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Dear Friends and Neighbors,

I have decided that I will not run again for the state Senate this fall.

I am honored to have had the opportunity to represent the citizens of the 39th District. For two decades, the Legislature has given me the opportunity to work with many wonderful people and to be their voice when they needed help navigating the burdensome morass of government regulations.

I have served on many Senate committees, but it was as a member of the Senate Human Services and Corrections Committee that I found my legislative passion. As the Republican leader of that committee, I worked tirelessly on behalf of Washington families. I was able to impact many policies regulating the safety of children and how to keep them in the home when parents may need guidance to maintain the family structure. Keeping children safe and families together has been my number-one priority.

Families are the building block of society and that is why I have devoted my legislative career to family law while understanding that stability builds strength within the family and that the purpose of government is the protection of their freedom to enjoy the fruits of their labor.

I have loved making time for my constituents and hearing their thoughts about what we could do to make the district and this state a better place in which to live.  This however has never been a one-person job and without the knowledge and wisdom of Olga Miller, my Administrative Assistant who has worked together with me for these past 20 years, the accomplishments accredited to me would not have been possible.

Looking forward, this is now the time to step aside and dedicate my undivided attention to my family and grandchildren. I will continue to serve through the remainder of my term, and my successor will be sworn in on the first day of the 2013 legislative session, in early January.

Sincerely,

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