Frank Vana Chopp[1] (born May 13,1953) is an American politician serving as a Democratic member of the Washington House of Representatives,representing the 43rd district since 1995.[2] His district covers the neighborhoods of Montlake,Fremont,Wallingford,the University District,Madison Park,and part of Capitol Hill,all of which are in Seattle. Chopp served as Speaker of the House from 2002 to 2019.[3]
As a young man in the 1970s,Chopp and his father built these two modernist "urban cabins" in Seattle's Central District.
Frank Chopp was born on May 13,1953,in Bremerton,Washington.[4] His father was a coal miner who moved to the shipyards and found employment as a union electrical worker and his mother,Anne,worked in a school cafeteria.[5] He attended East High School in Bremerton and graduated top of his class in 1971.[citation needed] While still in high school,Chopp led a protest against the Elks Club's refusal to allow black members.[4] He later attended the University of Washington,graduating magna cum laude in 1975.[6] As a student at the University of Washington,he organized efforts to preserve low-income housing in Seattle.[4] To protest the demolition of low-incoming housing,Chopp lived in a geodesic dome situated in a parking lot in South Lake Union.[7]
He is married to Nancy Long and has two children.[5] He lives in the Wallingford neighborhood of Seattle,Washington.[5]
Early career
After graduating from the University of Washington,Chopp began his career as a community organizer focused on social services and education. From 1976–1983,Chopp held various managing and directorial positions for the Cascade Community Center,the Pike Market Senior Center,and the North Community Service Center before becoming executive director of the Fremont Public Association,now known as Solid Ground,in 1983.[8] As executive director of the FPA,Chopp promoted services such as an emergency food bank,a clothing bank,and an employment program.[8][9] Chopp later served as the organization's president,and has served as senior advisor since 2006.[10]
Chopp has been involved with a number of groups,service agencies,and programs including the Coalition for Survival Services,King County Housing Opportunity Fund,Cascade Shelter Project,the Food Resources Network,the Workers Center,Lettuce Link,Community Voice Mail,the Sand Point Community Housing Association,PortJOBS,the Committee for Economic Opportunity,and the Low Income Housing Institute.[5] Chopp co-founded the Seattle Tenant's Union in 1977 and has been involved in efforts to organize three collective bargaining units for office workers,home care workers,and public transit drivers.
From 1992–1995,he held a part-time lecturer position at the University of Washington Graduate School of Public Affairs.[10] Since 1972,Chopp has served on over twenty nonprofit boards.[10]
Politics
Chopp was first elected to the House in 1994.[5] He served as House Minority Leader from 1997–1998.[5] In 1999–2001,Democrats and Republicans split the House and Chopp served as Co-Speaker in the 1999-2001 legislative sessions alongside Clyde Ballard.[11] Chopp served as Speaker of the House from 2002 to 2019.[12]
Issues
In 2003 Chopp voted for an operating budget Democrats later condemned as the "Rossi budget" when its architect,Republican Senator Dino Rossi,ran for governor in 2004;most of Chopp's House Democrats voted against the budget.[13]
In 2006,Chopp killed a bill requiring large employers like Wal-Mart to reimburse the state if they heavily relied upon state programs for employee health care.[14]
Many fans of the former Seattle SuperSonics National Basketball Association franchise felt Chopp was a roadblock to keeping the team. SeattlePost-Intelligencer columnist Art Thiel stated "Sonics fans have come to know Chopp,D-Death Star,as the No. 1 legislative opponent of public help to keep the team in Seattle."[15] New owners bought out the Seattle lease and moved the team to Oklahoma City before the 2008–09 season,where the team now plays as the Thunder.
