Maureen Walsh
Maureen Walsh (Republican Party) was a member of the Washington State Senate, representing District 16. Walsh assumed office on January 9, 2017. Walsh left office on January 11, 2021.
Walsh (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the Washington State Senate to represent District 16. Walsh won in the general election on November 8, 2016.
Walsh is a former Republican member of the Washington House of Representatives, representing District 16-Position 1 from 2005 to 2017. She served as the minority caucus vice chair.
Biography
Walsh holds a degree in commercial art from the University of Cincinnati. Walsh previously worked as the legislative assistant for former state Representative Dave Mastin. Walsh is owner/operator of Onion World, which she created with her late husband, Kelly.[1]
Committee assignments
2019-2020
Walsh was assigned to the following committees:
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| Washington committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Health Care |
| • Human Services, Mental Health & Housing |
| • Transportation |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Walsh served on the following committees:
| Washington committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Capital Budget |
| • Early Learning and Human Services, Ranking Minority Member |
2013-2014
In the 2013-2014 legislative session, Walsh served on the following committees:
| Washington committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Early Learning and Human Services |
| • Higher Education |
| • Technology and Economic Development |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Walsh served on the following committees:
| Washington committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Community Development and Housing |
| • Early Learning and Human Services |
| • Health and Human Services Appropriations and Oversight |
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Walsh served on the following committees:
| Washington committee assignments, 2009 |
|---|
| • Early Learning and Children's Services |
| • Health and Human Services Appropriations |
| • Human Services |
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Campaign themes
2012
Walsh's website highlighted the following campaign themes:[2]
- Excerpt: "Creating and preserving jobs,"
- Excerpt: "Helping small businesses in our state thrive, "
- Excerpt: "Working to help empower parents to be their kids' first teachers,"
- Excerpt: "Addressing agricultural issues,"
- Excerpt: "Preparing our students for our diverse economy,"
Elections
2020
- See also: Washington State Senate elections, 2020
Maureen Walsh did not file to run for re-election.
2016
- See also: Washington State Senate elections, 2016
Elections for the Washington State Senate took place in 2016. The primary election was held on August 2, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was May 20, 2016. Incumbent Mike Hewitt (R) did not seek re-election.
Maureen Walsh ran unopposed in the Washington State Senate District 16 general election.[3]
| Washington State Senate, District 16 General Election, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Republican |  Maureen Walsh (unopposed) | |
| Source: Washington Secretary of State | ||
Maureen Walsh ran unopposed in the Washington State Senate District 16 top two primary.[4][5]
| Washington State Senate, District 16 Top Two Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Republican | Maureen Walsh (unopposed) | |
| Source: Washington Secretary of State | ||
2014
Elections for the Washington House of Representatives took place in 2014. A blanket primary election took place on August 5, 2014. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was May 17, 2014. Incumbent Maureen Walsh (R) and Mary Ruth Edwards (R) were unopposed in the primary. Walsh defeated Edwards in the general election.[6][7][8]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Maureen Walsh Incumbent |
59.1% | 19,152 | |
| Republican | Mary Ruth Edwards | 40.9% | 13,248 | |
| Total Votes | 32,400 | |||
2012
Walsh won re-election in the 2012 election for Washington House of Representatives District 16-Position 1. Walsh was unopposed in the blanket primary on August 7, 2012, and defeated Mary Ruth Edwards (R) in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[9][10]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Maureen Walsh Incumbent |
58.2% | 25,503 | |
| Republican | Mary Ruth Edwards | 41.8% | 18,307 | |
| Total Votes | 43,810 | |||
2010
Maureen Walsh was re-elected to the Washington House of Representatives District 16-Position 1. She was unopposed in the August 17, 2010, primary and defeated Brenda High (Constitution party) in the November 2, 2010, general election.
