April 16, 2009

Rodne's Washington state flag account bill signed into law
Measure makes it easier for military families to receive state flags

The governor signed a bill into law Monday that creates the Washington state flag account. The dedicated account will accept donations for the purchases of Washington state flags that will be distributed to military personnel and their families. The measure, House Bill 1121, was sponsored by Rep. Jay Rodne.

"This will be an important program for many military families. We will now be able to provide more of our servicemen and women with a symbol of their home -- our state flag," said Rodne, R-North Bend. "Many other states have programs that allow for donations, but Washington did not unfortunately. People expressed an interest in donating, but could not. Now they can."

The Washington state flag account will be in the custody of the state treasurer, but only the secretary of state can authorize expenditures.

The 2009 legislative session is scheduled to conclude April 26.  

Pictured from left to right: Megan Moreno, Rep. Jay Rodne, Suzette Black, Governor Chris Gregoire,
Kate Cooper, Rep. Barbara Bailey, and Edward Redmond.

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