NAIOPWA Legislative Session Report - Week 10

Krystelle Purkey and Ehren Flygare, State Lobbyists

This week, regular legislative activity primarily revolved around policy committee hearings, where lawmakers reviewed and debated bills that had recently advanced from the opposite chamber.

Some of these include high profile bills like Unemployment Insurance for Striking Workers (5041), Waste Management (5284), Firearm Restrictions in Sensitive Places (5098) and Rent Stabilization (1217). These hearings are part of the lead up to the April 2 deadline for bills to be passed out of policy committees.

NAIOPWA Legislative Session Report - Week 9

Krystelle Purkey and Ehren Flygare, State Lobbyists

Wednesday, March 12, marked the critical deadline for bills to advance out of their chambers of origin. With this milestone passed, legislative focus now shifts to the next phase: bills making their way across the rotunda to be considered by policy committees in the opposite chamber. 

Each floor cutoff day brings anticipation with one recurring question—what will be the “5 p.m. bill?” According to legislative rules, so long as the bill’s process begins before the 5 p.m. deadline, discussions can continue well into the evening. So sometimes, the bill was brought up the day prior or earlier in the day, only to be finished later, even brought up again at 4:59pm or later. This final bill of the day often carries symbolic weight. Sometimes, it's a contentious measure that sparks extended debate, stretching late into the night. Other times, it's a broadly supported, feel-good proposal—perhaps a resolution honoring a local hero, commemorating an historic event, or recognizing a cause that garners bipartisan backing. This year, we witnessed both types of bills.

NAIOPWA Legislative Session Report - Week 8

Krystelle Purkey and Ehren Flygare, State Lobbyists

The Washington State Legislature has reached the midpoint of its 2025 session, with members working long hours on the floor and in caucus as they approach the March 12 deadline for bills to pass out of their chambers of origin. As of this week, 1051 House Bills have been introduced, and 519 have made it to the Rules Committee for further consideration. Over in the Senate, 805 bills have been introduced, with 271 entering the Senate Rules process. Bills that do not clear this stage of Rules committee pulls and floor action — unless deemed "necessary to implement the budget" (NTIB) — are generally considered dead for the session. However, it’s worth noting that no bill is entirely off the table until the biennium ends.

To read the full legislative update using your NAIOPWA member profile, click here. 

NAIOPWA Legislative Session Report - Week 7

Krystelle Purkey and Ehren Flygare, State Lobbyists

The most significant development of the week besides fiscal committee actions prior to the February 28 Fiscal Committee cutoff was Governor Bob Ferguson’s news conference, where he outlined approximately $4 billion in additional budget cuts for the legislature to consider. These cuts, on top of those in Governor Inslee’s proposed budget, could cover nearly half of the state’s projected shortfall.

Currently, the state operates on a balanced budget that extends through June 30, 2025. However, the primary focus of the 2025 legislative session is crafting a new operating budget for the following years. A significant challenge looms: a projected $15 billion gap between expected tax revenue over the next four years and the state’s existing financial commitments, including funding for education, healthcare, corrections, and human services.

NAIOPWA Legislative Session Report - Week 6

Krystelle Purkey and Ehren Flygare, State Lobbyists

The 2025 legislative session is now one third of the way over. Friday, February 21 was the cutoff for bills to be voted out of policy committees in the House of Origin. Fewer than 20% of bills introduced become law and this was the first of the hurdles bills must jump to stay alive. It is a very quick turnaround until the next cutoff Friday, February 28, where bills with a fiscal impact to the state budgets must be voted out of the main fiscal committees, Finance, Appropriations, Transportation, and Ways & Means.

To read the full legislative update using your NAIOPWA member profile, click here. 

NAIOPWA Legislative Session Report - Week 5

Krystelle Purkey and Ehren Flygare, State Lobbyists

This week saw several supply-side bills work their way through committee. Bills have until Friday of next week to pass out of their original Policy Committee in the chamber where they were introduced. 

Senator Liias introduced SB 5604 which would establish a new 20-year MFTE program in TOD station areas while also reducing certain impact fees by 50% and instituting a sales and use tax deferral.

