet. Dave has worked to support small businesses, help local families, and strengthen our communities and local economy. In 2020, he led efforts to stop a proposal from the Department of Licensing to raise business fees. 

Dave is a leader in advocating for tax relief. In 2022, Dave sponsored HB 2018 to create a holiday from sales tax over the Labor Day weekend. Unfortunately, though HB 2018 passed the House, it died in the Senate. Dave will be bringing this bill back in 2023 and will fight for its passage to help working families. 

Dave also supported efforts in 2022 to bring tax relief to many small businesses by permanently increasing the B&O small business tax credit and filing threshold (SB 5980).  

Looking ahead to the 2023 session, Dave is strongly advocating for property tax relief for Washington homeowners. He is already working with legislative leaders on this important policy to make home ownership more affordable.