In 2008,the Democratic Senate passed a bill,27–20,giving Washington consumers statutory warranty rights in purchasing new homes.[16] The bill passed the House Judiciary Committee before being denied a House floor vote by Chopp. The same thing had happened in 2007. Chopp's action was condemned editorially by both the Seattle Times[17] and the Post-Intelligencer[17] (then a print newspaper). In awarding Chopp a "Schrammie," Ken Schramm of KOMO News stated:"For the second year in a row,the Great and Mighty Speaker has had his way in killing a bill that would've provided homeowners with protection against shoddy construction."[18] The Post-Intelligencer asked,"Why is Democratic House Speaker Frank Chopp yet again killing a bill that would protect this state's homeowners from being on the hook for shoddy construction? It doesn't look good that Chopp has friends at the Building Industry Association of Washington,the bill's main opponent (BIAW executive VP Tom McCabe said he'd love to see Chopp run for governor)."[17]
In 2009 Chopp killed a Worker Privacy Bill that Democrats had promised to support during their 2008 campaigns. After a labor lobbyist warned some friends that organized labor might withhold support from Democrats,Chopp tried to have the lobbyist arrested by the Washington State Patrol;however,the Patrol exonerated the lobbyist.[14]
By the 2017 legislative session,a faltering Chopp again faced the prospect of losing a state budget battle to Senate Republicans,as he had every session since 2003 in which Republicans were in control. On the eve of the June 30 vote to avert a state shutdown Chopp refused to make his budget compromise public.[19]
Housing
Prior to being elected,Chopp helped lead the campaign to approve a $50 million Low-Income Housing Levy and a $25 million Seattle Art Museum Levy.[20][21][self-published source] Chopp has also initiated and organized efforts to create the Low Income Housing Institute;the Seattle Tenants Union;the King County Housing Opportunity Fund,which was the first King County allocated its own local tax dollars to provide low-income housing;the Sand Point Community Housing Project;the Broadway Emergency Shelter and the Family Shelter Program;the Cascade Shelter Project;and expanded the Housing Counseling Program,which assists low-income people who face eviction or foreclosure.[8][21][self-published source][22]
Chopp helped co-found Washington's Housing Trust Fund,which has provided over $1 billion for low-income housing since its inception[23] and also created the Housing Security Fund,which helps pay for housing and support services for the homeless,[24]
Chopp designed the Home and Hope program,which repurposes unused public properties for affordable housing development. The program has built nearly 300 affordable apartment buildings in Seattle.[25]
In 2015,Chopp passed legislation requiring Sound Transit to donate excess land around new light rail stations to non-profit affordable housing developers.[26]
Healthcare
Chopp co-organized the successful application,working with the Seattle-King County Health Department,for a Health Care for the Homeless Project from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation,as well as initiating a home care program.[21][self-published source] Chopp also has initiated health programs for the elderly,people with disabilities,and those infected with AIDS.[21][self-published source]
In the 2007 legislative session,Chopp helped create Apple Health For Kids,which now covers over 800,000 young people in Washington State.[27] Chopp also implemented Medicaid Expansion in Washington State.[28] He led efforts to help enact mental health parity,which Chopp cites as "the proudest moment of my service in the Legislature."[29][30] Chopp also helped save and reform the Disability Lifeline program,which provides services for people with disabilities.[31]
In 2019,Chopp passed "Cascade Care," a public option for health insurance available to all Washington residents. When the program takes effect in 2021,it will be offered under a hybrid public-private model that lawmakers selected to control healthcare costs while reducing premiums and co-pays for patients.[32]
Economy
Chopp was an early proponent of the Community Jobs program,which helps welfare recipients gain skills and employment through various community-based nonprofit organizations in Washington State.[33] Chopp served as a founding board member of the Office of PortJOBS at the Port of Seattle. In this role,he initiated the Committee for Economic Opportunity,which developed partnerships with the Port of Seattle,businesses,labor unions,and educational institutions.[21][self-published source] Chopp also co-initiated and developed the Seattle Worker Center,which addresses the needs of dislocated and unemployed workers,through a Re-employment Support Center,the Trades Mentor Network,and Community Voice Mail (which won a national award for Innovations in State and Local Governments) sponsored by Harvard University and the Ford Foundation.[21][self-published source]
Chopp was one of the founding members of the successful minimum wage increase initiative in SeaTac in 2013.[34] He also led a coalition to increase Washington State's minimum wage to the highest level in the nation,which was the first time annual increases were tied to the cost of living.[35] Chopp has also passed legislation requiring paid sick leave,expanding collective bargaining rights,and banning wage theft.[citation needed]
Education
In 2005,Chopp created the Education Legacy Trust Fund,which supports "expanding access to higher education through funding for new enrollments and financial aid,and other educational improvement efforts."[36] Chopp led efforts to expand the Opportunity Grant program and Opportunity Scholarship Fund to make college more affordable for students.[37] In the 2015-17 budget,Chopp supported a tuition freeze,as well as lowering tuition costs.[38] In 2014,Chopp helped enact the DREAM Act,which provided access to college for students from immigrant families.[39]
