13th District lawmakers host telephone town hall

OLYMPIA — Legislators from District 13, Rep. Tom Dent, R-Moses Lake, Rep. Matt Manweller, R-Ellensburg, and Sen. Judy Warnick, R-Moses Lake, will hold a telephone town hall on March 13.

Warnick said she has participated in a few in-person town hall, but with bad weather and busy schedules, she sees a radio show-style town hall as the most efficient way.

“People can do it from the comfort of their own home,” Warnick said. “They don’t have to go to a facility and we can reach more people with less travel.”

She said her colleagues in the House, Dent and Manweller, have participated in several successful town halls, but there was always the worry of unruly constituents being disruptive during the event. She said with a telephone town hall, they can see the questions everyone has and gather feedback that way, but they don’t have to worry about disruptive behavior.

The town hall will start at 6 p.m. on Monday. Constituents can call 509-941-2750 to participate. If listeners have questions during the forum, they press the asterisk key on their phone. District 13 covers Grant, Lincoln and Kittitas counties, as well as part of Yakima County.

— Staff report