Greetings from Olympia!
 
Since our last Wyman’s Wire, we conducted one special election and began ramping up for another. Plus, we have a new Washington State Librarian, opened a new Archives exhibit, and are making progress in our efforts to keep the federal National Archives facility in Seattle.
 
We’re about halfway through this year’s legislative session. The House of Origin cutoff is March 9. This means that all bills (except those necessary to implement the budget) will have to be voted out of their original chamber — House or Senate — in order to advance further this session. Those that survive the cutoff move to the opposite chamber for consideration.
 
HB 1265, the “unaffiliated option” bill introduced by Rep. Skyler Rude (R-Walla Walla), did not receive a hearing and is unlikely to progress this session. It will, however, remain up for discussion during the next session. We continue to work closely with the Legislature to ensure our elections are accessible, reliable, fair, and secure for all Washingtonians.
 
I appreciate your time and interest in our office. Please forward this message to anyone you believe might like to read it and encourage them to subscribe. You can also follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, or visit our website, sos.wa.gov, to keep abreast of important updates and information.
 
Thank you for the privilege of serving as your Secretary of State.
 
Sincerely,

About 40% of the nearly 760,000 eligible voters in 27 counties participated in the Feb. 9 Special Election. By comparison, 35.81% of the 2.1 million voters in 38 counties took part in the February 2020 Special Election.
 
Election officials in all the participating counties and districts once again conducted a reliable, safe, and secure election Washingtonians can be proud of.
 
Next up is the April 27 Special Election. Be sure to check our Elections page for more information, and important dates and deadlines.

On Feb. 12 a federal judge granted a preliminary injunction on expediting the sale and closure of Seattle’s National Archives facility. I applaud the judge’s ruling and believe this is an important step in preserving access to our region’s irreplaceable archival treasures.

Congress now has a renewed opportunity to enact a long-term solution that will keep these records safe, secure, and local. Meanwhile Washington State Archives continues to work with federal and state lawmakers along with stakeholders to provide expertise and information about archival storage practices.
 
For more information, visit our webpage dedicated to the latest news about the facility.

We are excited to announce Sara Jones as our new Washington State Librarian! As State Librarian, she will oversee the Washington State Library.
 
Sara comes to Washington from Marin County, Calif., where she has served as director of the Marin County Free Library since 2013. Previously, she held positions in Nevada libraries for 25 years, including Carson City Library Director, and Nevada State Librarian and Administrator of the State Library and Archives.
 
Sara has served as Nevada’s American Library Association (ALA) council delegate and Nevada Library Association (NLA) president. She was a member of the Western Council of State Libraries, serving as vice president and president. She received the ALA Sullivan Award for Services to Children in 2018, and was named the NLA’s Librarian of the Year in 2012. She is currently on the board of directors of CALIFA, a nonprofit library membership consortium.
 
She earned her bachelor’s degree in Interpersonal Communications from Boise State University and her master’s degree in Library and Information Science (LIS) from Syracuse University. She has taught in San Jose State University’s and University of North Texas’ LIS programs.
 
Sara has a passion for libraries and brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to lead our exceptional Washington State Library team. We believe she has the expertise and vision to help us expand and enhance our libraries’ services and outreach statewide.