In 2015,Chopp led efforts to invest over $1.3 billion in basic K-3 education as part of the first phase of addressing the McCleary decision.[40]
In 2019,Chopp led the passage of free college and university tuition through the Workforce Education Investment Act. The legislation expands the Washington College Grant and provides free tuition at public colleges and universities to 120,000 low-income students per year. The grant is funded by a progressive payroll tax on companies with highly skilled workers,including major tech corporations such as Microsoft and Amazon.[41]
In 2019,Chopp passed the 100% Clean Electricity Mandate and the Clean Fuel Standard,although the latter did not pass the State Senate. The Clean Electricity Mandate requires that the state decarbonize its electricity sector by 2030. The measure also includes "energy assistance" funds,paid for by utilities,that are available to low-income households for home weatherization,solar panel installation,and efficiency upgrades.[45]
Women's issues
Chopp is a pro-choice proponent. As Speaker,he supported the Reproductive Parity Act,which guaranteed health coverage for a woman's right to seek an abortion.[46] Chopp has supported efforts for pay equity for women and initiatives that get more women in the workplace.[47]
In 2018,Chopp supported the Reproductive Parity Act to ban discrimination in reproductive care. The law requires health insurers to cover abortions if they cover maternal care.[48] The bill was supported by pro-choice organizations,including Planned Parenthood Votes Northwest and Hawai'i.[49]
LGBT issues
In 2012,Chopp supported the Marriage Equality Act,as well as helping Washington state to be the first state to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act.[50] Chopp also supported gay rights legislation in the Washington State House in 2005 that ultimately failed in the Republican controlled State Senate by one vote.[51]
In 2020,Chopp supported the "comprehensive sex-ed bill",which requires public schools to teach consent,contraception,and LGBTQ issues.[52]
Transportation
During Chopp's tenure at the Fremont Public Association,he co-initiated and oversaw the operation of Seattle Personal Transit,which provides transportation for low-income elderly and people with disabilities.[53] Chopp also organized opposition to the original plan for the West Seattle Freeway in 1974,collecting over 20,000 signatures within a month to refer the issue to the voters.[21][self-published source]
As Speaker,Chopp supported legislation for the 2015 Connecting Washington funding package.[54] The measure authorized the Sound Transit 3 vote,which voters passed in 2016. Chopp sponsored legislation to require Sound Transit to donate excess property around new light rail stations to non-profit affordable housing developers.[26]
Related Research Articles
Jay Robert Inslee is an American politician,lawyer,and economist who has served as the 23rd governor of Washington since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party,he served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1993 to 1995 and again from 1999 to 2012,and was a candidate for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination. He is the longest-serving current governor in the United States.
Christine Gregoire is an American politician who served as the 22nd governor of Washington from 2005 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party,she defeated Republican candidate Dino Rossi in 2004,and again in 2008. She is the state’s second female governor,and the state’s first female Attorney General. Gregoire chaired the National Governors Association for the 2010–2011 term. She also served on the Governors' Council of the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington,D.C. Since the death of Daniel Evans in 2024,Gregoire is the oldest living former governor of Washington.
Lisa Jo Brown is an American politician and educator who is the current mayor of Spokane,Washington. She previously served as the director of the Washington State Department of Commerce. A member of the Democratic Party,Brown has served in both houses of the Washington State Legislature,including eight years as the first Democratic female majority leader of the Washington State Senate. She has also served as the chancellor of Washington State University Spokane,a position she stepped down from in order to mount an unsuccessful campaign for the U.S. House.
The Washington House of Representatives is the lower house of the Washington State Legislature,and along with the Washington State Senate makes up the legislature of the U.S. state of Washington. It is composed of 98 Representatives from 49 districts,each of which elects one Senator and two members of the House. They are elected to separate positions with the top-two primary system. All members of the House are elected to a two-year term without term limits. The House meets at the State Capitol in Olympia.
Robert Alan Hasegawa is an American labor leader and politician serving as a member of the Washington State Senate,representing the 11th Legislative District since January 2013. Hasegawa is a lifelong resident of Seattle's Beacon Hill. He previously served in the Washington State House of Representatives,and is retired from the Teamsters Union where he was a member and union leader for over 32 years.
Brendan W. Williams is an American politician who served in the Washington House of Representatives from 2005 to 2011,representing Washington's 22nd legislative district.
