Signature goal met, Pickleball Rising design wins poll vote
The Seattle Metro Pickleball Association is thrilled to announce that a Pickleball State Sport license plate bill will be part of Washington’s 2023 legislative session! The minimum requirement of 3,500 signatures has been collected. The design Pickleball Rising won the poll vote, and after additional feedback, the adjusted design shown above will be submitted to the Department of Licensing.
This is Washington’s second pickleball bill in two years, and the Seattle Metro Pickleball Association is honored to participate as the bill’s non-profit sponsor. Our legislative sponsor, Senator John Lovick of Mill Creek, will be moving the bill through the legislature.
From left: Frank Chiappone (SMPA President), Kate Van Gent (SMPA Director), Senator John Lovick (sponsored SB5615), Chuck Wright (proposed pickleball as the state sport), and Anna Copley (co-founder of Pickleball Central).
The Pickleball State Sport license plate was designed by Jason Laramie of Laramie Studio in Seattle. His design was inspired by the ferry ride from Bainbridge Island, the birthplace of pickleball. The view is towards the east, where a pickleball rises like the sun over Washington State. The pickleball paddles at left are based on the commemorative OneShot paddles signed on Bainbridge Island in March 2022, where the State Sport bill was signed into law. Of eight poll designs, Pickleball Rising received over 50% of the votes.
Collecting 3,500 signatures since the official petition launch on September 10th at Mariners Pickleball Night was no easy feat. SMPA enlisted many volunteers to reach folks all over Washington State, from Bellingham to Spokane. We would like to thank our volunteers and our partners who participated in collecting signatures, including Pickleball Central, Pickleball is Great, Eastside Tennis Center in Kirkland, Gorin Tennis Center in Redmond, Harbor Square Athletic Club in Edmonds, Skagit Valley College/Blackburn Pickleball Pavilion, Pickleball Playground in Spokane, and the many statewide clubs who hung our banners and posted our petition.
A very special thanks goes to volunteer John Rankin, who drove statewide to pickleball tournaments and pickleball events to gather signatures. We are firm believers that bills like this are needed to encourage the development of dedicated pickleball courts throughout Washington State.
Do you want to help build more pickleball facilities in your area but don’t know how? Become part of our movement by buying a Pickleball State Sport license plate when it becomes available! Every time you drive, your community and municipal leaders will be reminded that pickleball is here to stay. Proceeds from the purchase of every plate will support the development of dedicated pickleball courts. The display of Pickleball State Sport license plates throughout the state is a great way to help grow the sport and attract the attention needed to get more pickleball facilities built in your community and throughout Washington.
See you on the courts!