Upcoming Town Halls, Protecting Our Coast, Standing up for Our Region, and More
Hello Folks –
February is here! That means new committee assignments, Super Bowl Sunday next weekend, and a whole lot of travel back and forth between the two Washingtons. All the while, I’m working hard for folks like you back home.
OK – on to the news.
Providing Valentines for Vets
Valentine’s Day is right around the corner and that means my “Valentines for Vets” program is back once again! We can’t ever thank our veterans enough, which is why I’m working with local students to thank veterans for their service.
Our veterans committed themselves to keeping our country safe, and their contribution to our communities continues long after leaving active duty. This Valentine’s Day let’s show them some love. I’m encouraging community members and local schools to help me express our gratitude. I’ll be hand-delivering the Valentines to veterans’ homes across our region on February 14th.
Students of all ages are welcome to participate. Those interested in doing so can drop off Valentine’s Day cards at my Bremerton office (345 6th Street, Suite 500) between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, from now through February 13, 2023. Folks are also welcome to mail them to my Bremerton office or give my office a call at (360) 373-9725 and we can figure out how to get your Valentine to a local vet!
Hearing from You at Upcoming Townhalls
For me to do my job, I need to hear from constituents all across our region. That’s why I hope folks will join me at one of my upcoming town halls this month to learn more about my ongoing work to create jobs and cut costs for working families, new federal investments I’ve secured to help our communities, and to answer your questions.
Shelton Town Hall – Tuesday, February 21st, 2023, at 5:30 p.m.
- Who: Representative Kilmer, Residents of the 6th Congressional District
- What: Town Hall
- When: Tuesday, February 21st, 2023, at 5:30 p.m. (doors will open at 5:00 p.m.)
- Where: Residents of the 6th District are invited to join Representative Derek Kilmer for a town hall in Shelton, located at the Mason PUD #3, Skookum Room, 2621 E Johns Prairie Rd, Shelton, WA 98584.
- You can RSVP here.
Tacoma Town Hall – Thursday, February 23rd, 2023, at 6:00 p.m.
- Who: Representative Kilmer, Residents of the 6th Congressional District
- What: Town Hall
- When: Thursday, February 23rd, 2023, at 6:00 p.m. (doors will open at 5:30 p.m.)
- Where: Residents of the 6th District are invited to join Representative Derek Kilmer for a town hall in Tacoma, located at the McCormick Social Hall, Centre at Norpoint, 4818 Nassau Ave NE, Tacoma, WA 98422.
- You can RSVP here.
Protecting Our Coastlines
Recently, I worked with my colleagues Representatives Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (WA-03) and Suzan DelBene (WA-01) on a legislative amendment that would protect the Pacific Northwest from offshore oil drilling.
For decades, Democrats and Republicans agreed that opening the waters of the coast of Washington up to drilling would be damaging to our environment and our economy. Doing so would threaten our fisheries, shellfish growers, tourism, and jobs in other key sectors of our economy.
The damage of an oil spill caused by underwater drilling would be devastating to local economies across the Pacific Northwest. Whether it’s tourism, outdoor recreation, fishing, or shellfish harvesting, we know just how important healthy waters are to our local economy. Offshore drilling would put that in jeopardy.
In fact, I spoke about this issue on the House floor. You can watch my remarks here.
I’ll keep fighting to protect our marine ecosystems, coastal communities, and coastal jobs.
Standing Up for Our Region
As you may have seen in the news, I was recently honored to be named by Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries to the Regional Leadership Council. The Council consists of twelve House members, each from one of the twelve regions of the Democratic Caucus. The council will be focused on working with the Biden Administration on the implementation of historic legislation that was passed over the past couple of years.
It’s important to me that our local region benefits from new laws like the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Inflation Reduction Act, the Safer Communities Act, and the Chips and Science Act.
As a member of this council, I’ll have the opportunity to play a meaningful role in helping support investments for our region that will create jobs and economic opportunity in the communities I serve.
I look forward to serving on the new Regional Leadership council, on behalf of the people of Washington’s 6th District. Let’s get to work!
Working for You
Preserving Local Maritime Industries
Great checking in with the leadership at SAFE Boats, a leading supplier of watercraft to the military and federal, state, and local law enforcement. Recently, the Navy awarded SAFE Boats a contract to build Mark VI patrol boats for Ukraine – thanks for doing business in Tacoma!
Keeping Our Ports in the Game
Washington’s ports are key to jobs and economic growth statewide. Last week, I met with leaders of the Port of Tacoma and the Seaport Alliance. We discussed how to keep the Port competitive and working for folks throughout our region. I’ll keep fighting for our local economy and way of life!
Supporting Our Education System
Thanks to the folks at the National Head Start Association for meeting with me in Washington, D.C. to update me on their work. Head Start provides critical early learning services in our communities so our kids can get a good start in school – and in life. I’ll keep pushing to support our state’s students, teachers, and families.
OK – that’s it for now, folks. As always, I’m honored to represent you.
Sincerely,
Derek Kilmer