Funding for housing and tourism rose as priorities in week four of the 2023 Legislative Session, and the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce supported its members and the alternative jet fuel industry.
Housing
Housing continues to be a primary focus this legislative session. According to Rep. Mia Gregerson, Washington state is currently 150,000 homes short of demand and that number is projected to escalate to 1 million over the next two decades. To address that shortage legislators have introduced several bills this session. You can read more here. On Jan. 31, a bipartisan group of legislators from the House and Senate came together for a Legislative Press Conference on Housing Supply.
Alternative Jet Fuel
Last week bipartisan legislation was introduced related to sustainable aviation fuels in House Bill 1505/Senate Bill 5447. The goal of the legislation is to promote in-state use and deployment of sustainable aviation fuels through tax incentives and other tools. On Feb. 1, the Seattle Metro Chamber’s Senior Vice President of Public Affairs and Communications Lars Erickson testified in support of the bill. The House version is scheduled for an abbreviated hearing this week and the Chamber will sign in PRO.
Tourism
To address the post-pandemic lag in state tourism, Rep. Cindy Ryu sponsored House Bill 1258, which was heard in the House Appropriations Committee last week. This legislation would increase statewide tourism funding in Washington by reinvesting the existing sales tax on tourism sales such as hotels, rental cars and restaurants and changing the match requirements. Washington’s tourism agency is currently the least funded in the United States. The Senate companion bill is scheduled for a hearing Feb. 6 in the Senate Ways and Means Committee.
Working Families Tax Credit
The Working Families Tax Credit program to provide nearly 400,000 families with $1,200 cash refunds went live on Feb. 1. Click here for more information about the program. Additional bills related to the tax credit program had hearings last week:
- House Bill 1000, sponsored by Rep. Drew Stokesbary would expand the program by doubling the maximum and minimum credit amounts for all applicants with at least one qualifying child.
- House Bill 1075, sponsored by Rep. My-Linh Thai changes the age requirement from 18-25.
- House Bill 1477, sponsored by Thai allows filing as “married filing separately” to qualify for the credit.
2023 Priorities
Sen. Marko Liias, Sen. Emily Randall, Rep. Monica Stonier and Rep. Jamila Taylor joined for the weekly legislative democratic leaders media availability on Jan. 31. They discussed issues relating to childcare accessibility, public safety and the lawsuit challenging the constitutionality against Move Ahead Washington, which is the transportation package the legislature passed last year. Republican leadership media availability was also held on Jan. 31 and joined by Sen. John Braun, Sen. Chris Gildon, Rep .JT Wilcox and Rep. Peter Abbarrno. Braun said Republicans are focusing primarily on public safety, education and housing this session.
Legislation to Watch
Employment Law
Senate Bill 5123 – Concerning the employment of individuals who lawfully consume cannabis
This legislation would place restrictions on an employer’s ability to screen for an applicant’s lawful use of cannabis unless federal regulations require otherwise. Last week the bill moved out of committee with an amendment from Sen. Karen Keiser. The amendment clarifies that the bill does not apply to testing for controlled substances other than pre-employment. For example, the bill would not affect an employer’s ability to test for controlled substances after an accident if there is suspicion of impairment. The amendment also excluded airline and aerospace industries from the bill. The bill has been referred to Rules.
Senate Bill 5586 -Concerning employees’ Paid Family and Medical Leave data
This bill would provide claim information to employers necessary to implement the Paid Family and Medical Leave program. It allows employers to fully Seattle Metro Chamberister the program by providing necessary information regarding claim duration, payments and type of claim. The bill was heard last week in the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee and is scheduled for executive session Feb. 7.
Senate Bill 5286 – Modifying the premium provisions of the Paid Family and Medical Leave program
This bipartisan legislation proposes changes to the Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML) program including adjusting the way premiums are calculated, raising the cap on premiums, and creating a reserve fund. Last week the bill passed the Senate, 48-0, and has been referred to the House Labor and Workplace Standards Committee.
Taxes
House Bill 1670 – Raising the limit factor for property taxes
This bill was a recommendation from the State Tax Structure Work Group. House Bill 1670 was introduced Jan. 30 and seeks to raise the limit factor for property taxes. It has not yet been scheduled for a public hearing.
Housing Affordability and Homelessness
This session the conversation surrounding housing supply and the “missing middle” has gained significant momentum. This bill would require cities with a population of at least 6,000 or a city near an urban growth area with a population of more than 200,000 to increase density in residential areas typically dedicated to single-family detached housing. The House Bill is scheduled for executive action on Feb. 7 in the House Housing Committee.