| Washington House of Representatives, District 16-Position 1 General Election (2010) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Maureen Walsh (R)
|
33,793 | |||
| Brenda High (C) | 9,736 | |||
| Washington House of Representatives, District 16-Position 1 Primary (2010) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | Percent | ||
| Maureen Walsh (R)
|
22,137 | 82.31% | ||
| Brenda High (Constitution)
|
4,758 | 17.69% | ||
2008
On November 4, 2008, Republican Maureen Walsh won re-election to the Washington House of Representatives, District 16-Position 1 receiving 72.55% of the vote (36,697 votes), defeating Democrat Dante Lee Montoya who received 27.45% of the vote (13,885 votes).
| Washington House of Representatives, District 16-Position 1 (2008) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | Percent | ||
| Maureen Walsh (R)
|
36,697 | 72.55% | ||
| Dante Lee Montoya (D) | 13,885 | 27.45% | ||
Noteworthy events
In April 2019, Walsh received criticism from The Washington State Nurses Association (WSNA) after comments she made during a debate on a legislative amendment. Walsh supported an amendment excluding small hospitals from a bill requiring uninterrupted meal and rest breaks and prohibiting mandatory overtime for healthcare employees. The amendment exempted hospitals with fewer than 25 beds. The bill with the amendment passed the state Senate on April 16, 2019.[11]
Walsh said that the rest period requirement would make it difficult for small hospitals to stay open. "I would submit to you that those [small hospital] nurses probably do get breaks," Walsh said. "They probably play cards for a considerable amount of the day."[12]
On April 18, WSNA Director of Nursing Practice and Health Policy Mathew Keller called Walsh's remarks "disreprectful and patronizing" and wrote, "Study after study show that unplanned overtime assignments have a high potential to be unsafe. ... That’s why, ultimately, there is zero logic behind an amendment to the rest breaks bill that would cover nurses and patients in some hospitals, while leaving others without any protections."[13]
Walsh later said of her remarks during the amendment debate, "I was tired. ... I said something I wish I hadn’t."[14]
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Washington scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2020
In 2020, the Washington State Legislature was in session from January 13 to March 12.
- Legislators are scored based on their votes on legislation supported by the organization.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to the state’s business community.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to home building industry issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
- Legislators are scored on how they voted on firearm policies.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to environmental issues.
- Legislators are scored on whether they voted for or against WSLC's position.
2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the Washington State Legislature was in session from January 14 through April 28.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the Washington State Legislature, second session, was in session from January 8 through March 8.
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2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the Washington State Legislature, first session, was in session from January 9 through April 23. There were also special sessions. The first special session was April 24 through May 23. The second special session was May 23 through June 21. The third special session was June 21 through July 20.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the 64th Washington State Legislature, second session, was in session from January 11 through March 10. The legislature held a special session from March 11 to March 29 to pass a supplemental budget.
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the 64th Washington State Legislature, first session, was in session from January 12 through April 24. The legislature was in special session from April 29 to May 28, May 29 to June 27 and June 28 to July 10.[15]
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the 63rd Washington State Legislature, second session, was in session from January 13 to March 14.[16]
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2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the 63rd Washington State Legislature, first session, was in session from January 14 to April 29.
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2012
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show]. |
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In 2012, the 62nd Washington State Legislature, second session, was in session from January 9 to March 8.[17]
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2011
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2011, click [show]. |
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In 2011, the 62nd Washington State Legislature, first session, was in session from January 10 through April 24.
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Missed Votes Report
- See also: Washington House of Representatives and Washington State Senate
In March 2014, Washington Votes, a legislative information website, released its annual Missed Votes Report, which provides detailed missed roll call votes on bills for every state legislator during the 2014 legislative session.[18] The 2014 regular session included a total of 515 votes in the State House and 396 in the State Senate, as well as 1,372 bills introduced total in the legislature and 237 bills passed. Out of all roll call votes, 90 individual legislators did not miss any votes. Three individual legislators missed more than 50 votes.[18] Walsh missed 64 votes in a total of 1211 roll calls.
