Our 2026 State Legislative Priorities
January 8, 2025
The JCRC is committed to combating antisemitism and working to ensure that Jews in Washington feel welcomed, included, respected, and safe with each other and in their broader communities. We deepen the awareness and commitment of state entities and the public to recognize and address anti-Jewish harm and build understanding of the complexity and multifaceted nature of Jewish identity and culture, including the diversity of our Jewish communities.
We work to protect and strengthen human rights and civil liberties because of the inextricable link between Jewish safety, the strength of our democracy, and the rights and safety of all. There cannot be Jewish safety in the United States without a strong democracy, and we cannot have a strong democracy without Jewish safety. Judaism is clear in articulating our responsibility to keep one another safe, to seek out justice, and to support both the Jewish people and other targeted groups. As part of our legislative priorities, we are ready to support efforts to protect against attacks on human rights and civil liberties. human rights and civil liberties.
In addition to the items on this legislative agenda, the Jewish Federation’s JCRC assists other local Jewish institutions, including the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), Holocaust Center for Humanity, Jewish Coalition for Immigrant Justice NW (JCIJ), Jewish Family Service (JFS), SAMIS, and our local Jewish day schools, to advance their legislative priorities.
The Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) of the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle leverages the strength and heart of Puget Sound’s diverse Jewish community to secure a vibrant Jewish future locally, in Israel, and around the world, and to champion a just, democratic, and pluralistic society. Our goal is to educate and advocate at the local, state, and national levels to advance Jewish concerns in the public arena, and our work is guided by Jewish history and values.
To develop our 2026 legislative priorities, the JCRC conducted a statewide survey from self-identified Jewish community members asking what issues the JCRC should be addressing right now on behalf of the Jewish community. Policy areas above were selected based on survey responses. The specific legislative priorities were developed based on input from the JCRC Public Advocacy Committee, our lobbyist, legislators, coalition partners within and beyond the Jewish community, and form the basis of our advocacy in this legislative session.
