WASHINGTON — This past weekend, billions of people around the world celebrated the lunar new year, including many here in Washington state.
Right now, there's a push in Olympia to make it an official state holiday.
I sat down with the representative backing the bill and eastern Washington representative Marcus Riccelli to find out why they want the tradition recognized as a holiday.
2024 rings in the year of the dragon.
In Asian culture, it's considered to be a lucky year, where people can expect good fortune, wealth and wisdom. It's marked by special food shared with family.
Here in Washington, thousands of families celebrated.
It's why Rep. My-Linh Thai from Bellevue wants the state to recognize it as an official holiday. "Asian Americans, Native Hawaiian Pacific Islanders, has [have] consistently been seen in certain a group of people as the people who shouldn't be here, this is not their home, and we are not welcomed,” Rep. Thai added, "It is at the highest level of the political spectrum, seeing Asian American Native Hawaiian Pacific Islanders are Washingtonians."
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Asians represent about 10% of Washington state's population. The state already recognizes Korean-American Day and Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day.
Rep. Thai said, "None of it is truly elevating the rich cultural heritage of Asian American."
Thai tried to push the bill through last session, but it didn't move forward.
In that version, the holiday would've been a paid day off for state employees and a day off for students. Rep. Thai said, ultimately the fiscal note is what tipped the bill to not pass. According to the fiscal note for HB 1516, it would’ve cost taxpayers about $6-million dollars every two years. Rep. Linh said, "That speaks to the big to the reason why we we couldn't pass the bill, last session versus this session, a lot of it is due to the advocacy."
The new version makes it an unpaid recognized state holiday, but not considered a legal holiday.
I asked Representative Ricceli why he was co-sponsoring the bill. He said, "Well, first and foremost, Representative Thai has done an amazing job to make sure we understand the broader cultural diversity of our state." Ricceli added, "But also just the importance of looking back and embracing all of our history."
Washington state is not the first state to make Lunar New Year an official state holiday. California, Colorado, New Jersey and New York passed similar bills.
House Bill 2209 calls for the "Washington State Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs" to make resources available for people to learn more about the holiday across the state, including in Spokane.
Rep. Riccelli said, "We are a welcoming community, and we want to make sure that that signal is planted, it is a tough area, we are not the most diverse areas. So these kinds of efforts that are statewide, really are helpful to making sure that our children, my kids, and the folks in our region are getting the full cultural understanding and education."
However, not everyone is on board with the bill. The advocacy group Washington Asians for Equality released a statement which read:
"We do not oppose HB 2209. I think it is nice to have, but largely symbolic. We are disappointed that Rep. Thai abandoned last year's SHB 1516 and sponsored the less impactful HB 2209 instead. SHB 1516 would have made the actual Lunar New Year Day both a state legal holiday and a school holiday, which would have had a direct impact and spread awareness. When students and their families have a day off to celebrate Lunar New Year, they take notice. This creates a ripple effect in society and spreads awareness about Lunar New Year and the culture and tradition of Washington’s Asian American community. In contrast, HB 2209 leaves the decision to celebrate Lunar New Year in the hands of schools and government agencies. While some schools and businesses already celebrate Lunar New Year, I do not see how HB 2209 effectively changes the decision for those who do not and spreads awareness about the occasion.
Many students and families have expressed their desire for Lunar New Year Day to be designated as a state legal holiday, providing them with a dedicated time to celebrate this cultural tradition. We understand that there will be fiscal impacts associated with making Lunar New Year Day a state legal holiday. On the other hand, let's not overlook the joy and sense of inclusion it would bring, not only to members of the Asian American community but to society at large.”
The bill made it out of the house, it now heads to the senate where they will take public feedback, which can be done virtually now.
If it passes in the senate, it will then go to the governor's desk for his signature.
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