Andrew Swire Billig (born May 1, 1968) is an American politician of the Democratic Party and co-owner of the

Spokane Indians The Spokane Indians are a Minor League Baseball team located in Spokane Valley, the city immediately east of Spokane, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest. The Indians are members of the High-A Northwest League (NWL) as an affiliate of the Co ...

minor league baseball team. On November 6, 2012, Billig was elected to the

Washington State Senate The Washington State Senate is the upper house of the Washington State Legislature. The body consists of 49 members, each representing a district with a population of nearly 160,000. The State Senate meets at the Washington State Capitol, Legis ...

, representing the 3rd Legislative District until his retirement in 2025.(November 7, 2012
"Democrats holding edge in Legislature"
Spokesman Review. Retrieved on December 5, 2012. He served as the Senate Majority Leader from 2019 to 2025."Washington State Wire"

Personal life

Billig grew up in

Chevy Chase, Maryland Chevy Chase () is the colloquial name of an area that includes a town, several incorporated villages, and an unincorporated census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland; and one adjoining neighborhood in northwest Washington, D ...

. He is of

Jewish descent ''Zera Yisrael'' (), also known as ''Zera Kadosh'' (), is a legal category in ''Halakha'' that denotes the blood descendants of Jews who, for one reason or another, are not legally Jewish according to religious criteria. This is usually due to a ...

. Billig graduated

cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...

from

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

in 1990 with a degree in

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

. He has two

children A child () is a human being between the stages of childbirth, birth and puberty, or between the Development of the human body, developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking ...

, Isabella "Bella" and Samuel, and is an active runner and triathlete, having completed the Coeur d’Alene

Ironman Triathlon An Ironman Triathlon is one of a series of long-distance triathlon races organized by the World Triathlon Corporation (WTC), consisting of a swim, a bicycle ride and a marathon run completed in that order, a total of . It is widely consid ...

in 2004."The Spokesman-Review Election Center"
Retrieved on June 26, 2012.

Political positions

In 2011, Billig received the Inter-Continental Smackdown Champion Award from Fuse Washington for his work against phosphorus pollution in Washington's lakes and rivers. He has expressed support for

gun control Gun control, or firearms regulation, is the set of laws or policies that regulate the manufacture, sale, transfer, possession, modification, or use of firearms and ammunition by civilians. Most countries allow civilians to own firearms, bu ...

, including a bill that would ban possession of high-capacity magazines.

Washington House of Representatives

After he was elected to the House of Representatives in 2010, Billig immediately assumed a transportation leadership position in the House, serving as vice-chair of the House Transportation Committee., Retrieved on June 26, 2012. In that role, he helped write the state's two-year transportation budget.
, Retrieved on July 10, 2012. Billig also served on the Education, Environment, and Technology & Economic Development committees.

Washington Senate

In 2012, Billig was elected to the Senate, where he was given a leadership position as the Minority Whip. In 2015, he was chosen to represent the caucus as the Deputy Leader and served as the Senate Majority Leader from 2018 to 2024. During the 2018 legislative session, he served on the Early Learning & K-2 Education, Ways & Means, and Rule
committees
One of his primary achievements of the 2018 session was the DISCLOSE Act, which increases transparency of campaign contributions and closes campaign finance disclosure loopholes. In 2024, Billig announced he would not seek reelection for a fourth term.

Spokane Indians Baseball Team

In 1992, Billig became general manager of the Spokane Indians Baseball Team. He later became president and co-owner of the team and remains active in management and ownership."Northwest League Awards"
Retrieved on June 26, 2012.

Awards

Billig has been recognized repeatedly for his leadership with the Spokane Indians, being voted

Northwest League The Northwest League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Northwestern United States and Western Canada. A Class A Short Season league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Major League Baseba ...

Executive of the Year in both 1994 and 2004. He was also nominated for the

Larry MacPhail Award The Larry MacPhail Award was presented annually from 1966 to 2019 by Minor League Baseball to recognize "a club that demonstrates outstanding and creative marketing and promotional efforts within its community, its ballpark (including non-game day ...

for promotional excellence several times and won the Joe Martin Award for Service to Baseball and the Community in 2007.

References

External links

Senate homepageCampaign website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Billig, Andy 1968 births 21st-century members of the Washington State Legislature Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School alumni Democratic Party members of the Washington House of Representatives Democratic Party Washington (state) state senators Living people People from Chevy Chase, Maryland