Legislative Update – February 2024
The mid-session cutoff in the Washington State Legislature happened on February 13th. This means that the bills that did not get voted out of their chamber of origin are considered dead. There exists a chance for bills to be resurrected in the budget process, but this is rare.
Following is an update on bills that are important to us this session. Remember, bills move quickly during legislative sessions. This update is as of 2/27/24, so while we have done our best to provide you with the latest updates, things may have changed. Be sure to follow the links to voice your support or opposition to these bills!
Photo credit: Futurewise
The mid-session cutoff in the Washington State Legislature happened on February 13th. This means that the bills that did not get voted out of their chamber of origin are considered dead. There exists a chance for bills to be resurrected in the budget process, but this is rare.
Following is an update on bills that are important to us this session. Be sure to follow the links to voice your support or opposition to these bills!
Bills we are PRO on:
- HB 2296 extends the deadline for some counties, including Clark, for this Comprehensive Planning cycle from June 2025 to December of 2025, in part because of the need to address the Climate Change element. We support this bill and it has passed into law.
- HB 2160 promotes community and transit-oriented housing development, which FOCC supports as it would reduce pollution, sprawl, and bring down costs of living. This passed the house but failed in the Senate Ways and Means Committee on 2/26.
- HB 1998, SB 5901 concerns co-living housing. Allows boarding house-type housing, thus increases affordable housing options. HB 1998 passed both house and Senate!
- HB 2114 would protect renters against rife rent-gouging practices and be a huge step in addressing affordable housing and homelessness. While this bill did not pass the Senate side initially, it did pass the House with a 7% year cap on rent increases. Unfortunately, the bill failed in the Senate Ways and Means Committee on 2/26.
Bills we are CON on:
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Friends of Clark County also opposed HB 1371 and SB 5494, which further incentivizes rail operators by providing significant tax breaks for those infrastructure expenses. This legislation clearly favors the PVJR operator and places those railroad infrastructure costs in the laps of Washington State taxpayers. HB 1371 passed the House and stalled the Senate Ways and Means Committee on 2/22/2024, so is likely dead this session. (SB 5494 never got out of committee).
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SB 5834 – This bill concerns local government and allows for urban growth area boundaries to be moved on a yearly basis, which would lead to chaos. However, our partner organization, Futurewise, has told us that it would be very difficult to implement. This is because the county would have to do a countywide assessment on agricultural land to de-designate, which is not likely to happen. This bill has passed both houses.
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SB 6029 and HB 2126, which would have allowed rural accessory dwelling units (ADUs), increasing sprawl and threatening limited water resources in rural communities, did not pass this session! This is a HUGE WIN, especially as these bills had momentum early on. Thanks to our partner organization, Futurewise, for championing the opposition to this bill and to all of you who made your voice heard on this!
Many bills introduced in the short legislative session don’t make it through; however, a bill can survive for two years before it is officially declared “dead”. This means that many of these bills that don’t pass this time may reappear in the next session.
Remember, bills move quickly during legislative sessions. This update is as of 02/27/24, so while we have done our best to provide you with the latest updates, things may have changed!