Freedom Foundation
The Freedom Foundation releases its Big Spender List annually. The Institute ranks all Washington legislators based on their total proposed taxes and fees. To find each legislator’s total, the Institute adds up the 10-year tax and fee increases or decreases, as estimated by Washington’s Office of Financial Management, of all bills sponsored or co-sponsored by that legislator.[19]
2012
Walsh proposed a 10-year increase in state taxes and fees of $238.3 million, the 45th highest amount of proposed new taxes and fees of the 93 Washington state representatives on the Freedom Foundation’s 2012 Big Spender List.
- See also: Washington Freedom Foundation Legislative Scorecard (2012)
The Freedom Foundation also issued its 2012 Informed Voter Guide for Washington State voters, including a legislative score card documenting how Washington State legislators voted upon bills the Foundation deemed important legislation. The legislation analyzed covered budget, taxation, and pension issues.[20] A 
sign indicates a bill more in line with the Foundation's stated goals, and a 
sign indicates a bill out of step with the Foundation's values. Here's how Walsh voted on the specific pieces of legislation:
| 2012 House Scorecard - Maureen Walsh | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bill #6636 (Balanced budget requirement)
|
Bill #5967 (House Democrats budget)
|
Bill #6582 (Local transportation tax increases)
|
Bill #6378 (Pension reforms)
| ||||||||
| Y | N | N | Y | ||||||||
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Maureen lives in College Place and has three young adult children.
Recent news
This section displays the most recent stories in a Google News search for the term "Maureen + Walsh + Washington + House"
- All stories may not be relevant to this legislator due to the nature of the search engine.
See also
- Washington State Legislature
- Washington House of Representatives
- Washington House of Representatives Committees
- Washington Joint Committees
- Washington state legislative districts
- Washington State Senate
- Washington State Senate District 16
- Washington State Senate elections, 2016
External links
- Maureen Walsh's campaign website
- Profile from Open States
- Profile by Vote-USA
- Legislative profile from Project Vote Smart
- Biography from Project Vote Smart
- Campaign Contributions: 2012, 2010, 2008, 2006, 2004
Footnotes
- ↑ Project Vote Smart, "Biography," accessed April 16, 2014
- ↑ walshforstaterep, "Official Campaign Website," accessed April 16, 2014
- ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "General Election Results 2016," accessed December 2, 2016
- ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "2016 Candidates Who Have Filed," accessed May 23, 2016
- ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "August 2, 2016 Primary Results," accessed August 25, 2016
- ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "2014 Candidates Who Have Filed," accessed May 20, 2014
- ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "August 5, 2014, Official Primary Results," accessed August 5, 2014
- ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "Official general election results, 2014," accessed December 2, 2014
- ↑ C-SPAN, "AP Election Results - Washington State House of Representatives," accessed August 7, 2012
- ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "2012 Primary Candidates," accessed July 16, 2012
- ↑ Washington State Legislature, "HB 1155 - 2019-20, accessed April 22, 2019
- ↑ The Spokesman-Review, "Do nurses spend time ‘playing cards’? Washington senator’s remarks spark outrage," April 19, 2019
- ↑ Washington State Nurses Association, "Senator states that nurses “probably play cards for a considerable amount of the day” in amending rest breaks bill," April 18, 2019
- ↑ Tri-City Herald, "She regrets comment about nurses playing cards. But Washington senator still opposes bill," April 20, 2019
- ↑ Multi State, "2015 State Legislative Session Dates," accessed July 13, 2015
- ↑ StateScape, "Session schedules," accessed July 23, 2014
- ↑ StateScape, "Session schedules," accessed July 23, 2014
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 Washington Policy Center, "2014 Missed Votes Report for Legislators Released," March 18, 2014
- ↑ Freedom Foundation, "2012 Big Spender List," accessed April 16, 2014
- ↑ My Freedom Foundation, "Home," accessed June 18, 2014
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Mike Hewitt (R) |
Washington State Senate District 16 2017-2021 |
Succeeded by Perry Dozier (R) |
| Preceded by - |
Washington House of Representatives District 16-Position 1 2005–2017 |
Succeeded by Bill Jenkin (R) |
