Misplaced Pages

Richard Charles DeBolt (born November 3, 1965) is an American politician of the Republican Party. He was a member of the Washington House of Representatives, representing the 20th district from 1997 to 2021. He was House Republican Leader from 2004 to 2005 and again from 2006 to 2013.

Political career

DeBolt was first elected to office in 1996. He ran for office with the goal of focusing on economic development and business-friendly policies, and he has said that increased employment is key to solving issues such as uninsured residents.

In 2006, he was re-elected minority leader over Mike Armstrong and Bruce Chandler after the Democratic Party won a 62-36 majority in the House. He held this position until 2014 when he stepped down due to health issues.

In 2012, the Washington Supreme Court ordered the State Legislature to fully fund K-12 public education in the McCleary v. Washington decision. Although the Legislature increased funding, they did not fully comply with the mandate and, two years later, were found to be in contempt. This was a campaign issue in the 2014 election, with DeBolt pledging not to institute new taxes to fund schools, in contrast with his opponent. DeBolt argued that the State Supreme Court's actions were politically motivated and represented a violation of the separation of powers, and he sponsored a bill to require State Supreme Court Justice candidates to declare their political party while running for office.

In 2013, DeBolt was selected to be the Ranking Republican on the House Capital Budget Committee, a position he held until his retirement from the legislature.

In 2019, in response to Governor Jay Inslee's proposed climate change legislation, DeBolt sponsored the Carbon Free Washington Act, which would provide financial incentives to businesses to reduce carbon use. He argued that providing incentives would lead to a better result than instituting mandates.

After 24 years in office, he retired from the House in 2021 and became Executive Director of the Lewis Economic Development Council.

Personal life

DeBolt was born in 1965 in Tacoma, Washington, to a military family. After graduating from Cheyenne East High School, he studied International relations at University of Wyoming. In 1989, he married his wife, Amy, with whom he has two children, Sophie and Austin.

He has been involved with United Way of Lewis County, including serving as a board member and securing $3 million of funding for a pre-school.

Awards

• 2014 Guardians of Small Business award from the NFIB
• 2018 City Champion Award from the Association of Washington Cities
• 2020 Guardians of Small Business from the NFIB

References

1. "Cash Receipts and Expenditures". Public Disclosure Commission, State of Washington. 2006-02-09. Retrieved 2021-12-21.
2. "Richard DeBolt". votesmart.org. Retrieved 2012-07-09.
3. "2014 Washington General Election". PollVault. Archived from the original on 2016-03-28.
4. Schwartz, Eric; Chronicle, Natalie Johnson The (2020-02-06). "State Rep. Richard DeBolt Announces Upcoming Retirement From House After 24 Years". The Daily Chronicle. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
5. Mittge, Brian (2004-10-12). "DeBolt works to build jobs". The Daily Chronicle. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
6. Woodward, Curt (2006-11-18). "State House Republicans stick with DeBolt as their leader". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
7. Stang, John. "House leader Richard DeBolt leaves for health reasons | Cascade PBS News". crosscut.com. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
8. ^ "Washington bill registers displeasure with state Supreme Court". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 2024-06-22.
9. ^ Dickson, Amelia (2014-10-20). "DeBolt, Savoca differ on K-12 in District 20 race". The Olympian. Archived from the original on 2024-06-22.
10. Guerrero, Rafael (2015-01-05). "Bill counters justices on school funding ruling". Yakima Herald-Republic. Retrieved 2024-06-22.
11. "DeBolt Named Ranking Republican of House Capital Budget Committee". The Daily Chronicle. 2013-08-06. Retrieved 2024-06-22.
12. ^ "HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 2020-4686" (pdf). lawfilesext.leg.wa.gov. 2020-03-12. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
13. "DeBolt Counters Inslee's Climate Proposals With Incentive-Based Plan". The Daily Chronicle. 2019-01-18. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
14. "Richard DeBolt to Lead Lewis Economic Development Council". The Daily Chronicle. 2021-01-05. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
15. "About Us". Economic Alliance of Lewis County. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
16. "United Way of Lewis County Announces New Board Members". The Daily Chronicle. 2013-03-29. Retrieved 2024-06-22.
17. Rosane, Eric (2021-09-14). "Bezos Academy Signs 10-Year Lease Commitment to United Learning Center in Centralia". The Spokesman-Review. Archived from the original on 2021-09-21. Retrieved 2024-06-22.
18. "69 Lawmakers Win Main Street's Highest Award". nfib.com. May 12, 2014. Retrieved September 18, 2021.
19. "Rep. DeBolt recognized by Association of Washington Cities". The Reflector. 2018-10-29. Retrieved 2024-06-22.
20. "44 Washington Legislators Named Guardians of Small Business". nfib.com. July 15, 2020. Retrieved September 11, 2021.

External links

• Richard DeBolt at ballotpedia.org
• Richard DeBolt at ourcampaigns.com

This article about a politician from the state of Washington is a stub. You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it.

• v
• t
• e

• 1965 births
• Living people
• Republican Party members of the Washington House of Representatives
• 21st-century members of the Washington State Legislature
• Washington (state) politician stubs