Kim Schrier

Some of the wealthiest corporations are making record profits while jacking up prices for American families and small businesses. I’m working with both parties in Congress to make our supply chains work both for consumers and for 8th district farmers who need to get their goods to market. I’m working to bring down gas prices and energy costs by holding big oil accountable so they stop ripping us off. 

I will work to secure clean energy to create jobs and cut costs for families and small businesses. 

I will bring financial relief to families experiencing these rising costs by finally making sure the wealthiest corporations pay their fair share of taxes, without raising taxes on middle-class families.

I will support legislation to ensure that all workers earn a livable wage that can provide for a family.

I will support the vital role of the federal government in promoting innovation by increasing investments in scientific research and development.

I will prioritize investment in infrastructure, such as public transit in denser areas and access to high-speed broadband for all households and small businesses throughout the district.

Trade is absolutely critical to Washington state. Ours is the most trade-dependent state in the nation, and our economy here in the 8th district is particularly reliant on trade. We need to have comprehensive trade agreements that support our workers and our businesses here in the 8th district. That’s why I was proud to support the USMCA in my first term in Congress to set a new standard for a mutually beneficial free trade agreement. I’ve fought for worker protections in trade agreements since getting to Congress and will continue to do so.

When farmers told me they were hurting because of supply chain issues and shipping container shortages hampering their ability to get their goods to market, I took on the Biden administration to get supply routes back open and pushed to open pop-up ports at both the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma that accept dry agricultural or refrigerated containers for temporary storage to combat the nearly 30% decline in agricultural exports caused by unreliable shipping companies. Now I am pushing for the passage of legislation to prevent the shipping companies from price gouging our farmers because I know how important trade is to WA-08.

My mother was a public elementary school teacher, my son is a public school student, and my entire education has been public, including college and medical school. I am grateful for that. Our children all deserve access to an excellent public education, regardless of zip code.

Universal pre-K: free, high quality pre-K for all Washington children. Right now only 22% of 3 and 4 year olds in WA have access to publicly funded pre-K. The average cost of private pre-K in WA is $8,600 

Child Nutrition: More than 230,000 children in Washington live in households that struggle with hunger. I have worked to ensure all kids have a healthy start by expanding access to school meals and healthy food in the summer 

We must make college a more affordable option for students and make sure they aren’t burdened by debt for decades. I believe we can use debt forgiveness strategically to channel students into careers where we need help desperately, like mental health professionals, educators, and nurses.

I will work to make sure that our high school graduates have the education and skills they need for today’s economy, whether they are headed to college, trade school, or straight into the workforce.

Climate change is real and I know we must take immediate action. Dramatic, destructive weather systems and forest fires have grabbed the attention of our nation and the world, while the impacts of climate change run exponentially wider than that. From species extinction to oceanic ecosystems collapse, communities across America deserve to understand how their region’s forests, water resources, agricultural industries, and native species held dear will be impacted. 

Here in Central Washington, we will see more wildfires, earlier growing seasons, reduced snowpack, warmer temperatures in our tributaries, and species extinction. We have the unique opportunity to champion policies that will create new, sustainable, clean energy jobs and grow our economy. As a person of science, I apply evidence-based principles and methods to my evaluation of environmental policy and regulation, and I insist that our government agencies do the same. As a pediatrician who understands the negative impacts of polluted water and air on the health of our children, I will fight efforts to reduce or eliminate clean air and clean water protections. 

In Congress, I secured federal funding to maintain flood risk management, increase municipal and industrial water supply to Tacoma Public Utility, and reopen miles of critical salmon and steelhead habitat, for the Howard Hanson Dam.

I introduced the Legacy Roads and Trails bill, to maintain roads and trails on U.S Forest Service lands to improve water quality and protect endangered species on public land.

I cosponsored legislation passed into law to ensure a secure water supply for Central Washington during drought years that was a model for water conservation across the country.

I co-sponsored the permanent reauthorization of the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which will help protect our environment in perpetuity.

I co-sponsored the Climate Action Now Act, which would keep the United States in the Paris Climate Accords. 

I introduced a successful amendment to the Climate Action Now Act that recognizes farm conservation practices as a strategy to address climate change. 

I will continue to champion access to our public lands, and responsible and effective action to reduce carbon emissions and mitigate climate change impacts, and will continue to work to focus resources on people most dramatically affected by climate change.

As a mom and pediatrician, I know how important it is to take action on common sense gun safety. Like many parents, I trust that my son will be safe when I send him to school, but we know that nowhere is really safe in a country that allows guns to get into the hands of people who would do others harm.

I will always support the second amendment, and the right of responsible gun owners to hunt, target shoot, or own guns for protection. We must implement common sense measures to reduce gun violence and save lives while respecting those rights. 

