Sen. Roach elected chair of Legislature’s military affairs committee

Sen. Pam Roach, a founding member of the Legislature’s Joint Committee on Veterans’ and Military Affairs, has been chosen to serve as co-chair of the 16-member panel. 

“I’m pleased to continue serving our veterans and for having been selected by my colleagues for this important position. Veterans are our future and this committee highlights them and their needs here in Washington state,” said Roach, R-rural Auburn, whose son is a member of the U.S. Air Force. 

The committee was created by the Legislature in 2001 to study issues and make recommendations regarding veterans issues, active military forces and the National Guard and Reserves.  

By statute one member from the Senate and one member from the House of Representatives must jointly lead the committee. Roach will serve as co-chair with Rep. Tina Orwall, D-Des Moines. 

The committee also addresses the structure and administration of the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Military Department. 

Roach’s work with the military goes beyond her service on the joint committee; just this year she secured $6.3 million in the state capital budget for a new Pierce County Readiness Center. The state Military Department announced recently that the center, which replaces the decommissioned Tacoma armory, will be constructed at Camp Murray, which is next to Joint Base Lewis McChord.