The Washington state House and Senate have released their respective COVID-19 protocols for the upcoming legislative session, and they differ in key ways.
In the House, only vaccinated representatives will be allowed on the chamber floor, which means representatives who have not provided proof of vaccination will not be allowed to vote or debate in person. Those representatives must also submit three negative tests per week to be allowed to work in their on-campus offices.
State Rep. Pat Sullivan — a member of the House Executive Rules Committee, which approved the chamber’s coronavirus protocols — said those rules were put in place to ensure the upcoming short session isn’t derailed by an outbreak.
“We’re in a 60-day session, and if someone does contract COVID and we’re having to close down for any period of time, it just makes it that much harder to get our work done in that amount of time,” Sullivan said.
Of the 98 members of the state House, Sullivan estimated that 20 had not submitted proof of vaccination. Those representatives will participate in floor action virtually, just like most lawmakers did in the 105-day session that took place earlier this year.
Senators do not need to be vaccinated to be on the floor of their chamber. However, all 49 members must pass a rapid COVID test before entering the chamber on days when they’re required to be on the floor. If a test comes back positive, that Senator will be allowed to vote remotely but won’t be able to make floor speeches except in “extraordinary” circumstances.
The Senate will have testing options available on Monday, Wednesday and Friday for members who haven't submitted proof of vaccination but want to work in their on-campus offices.
Senate Human Resource Officer Allison Hellberg said how many times a Senator needs to take a test depends on how many days they plan to work on campus. For example, if a member wants to work Monday through Wednesday, they'll need to take tests on Monday and Wednesday but not Tuesday. If they want to work on Tuesday and Thursday, they would need to come in on Monday and Wednesday to be tested.
Hellberg said her office hasn't begun collecting proof of vaccination from Senators, so she could not provide a figure for how many are vaccinated.
Lawmakers in both chambers are required to wear masks at all times unless they’re alone in their office.
Senators will be able to hold meetings with the public in their offices, but can only meet with three members of the public at a time. Conversely, lawmakers in the House will not be allowed to meet with the public in their offices or in a conference room. The House says it is working to identify meeting spaces.
Because of public health protocols, just 12 members of the public are allowed on either side of the Senate galleries that overlook the floor. The House galleries can accommodate 17 people on each side, but someone hoping to enter a House gallery must show proof of vaccination or a negative test result taken in the previous 72 hours. Masks and social distancing are required in both chamber galleries.
For all other legislative facilities, members of the public can access them without being vaccinated or showing a negative test result, but will need to attest before entering that they are not showing any COVID symptoms. Masks are required at all times.
Legislative staff in both chambers are being encouraged to continue working remotely, as most have been doing since March of 2020. The Senate has testing options for unvaccinated staff who want to resume in-person work, but in the House, only vaccinated staff can work on campus.
All Senate and House committee meetings will be held remotely, as they were during this year’s session. The public will be able to continue participating remotely. All floor action and committee meetings will continue to be broadcast live and archived on TVW, the state’s public affairs network.
The 2022 legislative session is scheduled to begin Jan. 10.
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