Jeffrey Robert Morris (born February 24, 1964) is an American politician who served as a member of the Washington House of Representatives, representing the 40th district from 1997 to 2020. A member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, Morris was one of three self-identified American Indians, along with John McCoy (

Tulalip Tribes The Tulalip Tribes of Washington (, lut, dxʷlilap), formerly known as the Tulalip Tribes of the Tulalip Reservation, is a federally recognized tribe of Duwamish, Snohomish, Snoqualmie, Skagit, Suiattle, Samish, and Stillaguamish people. Th ...

) and Jay Rodne ( Bad River Band of Chippewa), in the

Washington State Legislature The Washington State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Washington. It is a bicameral body, composed of the lower Washington House of Representatives, composed of 98 Representatives, and the upper Washington State Senat ...

Early life and education

Jeff Morris is a fourth-generation native of Guemes Island. He also lived in Anacortes, Washington, where he graduated Anacortes High School in 1982. He graduated from Central Washington University.

Career

Based in

Anacortes Anacortes ( ) is a city in Skagit County, Washington, United States. The name "Anacortes" is an adaptation of the name of Anne Curtis Bowman, who was the wife of early Fidalgo Island settler Amos Bowman.40th Legislative District. Repeatedly re-elected, he served as chairman of the Technology and Economic Development Committee and is also a member of the Environment and Transportation committees. He has previously served as speaker

pro tempore ''Pro tempore'' (), abbreviated ''pro tem'' or ''p.t.'', is a Latin phrase which best translates to "for the time being" in English. This phrase is often used to describe a person who acts as a ''locum tenens'' (placeholder) in the absence of ...

, House floor leader, and chairman of the Finance and Technology, Energy, and Communications committees. Morris served on the executive committee of the National Conference of State Legislatures and is the past chairman of the

Council of State Governments The Council of State Governments (CSG) is a nonpartisan, non-profit organization in the United States that serves all three branches of state government. Founded in 1933 by Colorado state Sen. Henry W. Toll, CSG is a region-based forum that ...

-West and past president of the

Pacific Northwest Economic Region The Pacific NorthWest Economic Region (PNWER) is a statutory collaborative regional U.S.-Canadian nonprofit organization dedicated to addressing common issues and interests like encouraging global economic competitiveness and preserving the natura ...

. He retired mid-term in 2020 to take a job in the private sector, and activist

Alex Ramel Alexander W. Ramel (born 1977) is an American politician and activist serving as a member of the Washington House of Representatives from the 40th district, which includes San Juan County and portions of Whatcom and Skagit Counties. Early l ...

was appointed to serve for the remainder of his term.

References

External links

Legislative biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morris, Jeff 1964 births Living people 20th-century American politicians 21st-century American politicians 20th-century Native Americans 21st-century Native Americans Central Washington University alumni Democratic Party members of the Washington House of Representatives Native American state legislators in Washington (state) People from Anacortes, Washington People from Mount Vernon, Washington Tsimshian people