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Many Washingtonians of all ages on the autism spectrum and their families struggle to access care and services in homes, schools, and communities. Washington Autism Alliance (WAA) works with legislators, insurance providers, care providers, and educators to help individuals across Washington state access services.
Join us as a Legislative Advocacy Ambassador and stand together with us for change. Our goal is to educate lawmakers in cities, counties, and the state and build a case for their support of our loved ones.
“Without a doubt, no organization has helped the autistic community as much as WAA. If you know someone with autism, their life is better because of what has been accomplished by this fantastic group of people.”
Ready to get involved? Email [email protected] to find out how to join our advocacy efforts today!
Current Legislative Goals
Enhanced Behavioral Support Homes: EBSH’s are intended to serve individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), including autism, who have complex behavioral or medical needs and require specialized support. These individuals are often among the most vulnerable members of our community and frequently need stable, trained care teams and appropriate clinical services to live safely in community settings.
However, families and advocates consistently report major gaps in access to appropriate services. Many individuals are referred to supports that technically exist on paper but are not actually available in practice due to provider shortages, lack of specialized training, or geographic limitations. Adults with IDD are particularly affected, as service systems are often designed primarily for children.
Access to Care: The Access to Care project seeks to document and address these gaps by collecting real-world information about provider availability, service barriers, and outcomes. The goal is to help policymakers understand where the system is not functioning as intended and to support the development of a sufficient provider network capable of meeting complex needs. Reliable access to appropriate services improves safety, stability, and long-term outcomes for individuals and families.
Key goals include:
The Washington Equal Access to Justice Act (WEAJA) is intended to help individuals challenge unlawful actions by state agencies by allowing them to recover attorneys’ fees and costs when they prevail. The law helps ensure that individuals are not prevented from seeking justice simply because of financial barriers.
However, the amount recoverable under the statute has not been updated since its creation in the 1990s. Because litigation costs have increased significantly over time, the current cap often does not reflect the true cost of bringing a case. This reduces the law’s effectiveness as a tool for accountability.
In practice, very few cases are brought under the statute, and only one successful complaint has resulted in a damages award. When the financial recovery available is significantly lower than the cost of litigation, attorneys are less able to take these cases, even when agencies may not be meeting legal obligations.
Updating the recoverable amount would help ensure the statute functions as originally intended by making it more realistic for individuals to challenge agency actions when necessary. Strengthening the law promotes accountability, encourages compliance with existing legal obligations, and supports fair access to justice.
Key reasons to amend the WEAJA:
Become a Legislative Advocacy Ambassador
Duties are based on your interest and may include:
Advocacy Tips & Tricks
The people you’re meeting with or speaking to may not be familiar with autism, evidence based treatments as essential health benefits, what happens in absence of timely therapies, and its impact on the individual, family, schools, and communities.It is our role as Autism Ambassadors to help educate everyone to ensure our loved ones have every opportunity they need to thrive in their own communities statewide.
Need help identifying your district and representative? Go to https://app.leg.wa.gov/districtfinder
When you call your representative, you will typically either receive a prompt to leave a voicemail or speak to a staffer. Keep your call simple, clear, and straightforward.
Hello, my name is [your first name], I am a resident in your district, and I [insert relationship to autism/IDD]. I am calling to discuss [insert topic/issue]. This is important to me because [insert reason]. I am calling on you as my representative in our state legislature to draw attention to this matter.
My name is [Your Name], and I am a constituent from [Your City]. I am also the [parent/caregiver/family member] of [Name], who is [age] and has [brief description of disability/support needs]. One of their greatest strengths is [personal strength], and one of their greatest barriers is [brief barrier].
I volunteer as a Legislative District Ambassador with the Washington Autism Alliance. In this role, I’ve seen how difficult and fragmented the system can be for individuals with complex support needs. It is essential that Washington builds and funds specialized supports for those who rely on them the most.
I am writing because there remains a significant and often overlooked gap in services for people with autism and intellectual and developmental disabilities, and I would be grateful for the opportunity to share my family’s experience and learn how your office is approaching these unmet needs.
Would you or a member of your team be willing to join me and Arzu Forough, President of Washington Autism Alliance, for a 15-minute Zoom conversation?
Thank you very much for your time, leadership, and consideration.
Sincerely,
[Your Full Name]