That’s exactly what we did earlier this year when both Republicans and Democrats came together in the wake of the tragic Uvalde shooting to pass the bipartisan Safer Communities Act which implemented common sense gun safety measures that nearly all Americans agree on. This process can be a model for making progress that can save lives without infringing on second amendment rights.

I cosponsored universal, comprehensive background check legislation in Congress because guns should never be allowed in the hands of someone with a history of domestic violence, a violent criminal record, convicted stalkers, or those with severe mental illness. 

I co-sponsored the Violence Against Women Act reauthorization that worked to keep guns out of the hands of those convicted of domestic violence offenses. 

I support repealing the Dickey Amendment, so the Centers for Disease Control can research gun violence as a public health crisis. As a scientist and physician, I know that we base all other health challenges, from highway safety to cancer, on data. But the federal government is not allowed to investigate gun violence in the same way, which must be reversed.

I co-sponsored the Prevent Family Fire Act of 2019 because weapons of war do not belong on our streets and no gun belongs in the hands of an unsupervised child.

I am the first and only pediatrician in Congress and was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when I was 16 years old. Both as a patient and a community pediatrician for nearly 20 years, I know how important it is to make health care, along with other everyday costs, more affordable for middle-class families. I have worked to get bills passed into law to end surprise medical billing, prevent Medicare cuts, and make healthcare more affordable by shoring up the ACA. 

I know firsthand what is wrong with our current system. I have comforted mothers crying in my office because their costs and deductibles are skyrocketing, that’s why this year I re-introduced the Helping Families Access Pediatric Care Act (HR 8573) that will ensure children and families can access necessary, affordable care.

I’ve helped pass laws to actually bring down the cost of lifesaving prescription drugs, like insulin. I will work to make healthcare and other everyday costs more affordable for middle-class families. As a doctor, I will always fight to protect a woman’s right to choose and to keep politicians out of private decisions between a woman and her doctor.

I introduced a bill, signed into law by President Trump, to speed up getting generic insulin to market, to bring down costs. 

I have stood up to price gouging by prescription drug companies and voted to finally give Medicare the power to negotiate prescription drug costs and cap insulin at $35/month for seniors.

Re-introduced the Helping Families Access Pediatric Care Act (HR 8573) that will ensure children and families can access necessary, affordable care.

I have helped save 8th District families up to $2,800/year on their health insurance

Where there are borders, there needs to be security and responsibility, on both sides. That’s why I support comprehensive, bipartisan immigration reform as part of a long-term solution. 

I will work to ensure our border is secure and protected

I will continue pursuing comprehensive immigration reform with a path to citizenship on a bipartisan basis.

I will push to expand and improve worker visas that agricultural and technology-based economies all across our district depend upon

I will push to codify DACA and DREAM Act as laws of the land 

I worked with Republican Rep. Dan Newhouse (WA-04) to introduce bipartisan legislation to create a path to citizenship for farm workers.

Everyone deserves to feel safe in their community. I will always fight back against any efforts to defund the police. We need to give our officers the tools and training they need, so they can enforce the laws and keep our communities safe – and also have the appropriate oversight and accountability. 

Here are some ways that I have worked to support law enforcement in Washington’s Eighth District:

I participated in 7 ride-alongs and officer roundtables with local law enforcement across the district to hear firsthand from officers about the tools they need to keep our communities safe.

I introduced amendments in Congress to give local departments ways to improve safety and build trust: broad adoption of body-worn cameras and using expertise from mental health professionals where appropriate. 

In order to secure these resources to fund these initiatives, I co-sponsored and helped Congress pass the Invest to Protect Act, a bipartisan bill that would bring resources and training to departments with fewer than 200 officers. 

I am working to secure $2 million in federal funding to bring body cameras and crisis response teams to the King County Sheriff’s Office, to protect officers and the community.

I sponsored the COPS on the Beat Grant Program Reauthorization and Parity Act that would triple funding for COPS grants, and the PART Act to address catalytic converter thefts. 

I voted to increase law enforcement and public safety funding by $500 million for 2022.

Veterans, servicemembers, and their families have made huge sacrifices for our country. They deserve to be treated with respect during and after serving our country. Part of respecting our servicemen and women, vets, and their families is ensuring they have access to the services and support they need.

As a member of Congress, I have:

Held the Biden Administration accountable to providing better care for local Veterans. I pushed the Veterans Administration to address the problems I was hearing about from Veterans in Wenatchee– unacceptable delays in care and specialist referrals, inability to schedule appointments online, and impossible wait times on the phone. I got more phone lines open so Veterans could better access care. 

Voted for the largest expansion of veterans’ health care in decades: the Honoring our PACT Act, which has been signed into law and will expand care to 3.5 million veterans exposed to toxins and make it easier for future veterans to get the care they deserve

Voted for the 2023 Defense Bill that included a 4.6% pay raise for some service members.

Added key amendments to the 2023 Defense bill including establishing data reporting on military families’ access to childcare to better serve our families.

Added amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to make job opportunities more accessible to military spouses