On Tuesday, January 24 at 8:00 a.m., the Washington Senate Higher Education Committee is holding a hearing on S.B. 5141, Yoga Alliance®-supported legislation that will protect Washington yoga teacher training programs (YTTs) from having to comply with unnecessary and expensive regulations. This legislation is moving fast, and the hearing is our first opportunity to show lawmakers that our bill benefits small businesses across the state.
As we’ve learned from similar efforts in other states, YTT providers are the best advocates for yoga-related legislation, and we hope you can join us to speak for a few minutes at the hearing in Olympia on Tuesday morning. Legislators listen when our members explain the real-life consequences of government actions. If you are interested in participating, please contact our representative in Washington state, Vicki Christophersen, today at vicki@christopherseninc.com.
And don’t worry—you don’t need any experience with the state government to be a strong advocate for our bill. You just need to share your story!
Background
As we noted in our alert to you last week, we’ve made incredible progress in Washington to help our state’s yoga studios. Last week, bills were introduced in the Washington House and Senate to exempt YTTs from the expensive fees and onerous administrative requirements enforced by the state’s Workforce Training & Education Coordinating Board. These requirements make sense for vocational or technical training schools, but are a poor fit for yoga programs.
The legislation Yoga Alliance supports will clarify that YTTs are not like private career schools and therefore will not be required to obtain a license, though nothing would preclude YTTs from seeking a license if they want one. Our support for this legislation builds on previous efforts supporting YTTs, yoga teachers, and students in states from coast to coast to make sure that YTTs may operate without unnecessary government regulation.
Show Your Support
The hearing before the Washington Senate Committee on Higher Education tomorrow morning is an exciting milestone toward making common sense legislation a reality here in Washington. Testimony from yoga community members is invaluable, so please let us know immediately if you can participate at the hearing, speaking out in favor of this important legislation. Please email our Washington representative, Vicki Christophersen, at vicki@christopherseninc.com if you are able to participate.
For those who can’t make it to Olympia on Tuesday, please help build momentum and show your support for our legislation by signing our petition in favor of the two YTT-related bills, S.B. 5141 and H.B. 1385.