Good afternoon. Thank you for those timely and empowering words. Thanks to t thanks for the lieu ten napt governor all of our hearts and i appreciate you honor him. She tells me her first 100 years in washington have been pretty great. Appreciate that. [ applause ] i would like to welcome our new legislators in our ranks. May you all do good work here. Mr. President , mr. Speaker, distinguished justices of the court, members of the legislature, state and local government officials, members of the counselor corp. I am honored to stand before you once again to report on the state of washington. Our state has made crucial investments in our schools and colleges, in our highway and transit system, in our health care m system. Last year we passed the best paid Family Leave Program in the United States. [ applause ] we have invested in our people. Our state has one of the Fastest Growing economies. It was named the top state for doing business and why it is at a historic low. Our economy is strong. Our future is bright but there are always new heights to reach, new chal lepgs challenges to. We delivered his message he chal lepged legislators to think big. It is our province he said to make precedence, not to follow them, to mark the way that others may walk in the path which you have made. We have been walking in the path that governor and the First Legislature said. Today it is up to us to continue that work for future generations. This year we cannot focus just on the length of this session, which is short. We have to focus on our legacy, which can be long. Several opportunities are in front of us to forge a path for the next generation. Access to democracy is a cornerstone to the Enduring Health of our nation and our state. So lets leave a legacy of a stro stronger democracy by increasing voter participation. It is time to pass the washington Voting Rights act. Lets leave a legacy. It supports our modern democracy and our modern economy when washington d. C. Takes away that protection we must protect Net Neutrality for our people, for our businesses and for the virtues of free speech. [ applause ] at that time when Womens Health care rights are under attack throughout our nation lets leave a legacy that ensures full access and allows women to chart their own course. It includes longacting reproductive parity. Not all of our work is in passing bills. Right now lets all, elective leaders and employers alike commit to inclusive workplaces where everyone is safe from Sexual Harassment and assault. This is one of the per sis at the present time persistent wrongs our society must make right. [ applause ] this session lets also continue our outstanding legacy on education. Legislators can take pride that you passed a plan that will fully comply with the decision. I want to commend representat e representatives and so many others who helped achieve what is a bipartisan success. We have got to stop telling our children that a fouryear degree is the only path to success. That is simply not true. It is one of the most meaningful things we can do for our students. Our washington delegation saw a truly remarkable apprenticeship system tha system. Tha thanks for your visionary leadership. Thank you. Thank you. You can go to tacoma and see for yourself how this works. It was a joy last year when i got to celebrate our states first 15 youth apprentices as they prepared to launch rewarding careers in aerospace. Lets expand that opportunity. [ applause ] it is to combat an opioid epidemic. We must build upon our kurcurre work. We need to strengthen our partnerships in a more robust and Mental Health care system. Lets continue our bipartisan legacy of helping dreamers fulfill their potential in the state of washington. [ applause ] sit a time of great uncertainty. Lets pass it now even if the federal government fails to renew their deferred action status. [ applause ] we can continue our commitment to Public Safety and health by any bump stocks, by closing the loophole and requiring firearms. These are common sense. [ applause ] lets leave a legacy that at long last upholds the equal application of justice by passing a bill to end the death pe penalty in the state of washington. [ applause ] and lets make sure we dont leave a legacy of irresponsible bri brinkm brinkmanship. [ applause ] this budget supports more than 19,000 construction jobs in every corner of this state. It would help us build more Affordable Housing and expand capacity in our Mental Health care system. This funding is exactly the time and need for these projects are exploding. The students are waiting for n renovations. They are waiting for upgrades to improve passage. Afraid of the kmcommunity is waiting a water line. If you want to help rural washington, if you want more Affordable Housing better Mental Health care and School Construction then do something about it and send this Capital Budget to my desk now. [ applause ] as we gather to do the peoples work it will be more important than ever. Despite the deviciveness and disrespect coming from the white house this past year the people of our state have stood proudly together. The world should know we are going to keep stapnding up for civility, tolerance and liberty. We will fight to protect washingtonians health care, the right for people to be safe from discrimination and the right to clean air and water. We will not be intimidated in the state of washington. It is important to know that. [ applause ] Washington State has so much to be proud of. Our companies are creating new treatments for cancer. Scientists have helped confirm the existence of Gravitational Waves predicted by state government. When i came into office there was doubt that we could pass a transportation package but we did. It is the largest and greenest transportation package in state history. When i came into office there was doubt. We could invest 7 billion there education, but we did. We tackled transportation. We tackled education. Now we must recognize a threat to the health of our state. A tlehreat to the health of our chirp and thre children and our businesses that demands action this year. That threat is Climate Change. This ledgislature reck coognizes threat a decade ago when it pledged to the people of washington that we would make our air cleaner and we would reduce Carbon Pollution. Sadly i have to tell you unless we act this year that promise by the legislature will be broken. It is time to step up, give our s citizens what they demand and what is the law which is a fight against Climate Change and the Damaging Health effects of carb Carbon Pollution. Our legacy on Climate Change must be long and must be lasting. We have just 59 days to do our part to save our children from a certain endless cycle of cropkilling droughts, one year and rivers spilling over their banks the next, to saver salmon from dying in ever warming waters and forest being reduced