Group of community leaders across state write letter to Gov. Inslee asking for pause on phase rollback

A group of almost 70 community leaders from across Washington wrote a letter to Gov. Jay Inslee asking for a pause on phase rollbacks.

The letter asks for a three-week hold on taking counties back to phase 2 of the state’s reopening plan. The state Department of Health warned last week that a few counties were in danger of not meeting the metrics required to stay in phase 3.

>> State changes rules, fewer counties to return to Phase 2

The rollback would “punish struggling businesses for personal behavior while doing little to stop the spread of COVID,” the letter read.

The letter was signed by dozens of organizations including the Washington Hospitality Association, Association of Washington Business and the Washington Bankers Association.

The letter points to increasing Washington’s vaccination rate as the key to battling the virus, rather than decreasing capacity at businesses. It also suggests that the phase rollback is not an effective deterrent as people would travel to other counties with less restrictions.

“The decisions you make in this critical moment will not only determine how we respond to the challenges of the pandemic, but they will help determine whether we meet these challenges as a united or divided state. We urge you to grant us the opportunity to remain united. Give us three weeks, and together, we can make a large leap forward in increasing vaccinations and stamping out this virus,” the letter concludes.

See a full list of businesses that signed the letter below.

Association of Washington Business

Building Industry Association of Washington

Washington Bankers

Washington Food Industry Association

Washington Forest Protection Association

Washington Hospitality Association

Washington Realtors

Washington Retail Association

Washington State Farm Bureau

Washington Trucking Associations

Auburn Area Chamber of Commerce

Bellingham/Whatcom Chamber of Commerce & Industry

Birch Bay Chamber of Commerce

Blaine Chamber of Commerce

Centralia-Chehalis Chamber of Commerce

Coupeville Chamber of Commerce

Covington Chamber of Commerce

Enumclaw Chamber of Commerce

Fife Milton Edgewood Chamber

Greater Federal Way Chamber

Greater Grays Harbor, Inc.

Greater Issaquah Chamber of Commerce

Greater Lake Stevens Chamber

Greater Kirkland Chamber of Commerce

Greater Marysville Tulalip Chamber

Greater Spokane Incorporated

Greater Spokane Valley Chamber

Greater Vancouver Chamber of Commerce

Greater Yakima Chamber of Commerce

Historic Fairhaven Association

Kelso Longview Chamber of Commerce

Kittitas County Chamber of Commerce

Lakewood Chamber of Commerce

Maple Valley Black Diamond Chamber

Moses Lake Chamber

Mt. Baker Chamber of Commerce

OneRedmond

Pasco Chamber of Commerce

Prosser Chamber of Commerce

Pullman Chamber of Commerce

Puyallup Sumner

Quincy Valley Chamber

Renton Chamber of Commerce

Sammamish Chamber

San Juan Islands Visitors Bureau

Seattle Southside Chamber

Shelton-Mason County Chamber

SnoValley Chamber of Commerce

South Kitsap

Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber

The Chamber Collective

Travel Tacoma - Mt Rainier

Tri-Cities Hispanic Chamber

Tri-City Regional Chamber

Visit Spokane

Washington Tourism Alliance

Woodinville Chamber

City of Pullman

City of Spokane Valley

Spokane County

Business Health Trust

Evergreen Reg. Volleyball Ass.

HUB Sports Center

Olympic Sports Center in Bremerton

Pacific Northwest Qualifier

Puyallup Juniors Volleyball Club

The Warehouse

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