News

OLYMPIA—During the 2024 legislative session, the Legislature approved several bills and $33.3 million in funding requested by Secretary of State Steve Hobbs that will enhance the integrity of Washington elections and improve support for charities and libraries statewide.

OLYMPIA — The Productivity Board will meet from 11 a.m. to noon on Monday, March 11, in the conference room of the Office of the Secretary of State in the Legislative Building at the Capitol Campus in Olympia.

OLYMPIA — For the first time in more than a century of voter-submitted ballot proposals, the filing fee for Initiatives to the Legislature will move from $5 to an inflation-indexed cost, currently set at $156. Similar adjustments to the filing fees for referenda and Initiatives to the People will take effect in January, the beginning of the next filing period for each.

OLYMPIA — Through a partnership between Wizards of the Coast and the Office of the Secretary of State, a donation of 75 Dungeons & Dragons Library Kits will ensure that every library system and institutional library in Washington can obtain a free gaming kit for patron use.

OLYMPIA — Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs issued the following statement today regarding Washington’s Presidential Primary and the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision that states cannot decide eligibility for federal offices:

OLYMPIA — Secretary of State Steve Hobbs has received the Washington Library Association's Honorary Membership Award for his advocacy of libraries across the state.

OLYMPIA — Ballot boxes in all 39 counties will open Friday, Feb. 23, for the March 12 Presidential Primary election. Vote-by-mail ballots are being sent to the state’s 4.8 million active voters, who may return their ballots to county drop boxes or by mail using the postage-paid envelopes included with each ballot.

OLYMPIA — State and federal experts will address election integrity concerns at a panel discussion Friday hosted by the Office of the Secretary of State and the Thomas S. Foley Institute of Washington State University.

OLYMPIA — For the first time in nine years, Washington’s Medals of Merit and Valor will be awarded Wednesday at a ceremony in the state Legislative Building.

OLYMPIA — Former Assistant Secretary of State Steve Excell, who served as the Washington State Archivist for nearly a decade and was chief of staff to former Governor John Spellman, died Wednesday at age 74.