INITIATIVES

To The Legislature

IL26-638

Protecting girls’ sports

Promotes fair competition in girls’ sports by ensuring equal opportunities and protecting athletic spaces designed for female students.

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IL26-001

Restoring parents’ rights

Restores parents’ rights in public schools by ensuring access to materials, records, and timely notifications about their children’s education.

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How do initiatives work?

For more than a century, Washington state has granted citizens the right to propose laws through the initiative process. There are two types of initiatives: initiatives to the people, which go directly on the ballot for voters to decide, and initiatives to the Legislature, which are first submitted to lawmakers in Olympia during a regular legislative session.

In 2026, two initiatives were sent by the people to the Legislature after being certified by the Secretary of State.

What is an initiative to the Legislature?

Unlike an initiative to the people, which goes directly to the ballot, an initiative to the Legislature is introduced as proposed legislation and considered alongside regular bills in the House and Senate. After receiving an initiative, the Legislature may take one of the following actions:

Adopt the initiative as law. The measure becomes law without a vote of the people and is not subject to the governor’s veto.

Reject the initiative or take no action. In either case, the initiative is placed on the November ballot for a vote of the people.

Adopt an alternative proposal. Both the Legislature’s alternative and the original initiative appear on the ballot.

Before petitions for an initiative to the Legislature may be circulated, the measure must be submitted to the Office of the Code Reviser for review of technical issues and potential conflicts with existing law. It must then receive a ballot title and summary from the Office of the Attorney General.

Once a ballot title and summary are issued, proponents must print petition sheets at their own expense and begin collecting signatures. If a sufficient number of valid signatures is gathered, the petitions are submitted to the Secretary of State for verification and certification.

Initiatives to the Legislature are relatively uncommon. While Washington law allows this process, most initiatives are submitted directly to the people. Legislative initiatives are used less frequently because they involve an additional step and depend on legislative action before reaching voters. Having said that, they may be growing in popularity since 2024, when Washingtonians sent six initiatives to the Legislature. This could indicate growing dissatisfaction with recent legislative outcomes.

If voters approve an initiative to the Legislature on the ballot, the measure becomes law just like any other statute passed by the people — and the governor cannot veto it.

The Legislature cannot amend or repeal it for two years unless a two-thirds supermajority in both the House and Senate vote to do so. After that two-year period, the Legislature may amend or repeal the law by a simple majority.

At a Jan. 9 news conference, Democrat leaders told the press they were not likely to hold hearings on the two initiatives being sent to the Legislature in 2026. “I am certain that we will not be passing either of those initiatives, and I think it’s unlikely that we’ll hear them,” Senate Majority Leader Jamie Pedersen told the media.

On Jan. 28, House Republicans introduced a motion seeking public hearings for both of the initiatives in the House Education Committee to which they were being assigned. The motion failed, with House Democrats unanimously voting against holding the hearings.

On Feb. 3, House Republicans hosted a Listening Session in the John L. O’Brien Building on the two initiatives. You can watch the event here.