PEPS shows up for families by advocating for policies that provide stability for families across our state. 

What Happened in the 2026 Legislative Session

Overall, it was a positive 2026 Washington Legislative Session for PEPS – our advocacy priorities were largely realized. The work of the Legislature this year keeps critical safety net programs intact and puts Paid Family & Medical Leave on solid ground. It will protect kids from the dangers of chatbot companions. A tax on high earners will right-size our tax system, giving tax breaks to lower-income households and small businesses.

The PEPS community advocated with state legislators to:

• Preserve programs families need: Many vital programs were at risk of budget cuts, including Medicaid and Working Connections Child Care. These programs help families who need the most support. While Medicaid was kept largely intact, Working Connections Child Care sustained substantial cuts. PEPS knows how important our child care system is and will continue to work on this issue.
• Ensure Paid Family & Medical Leave keeps helping working families: Parents count on Paid Family & Medical Leave when they have a new baby or when someone in their family gets very sick. Legislators supported changes that will keep the program strong by adopting a better system for setting the program’s rates and Governor Bob Ferguson signed this into law in mid-March. (SB 5292).
• Protect kids from technology online: Parents are concerned about how kids interact with social media and chatbot companions. Legislators supported a policy to regulate chatbot companions, with some additional protections for kids (HB 2225).
• Pass new and equitable revenue policies: People in Washington who earn the least pay the biggest share of their income in taxes. We needed tax policies that match people’s capacity to pay. Legislators supported a Millionaire’s Tax that will raise billions of dollars each year to support critical public programs. PEPS was excited to see this policy include a sales tax exemption on diapers (2029), free school meals (2028), and expansion of the Working Families Tax Credit. (SB 6346)

Unfortunately, a bill to protect kids from addictive social media feeds and round-the-clock notifications (HB 1834, SB 5708) did not pass, but this issue continues to be a priority for PEPS and we expect to re-visit it in the near future. 

Learn More

• Discover what led to our journey of advocacy at PEPS
• Learn about how one PEPS participant helped change a breastfeeding law
• Read a conversation with our Advocacy Consultant Molly Firth about how we can all champion Washington families amid a shaky state budget
• Dive into our Working Parents survey results
• Learn about the key takeaways from our advocacy survey

Get Involved

If you’d like to receive updates about our advocacy work — and action alerts that take 60 seconds but can make a difference in changing laws — subscribe to our advocacy emails for opportunities to learn and engage  and follow us on Facebook or Instagram to stay up to date on our work.