2024 Legislative Update: Week 7

The past week was packed with every type of session activity. The flurry started with budget proposals being released. This kicked off with the Senate releasing their operating budget proposal on Sunday afternoon, and then the remaining House and Senate budget proposals were released in the following two days. Below are links to the pages for the respective bill proposals. Budget bills can be tricky to read, so the agency detail is a helpful document that provides high level summaries.

Senate Budget Proposals
Operating Budget: Click here
Capital Budget: Click here
Transportation Budget: Click here

House Budget Proposals
Operating Budget: Click here
Capital Budget: Click here
Transportation Budget: Click here

As the chambers pass their respective budget proposals, budget leads then start the work of negotiating final compromise budgets by the time session adjourns on March 7th.

In addition to the activity around budgets, it was also a packed week of committee hearings. With opposite house policy cutoff on Wednesday, February 21st, the week was full of policy hearings and executive sessions to move bills out of committee by that cutoff. Just 454 bills made it past the opposite house policy cutoff.

After Wednesday’s policy cutoff, attention quickly shifted to fiscal committees. Opposite house fiscal cutoff is Monday, February 26th, which means there are five days to hear and move bills referred from policy committee to a fiscal committee. Senate Ways & Means Committee convened on Saturday, while the House worked on the floor.

Once we get past the fiscal cutoff, focus for the rest of the week will turn to floor action where both chambers will work to pass bills off the floor by Friday, March 1st, which is opposite house floor cutoff. There are just four days to debate, potentially amend, and pass bills off the floor by Friday’s cutoff, so it is anticipated that there will be long days on the floor, potentially running late into the night.

As we pass each cutoff, more bills fail to meet their deadlines and are considered “Dead”. There are fewer bills that are “Alive” and moving through the process. Here are the numbers of bills that have made it past each cutoff so far this session (this does not include resolutions, memorials, gubernatorial appointments, or bills in Rules X File):
• Number of bills alive after House of Origin Policy Cutoff: 1,259
• Number of bills alive after House of Origin Fiscal Cutoff: 746
• Number of bills alive after House of Origin Floor Cutoff: 532
• Number of bills alive after Opposite House Policy Cutoff: 454

Electeds & Elections
Sen Sam Hunt (D – Olympia) announced his retirement after 24 years in the Legislature. The open seat will be filled in the upcoming November election and Rep Bateman (D-Olympia) has announced she will run for the seat.

Representative Jacquelin Maycumber (R-Republic) announced she will run for the 5th Congressional House seat vacated by Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rogers who announced she is retiring from congress after nearly two decades.

Upcoming Events Report

Capital Budget (House) – HHR B and Virtual JLOB – 2/26 @ 8:00am
SSB 6192 – Exec Session – Addressing additional work and change orders on public and private construction projects.

Finance (House) – HHR A and Virtual JLOB – 2/26 @ 8:00am
ESSB 5334 – Exec Session – Providing a local government option for the funding of essential affordable housing programs.
SB 6173 – Exec Session – Encouraging investments in affordable homeownership unit
development.
E2SSB 6175 – Exec Session – Providing a sales and use tax incentive for existing structures. (REVISED FOR ENGROSSED: Concerning housing affordability tax incentives for existing structures.)

Ways & Means (Senate) – SHR 4 and Virtual JACB – 2/26 @ 10:00am
3SHB 1579 – Exec Session – Establishing a mechanism for independent prosecutions within the office of the attorney general of criminal conduct arising from police use of force.
ESHB 2114 – Exec Session – Improving housing stability for tenants subject to the residential landlord-tenant act and the manufactured/mobile home landlord-tenant act by limiting rent and fee increases, requiring notice of rent and fee increases, limiting fees and deposits, establishing a landlord resource center and associated services, authorizing tenant lease termination, creating parity between lease types, and providing for attorney general enforcement.
ESHB 1932 – Exec Session – Shifting general elections for local governments to even-numbered years to increase voter participation.
SHB 1870 – Exec Session – Promoting economic development by increasing opportunities for local communities to secure federal funding.
HB 1976 – Exec Session – Changing the incentive structure for tier 1 and tier 2 buildings.
E2SHB 2354 – Exec Session – Creating an option for impacted taxing districts to provide a portion of their new revenue to support any tax increment area proposed within their jurisdiction and clarifying that a tax increment area must be dissolved when all bond obligations are paid.
HB 2375 – Exec Session – Including an accessory dwelling unit under property that qualifies for the senior citizens property tax exemption.
E2SHB 1956 – Exec Session – Addressing fentanyl and other substance use prevention education.
2SHB 1877 – Exec Session – Improving the Washington state behavioral health system for better coordination and recognition with the Indian behavioral health system.
E2SHB 2160 – Exec Session – Promoting community and transit-oriented housing development.
2SHB 2270 – Exec Session – Creating a Washington state department of housing.

Appropriations (House) – HHR A and Virtual JLOB – 2/26 @ 10:30am
ESSB 5424 – Exec Session – Concerning flexible work for general and limited authority
Washington peace officers.
E2SSB 5838 – Exec Session – Establishing an artificial intelligence task force.
E2SSB 6058 – Exec Session – Facilitating linkage of Washington’s carbon market with the
California-Quebec carbon market.

Transportation (House) – HHR B and Virtual JLOB – 2/26 @ 10:30am
SSB 6115 – Exec Session – Concerning speed safety camera systems.
SSB 6277 – Exec Session – Creating a new statutory framework for the use of public-private partnerships for transportation projects.

Finance (House) – HHR A and Virtual, JLOB – 2/27 @ 12:30pm
SI 2111 – Public Hearing – Concerning taxes on personal income.
HI 2111 – Public Hearing – Concerning taxes on personal income. (Remote Testimony Available).

Ways & Means (Senate) – HHR A and Virtual, JLOB – 2/27 @ 12:30pm
SI 2111 – Public Hearing – Concerning taxes on personal income.
HI 2111 – Public Hearing – Concerning taxes on personal income. (Remote Testimony Available).

Community Safety, Justice, & Reentry (House) – SHR 4 and Virtual, JACB – 2/28 @ 9:00am
• SI 2113 – Public Hearing – Concerning vehicular pursuits by peace officers. (Remote TestimonyAvailable).
• HI 2113 – Public Hearing – Concerning vehicular pursuits by peace officers.
Law & Justice (Senate) – SHR 4 and Virtual, JACB – 2/28 @ 9:00am
• SI 2113 – Public Hearing – Concerning vehicular pursuits by peace officers. (Remote Testimony Available).
• HI 2113 – Public Hearing – Concerning vehicular pursuits by peace officers.