The legislation prohibits, with certain exceptions, a landlord from: (1) engaging in predatory practices related to excessive rent increases; (2) differentiating treatment based on whether the tenancy is month-to-month or longer term; and (3) charging move-in fees and deposits that exceed one month’s rent before a tenant takes possession of a dwelling unit. The bill is scheduled for executive action Feb. 9.
This legislation aims to limit rent increases to reduce homelessness. Among other regulations the bill prohibits a landlord from increasing the rent more than the CPI-U or 3%, whichever is greater, up to a maximum or 7%. The Department of Commerce is required to calculate and publish the maximum annual rent increase percentage. Although they are very similar the main difference between House Bill 1389 and House Bill 1388 is that 1389 allows landlords to accrue increases and apply them later. For example, if a landlord did not increase rent by 5% in 2023 they would be able to increase by 10% in 2024. Both House and Senate bills are scheduled for executive action Feb. 9 and Feb. 10, respectively.
This legislation would require cities and counties to allow accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in urban growth areas (with some restrictions) and permit homeowners to convert garages into ADUs. This bill passed out of committee on Feb. 2.
House Bill 1276/ Senate Bill 5235 – Concerning accessory dwelling units
This legislation would require cities and counties to allow ADUs but differs from House Bill 1337 in that it also allows homeowners to lease the ADUs as short-term rentals. The House Bill had a public hearing on Jan. 23 but has not yet been scheduled for executive action. The Senate Bill had a public hearing on Jan. 26 and an executive session scheduled Feb. 2, but no action was taken.
House Bill 1517/Senate Bill 5466 – Promoting transit-oriented development
Liias and Rep. Julia Reed are sponsoring Gov. Jay Inslee’s bill focused on transit-oriented development, seeking density of residential development near transit hubs and light rail stations. The House version has its first hearing on Feb. 7, and the Senate companion bill was already heard and is scheduled for Executive Session on Feb. 7. Seattle Metro Chamber’s Lars Erickson will be testifying in support of this bill.
Environment
House Bill 1216/ Senate Bill 5380 – Concerning clean energy siting
This governor-request legislation would create an Interagency Clean Energy Siting Coordinating Council to be co-chaired by the Department of Ecology and the Department of Commerce. The purpose of the council would be to expedite the permitting for clean energy projects. The bill would also establish a definition for clean energy projects “of statewide significance” and require SEPA review to be completed within two years. Both bills are scheduled for executive action Feb. 9 and Feb. 10, respectively.
House Bill 1131/Senate Bill 5154 – WRAP Act
What was once known as the RENEW Act has been rebranded as the Washington Recycling and Packaging Act or WRAP Act. This session the WRAP Act is sponsored by Rep. Liz Berry and Sen. Christine Rolfes. The WRAP Act passed out of the House Environment & Energy Committee on Feb. 2. The Committee passed a substitute bill, which you can review here. On Feb. 3, the Senate Environment, Energy and Technology Committee took executive action on the Senate version of the bill. The Committee passed a proposed substitute and then adopted one additional amendment to the proposed substitute bill.
What’s Coming Next
As we mark the start of the fifth week of the legislative session, we are a quarter of the way through the 2023 legislative session. The number of bill introductions has slowed.
The legislature will dig into the 2021 Blake decision this week, which struck down, with courts saying that Washington State’s drug possession law as unconstitutional. As you can read in this article, lawmakers are tasked with determining the future of our drug possession laws. On Feb. 6 the Senate Law and Justice Committee will hear several bills on this topic. This will likely be one of the most contentious issues this session.
The legislature continues to work on moving legislation out of policy and fiscal committees. The first major cutoff is the house of origin policy committee cutoff on Feb. 17. By this date all bills that are not necessary to implement the budget must be passed out of their policy committee to stay alive this session.
At this point in session the focus is primarily on policy bills however in the upcoming weeks following the release of the March revenue forecast, budget debates will begin to unfold.
Important Dates
Feb. 17, 2023 – Policy Committee Cutoff
Feb. 24, 2023 – Fiscal Committee Cutoff
March 8, 2023 – House of Origin Cutoff
March 29, 2023 – Policy Committee Cutoff – Opposite House
April 4, 2023 – Fiscal Committee Cutoff – Opposite House
April 12, 2023 – Opposite House Cutoff
April 23, 2023 – Sine Die