PASCO, Wash. — The region’s first remote testimony room at Columbia Basin College is still operational for community members, allowing voices in the Tri-Cities to be heard during legislative hearings.
When legislation is being considered in the state, Washingtonians are given the chance to testify on the House or Senate floor. Previously, the only way to have your testimony heard was to go in-person. This made it difficult for people in the central and eastern parts of the state to speak. People could sign up to speak and make the trip to Olympia, then only get allotted 60 seconds on the floor.
“That’s obviously an incredible time commitment to have to make for the trip, to be able to just testify for that amount of time,” said CBC President Dr. Rebekah Woods. “So this made it just so much more easier for everybody from the east side of the state to be able to have a much easier access to still have their voice heard in Olympia.”
The concept was pitched by legislators in Spokane back in the early 2010s, leading to several years of trial programs. Schools in Spokane and CBC tested out the idea. CBC introduced the remote testimony room in 2015.
“It is incredibly important for our entire community and the entire state to be involved in the legislative process,” said Dr. Woods. “It’s important for our voices to be heard, for us to be weighing in on the issues that are being discussed in Olympia. And so if someone needs to be able to access this room to be able to make sure their voice is heard, then that’s why this room is available for them.”
The COVID-19 pandemic brought the introduction of Zoom testimony, allowing people across the state to testify remotely. Remote testimony rooms are still available for those without access to Zoom, without a place to use Zoom or without an adequate Zoom account. Dr. Woods told NonStop Local that this room is in no way exclusive to the campus community, it’s open for anyone to reserve.
The CBC remote testimony room is on the second floor of the SWL building off Argent Road, in Conference Room 201P.