to plumes of ash. We have allowed the release of Carbon Pollution into our air. That burden will be carried by our children and our quality of life. We must be victorious over Climate Change because as Winston Church hill said without victory there is no survival. I believe washingtonians will be together on this issue. Ill tell you why. On this issue there is no geographic divide in our state. The farmer faces the same p crisis whose baby oysters are threatened by Carbon Pollution. There is no age divide. A young child suffering from asthma is just as vulnerable as a grandparent suffering from copd, a lung disease aggravated by heat and air pollution. There is no nationally respected democrats and republicans are among those calling for a tax on Carbon Pollution. Members of the business, tribal, environmental and labor communities from across our state are coming to the table to talk about carn pricing. Some of them are here today, including microsoft and Puget Sound Energy which have enacted bold changes in the way to do business. Labor leaders see the job potential in growing our Clean Energy Economy. Our environmental leaders and tribes see the urgency now to curb Carbon Pollution. They all had agree that putting a price on carbon this year is the right thing to do and have committed to working with me to get that accomplished. House and Senate Members have been working closely with my office all summer and fall todesign a washingtonfocussed approach. Their contributions have been key. So we are joined across geography, across age, and across political interest. Now is the time to join in action and put a price on Carbon Pollution. Doing so [ applause ] doing so will allow us to reinvest in all of the things that drive down emissions. We can build more solar panels. We can put more electric cars on the road, we can help more washingtononians Purchase Energy saving insulation for their homes and businesses. We can reduce the wild fire risks in Rural Communities and on tribal lands. We can improve Utility Services and modernize the electrical grid. We can make much needed upgrades to our irrigation and Water Management systems. We can prepare our work force for new careers in clean energy. And by doing these things we can save our forest. We can help our rural economies. We can protect our waterways. Now i had optimistic about this this year and thats well justified by washingtons cando spirit of confidence in innovation. And why shouldnt we get this done . Carbon pricing is hardly a new or bold idea at this point. British columbia, our neighbor to the north is doing it and their economy is booming. To the south, california is doing it and oregon is considering it. From quebec to japan from europe to mexico, many states and nations have enacted a price on carbon. Even china is getting on board having recently launched the largest Carbon Market on the planet. By passing a carbon tax we would simply join our west coast neighbors and the rest of the world as the Global Economy moves away from fossil fuels and towards a decarbonized clean energy future. And i believe Washington State is exactly the right state to lead in Clean Energy Economy and to seize the jobs United Nation and others were this is fundamentally who we are in washington. We create, we invent, we build and the people of washington are ready to create an event and build the carbon free future our children and grandchildren deserve. Not just in china, in germany, in bc here. Washington employs some of the most influential climate scientists in the world. Our universities and businesses are on the cutting edge of clean energy technologies. In the Pacific Coast region Clean Energy Jobs have grown and this is kind of interesting to know. Clean energy jobs have grown more than twice as fast as jobs in the overall economy. Muckletile is home to the largest moses lake is home to one of the largest carbon fiber plants for electric cars. Our stait home to bio fuels that have powered the boeing 787 across the oceans. It is our states destiny because of who we are to defeat Climate Change. Even if the white house walks away from the global effort now embraced by every single nation in the world except the United States, an effort to reduce Greenhouse Gas emissions, we will walk forward and join this battle for the worlds elth haddy future. Thats who we are. [ applause ] already washington has joined with 14 other states and territories to form the United States climate alliance. And we are committed to meeting our share of the Emission Reduction targets outlined in the paris climate accord. This is a significant collaboration. We represent 40 of the United States economy. And if we were our own nation, we would have the Third Largest economy in the world. And it is the right thing to do this. Washington is home to the most beautiful collection of fertile wheat fields and towering forests and salty waters on earth. It is true and inarguable that our creator practiced on the rest of the planet. And then he created Washington State. [ applause ] every single one of us here today is deeply tied to washington in our own unique way. We each have a part of this state that we love. Favorite fishing spot. Quiet place on the farm. That camp ground youve been going to for generations in the forest. But the things we treasure individually can only be seen collectively. We have been given an incredible bounty of Natural Beauty and sustenance and we must now ask ourselves how we can protect that bounty for future generations. We know we are smart enough to recognize the perils of Climate Change and we know we are innovative enough to do something about it. Repeatedly over the decades we have lived up to governor ferrys charge to mark the way. Weve succeeded in aerospace, in soft ware, in online commerce and growing our economy in the process. This was the year to believe in ourselves. This is the year to act with confidence. This is the year for us to do our part for are had who will walk in the path that we will make together. We are here in olympia to serve the current and future and future interests of all washingtonians and i want to thank each one of you for your willingness to find solutions to the problems we face. I like to think of this legislature in our state as one big family. We may have differences around the dinner table but on what really counts we agree. We are had agree that our families deserve to be safe from tragedies like mass shootings. We all agree we must do more for Homeless Individuals and families. We all agree that our children deserve the best education possible. We all agree that our communities deserve protection from the physical and financial threats of Climate Change. Today i call on all of us to look deep in our hearts and think of our families for them and for all washingtonians, present and future, lets get to work together. [ applause ] [ applause ]