Michael Coyne Turzai is an American politician and former Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives who served as Speaker of the House. He is from Allegheny County and represented the 28th legislative district between 2001 and 2020. His district included the municipalities of Pine Township,Marshall Township,Bradford Woods,Franklin Park,and McCandless. Turzai served as the House Majority Leader from 2011 until 2015,and was elected Speaker in January 2015. He was a candidate for Governor of Pennsylvania in 2018 until he suspended his campaign in February 2018. He resigned from his House seat in 2020;after leaving office,he became general counsel for Peoples Gas,a subsidiary of Essential Utilities.
The 75th Oregon Legislative Assembly convened beginning on January 12,2009,for its biennial regular session. All of the 60 seats in the House of Representatives and half of the 30 seats in the State Senate were up for election in 2008;the general election for those seats took place on November 4.
Laurie A. Jinkins is an American politician,attorney,and public health official from Tacoma,Washington who serves as a member of the Washington House of Representatives from the 27th district. A Democrat,she has served as Speaker of the House since January 2020.
The Pacific Tower,formerly the Pacific Medical Center,is a 16-story building at 1200 12th Avenue South on Beacon Hill in Seattle,Washington,United States. It was completed in 1932 and opened the following year as a U.S. Public Health Service facility. The lower floors of the facility still function as a medical center today. Amazon.com occupied much of the building as its headquarters from 1999 until 2010. Much of the space was left vacant after Amazon relocated to South Lake Union. In 2013,the State of Washington agreed to a 30-year lease of 13 floors. Seattle Central College subleases six floors for its healthcare training program.
Housing trust funds are established sources of funding for affordable housing construction and other related purposes created by governments in the United States (U.S.). Housing Trust Funds (HTF) began as a way of funding affordable housing in the late 1970s. Since then,elected government officials from all levels of government in the U.S. have established housing trust funds to support the construction,acquisition,and preservation of affordable housing and related services to meet the housing needs of low-income households. Ideally,HTFs are funded through dedicated revenues like real estate transfer taxes or document recording fees to ensure a steady stream of funding rather than being dependent on regular budget processes. As of 2016,400 state,local and county trust funds existed across the U.S.
Joseph Frederick Fain is an American attorney,businessman,and politician who served as a member of the Washington State Senate for the 47th district from 2011 to 2019. Fain was elected in 2010 and re-elected in 2014. Fain served as the Senate minority floor leader during the 2018 legislative session.
David S. Frockt is an American politician and attorney who served as a member of the Washington State Senate for the 46th legislative district,which includes North Seattle,Lake Forest Park,and Kenmore.
Kamyar Cyrus Habib is an American Jesuit,lawyer,and politician who served as both a state legislator from 2013 to 2017 and then as the 16th lieutenant governor of Washington from 2017 to 2021. He also served as the state's acting governor for over six months,primarily in 2019 during the presidential campaign of Governor Jay Inslee. He is the first Iranian American to hold statewide elected office in the United States.
Jessyn Lynn Farrell is an American activist and politician who served as a member of the Washington House of Representatives from 2013 to 2017. In the legislature,she focused on transportation,education,and labor issues. Farrell began her 2017 Seattle mayoral election campaign on May 12,2017,and did not advance in the August 1,2017 primary.
Ryan Michael Fecteau is an American politician who served as the Speaker of the Maine House of Representatives. A Democrat,Fecteau serves Maine House District 11,consisting of a portion of Biddeford. At the time of his election as Speaker of the House in December 2020,Fecteau was both the youngest active state Speaker in the United States and the first openly gay person to serve as Speaker of the Maine House.
The Public Records Act (PRA) is a law of the U.S. state of Washington requiring public access to all records and materials from state and local agencies. It was originally passed as a ballot initiative by voters in 1972 and revised several times by the state legislature. The definition of public records,especially concerning the state legislature,was subject to several legal challenges in the decades since the law was passed.
Patricia D. "Pat" Scott was an American politician who served as a member of the Washington House of Representatives from 1984 to 2001. First appointed to office upon the resignation of John Martinis,she represented Washington's 28th legislative district as a Democrat for 17 years until her death in 2001.
Initiative No. 2109 (I-2109) was a ballot initiative in the U.S. State of Washington that appeared on the ballot on November 5,2024. The initiative was brought to the state legislature by Let's Go Washington,a Redmond-based political action committee founded by businessman and hedge-fund manager Brian Heywood. The initiative would have repeal SB 5096,which created a 7% capital gains tax on the sale of long-term capital assets worth more than $250,000 in Washington state since 2021. Real estate sales are already exempt from the tax.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
