NAIOP Washington State 2023 Legislative Report - Week 1

Greg Hanon, Communico

The 2023 session of the Washington State Legislature convened on January 9 for a 105-day legislative session. This is the first since 2020 to completely return to Olympia for both committee hearings as well as floor action.  One addition to the legislative process is the complete integration of hybrid legislative hearings allowing for both in person testimony as well as remote testimony allowing individuals who cannot make the trip to Olympia to participate in hearings from around the state.

Per tradition, the first few days were dedicated to the organization of the legislature, the swearing in of public officials, as well as a state of the state address from Governor Inslee in which he presented his priorities for the legislative session.  Governor Inslee outlined several policies including significant increases in spending on housing, homelessness, behavioral health, and education.  He also advanced policies on gun control and abortion rights.

2022 NAIOPWA Night of the Stars Finalists & First Winners Announced

John Pietromonaco to be inducted to NAIOPWA Hall of Fame | Annual People’s Choice Award with Daily Voting Runs Sept 21 – Oct 5

SEATTLE – Announced at NAIOP Washington State’s September Breakfast, the slate of competitors for the association’s annual Night of the Stars Awards once again showcases the best commercial real estate development projects across the state completed in the past year. With the announcement, People's Choice voting begins online and runs through Weds., Oct. 5. Also announced was NAIOPWA's 2022 Hall of Fame inductee, John Pietromonaco, who joins the ranks of leaders honored for their essential contributions to the built environment of the Puget Sound region and to the CRE community through their involvement in NAIOPWA and beyond. 

Vote for People's Choice!

The projects, and the developers who engaged them, demonstrate the flexibility and ingenuity of the CRE community throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, NAIOPWA’s 2022 Night of the Stars finalists highlight the growth in transit-oriented development (TOD), multi-family housing from high-rise urban to supportive housing, and various programs that encourage development in underutilized regions such as Opportunity Zone funding.

As of Saturday, April 3, there were 22 days left in the 2021 Legislative Session as scheduled. We anticipate our legislators will be working long hours every day until the clock runs out - will they finish in time? Greg doesn't have a crystal ball (yet), but he can tell us the highlights for NAIOPWA and the CRE community. Click here to continue reading this post (login required). 

NAIOPWA's state lobbyist, Greg Hanon, sends weekly reports for NAIOPWA members during the legislative session. These include a brief overview of session activity and highlights of the most pertinent issues for our industry. Additionally, Greg includes a complete list of bills and hearings that inform how we do business in Washington State. You'll see a link to download that list at the end of each short weekly update. Member login is required to view the full update.

Friday, March 26, was the 75th day of the Washington State Legislative Session, leaving 30 days to go with a number of major issues to try and resolve in that time.Click here to continue reading this post (login required).

NAIOPWA's state lobbyist, Greg Hanon, sends weekly reports for NAIOPWA members during the legislative session. These include a brief overview of session activity and highlights of the most pertinent issues for our industry. Additionally, Greg includes a complete list of bills and hearings that inform how we do business in Washington State. You'll see a link to download that list at the end of each short weekly update. Member login is required to view the full update. 

The state legislative session heads into the home stretch this week, with just 33 days left in session, a Friday deadline for bill reporting and a draft budget expected from the senate this week. Click here to continue reading this post (login required).

NAIOPWA's state lobbyist, Greg Hanon, sends weekly reports for NAIOPWA members during the legislative session. These include a brief overview of session activity and highlights of the most pertinent issues for our industry. Additionally, Greg includes a complete list of bills and hearings that inform how we do business in Washington State. You'll see a link to download that list at the end of each short weekly update. Member login is required to view the full update. 

After five weeks in session, all bills that passed out of policy committees by the Feb. 15 deadline move to fiscal committees. The fiscal committees now have until February 22 to consider the proposals before sending them to the Rules committee, where they can be considered for floor action. Budget-related bills are exempt from these cut off-dates and can be considered at any time. The week ended with a flurry of committee votes ... 

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Washington is the #9 state in the U.S. for contributions to state GDP created by office real estate development. Overall, construction and development of office, industrial, warehouse and retail created and supported 54,983 related jobs and contributing $8.9 billion to the state’s economy in 2020 (the most recent data available).

The data is from “Economic Impacts of Commercial Real Estate, 2021 U.S. Edition,” published annually by the NAIOP Research Foundation.