NAIOPWA Legislative Session Report - Week 4

Krystelle Purkey and Ehren Flygare, State Lobbyists

With only two more weeks until the February 21 policy committee cutoff, Washington State legislators have been busy introducing, hearing, and passing broadly consequential bills out of committee and sending them to the Rules committee for further consideration in the coming weeks.  

We are beginning to see revenue bills introduced in the House and Senate. HB 1785 (Doglio, D-22) imposes a tax where CEO pay in publicly traded companies vastly exceeds median worker pay. 

NAIOPWA Legislative Session Report - Week 3

Krystelle Purkey and Ehren Flygare, State Lobbyists

We are now three weeks into the 2025 session, 1,442 bills have been introduced, and legislative business is moving quickly. At the same time, Majority Democrats are forging a path with the new governor, Bob Ferguson (D) as well as their Republican colleagues, and drawing firm lines with the new Trump Administration. 

House Democrats in Washington state have made significant changes to a longstanding rule that restricted access to the wings of the House chamber. The new policy now allows access only for the governor, excluding the governor’s staff unless specifically invited by a House member. The rule adjustment was part of a broader overhaul of legislative procedures, which included reducing the threshold to end debate, allowing a simple majority vote instead of a two-thirds majority.

NAIOPWA Legislative Session Report - Week 2

Krystelle Purkey and Ehren Flygare, State Lobbyists

This week saw movement on several major legislative issues, including waste management, rental housing, and gun violence prevention. House Bill 1217, on Rent Caps, passed out of the Housing Committee and now awaits a committee hearing in House Appropriations. Its Senate Companion Bill, SB 5222, had its first hearing on Wednesday. This week also included several appointments in both the Legislative and Executive branches.

Final appointments took place with Rep. Emily Alvarado (D-34) transitioning to the Senate and Brianna Thomas (D), a senior advisor to Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell, filling her House seat. Meanwhile, Janice Zahn (D), a Bellevue City Councilmember and Port of Seattle employee, succeeded Rep. Tana Senn (D-41), who now serves as the Secretary of the Department of Children, Youth, and Families. Governor Bob Ferguson announced this week the appointment of former journalist Jesse Jones as the new director of Results Washington, the agency tasked with improving government performance for the people of Washington. 

NAIOPWA Legislative Session Report - Week 1

Krystelle Purkey and Ehren Flygare, State Lobbyists

The Washington State Legislature started off with a bang this session. On Day 1 the rent cap bill was up for a public hearing in the House of Representatives Housing Committee. Over 700 people signed in to testify on the bill. Ultimately, the House kept the hearing to less than an hour and wrapped before panels were completed. The House Bill, HB 1217, will be voted out of the House Housing Committee on Monday.

The Senate Bill, SB 5222, sponsored by Senator Trudeau, will be heard in the Senate Housing Committee on Wednesday, January 22, at 1:30 p.m. The second sponsor on the bill is now-Senator Mike Chapman, who voted against the bill on the House Floor last year.

To read the full legislative update using your NAIOPWA member profile, click here. 

Major Week for Priority Bills: Housing Affordability, REET, Energy Efficiency, Rent Control. 

The 2023 legislative session drew to a close in April, marking the end of a session that has been billed by some as the ‘Year of Housing’ for Washington State. A remarkable 1,776 bills were introduced, and a staggering number of those bills pertained to housing, development, and commercial real estate.

NAIOP Washington State, a nonpartisan organization committed to creating a favorable political and regulatory environment for the commercial real estate industry, engaged deeply with lawmakers to advise on these bills and advocate for our industry. Lawmakers engaged NAIOPWA’s Government Affairs Committee leadership before session, requesting input on proposed bills and assistance in authoring bills, and continued to engage with NAIOPWA throughout the legislative session.

NAIOP Washington State is proud to announce the recipients of its 2023 Legislator of the Year Awards: Senator Mark Mullet and Representative Strom Peterson.

Senator Mullet, a Democrat representing the 5^th Legislative District, showed a commendable commitment to understanding the concerns of the commercial real estate industry during this year's legislative session. His leadership on bills to streamline and expedite the land use review and permitting process has better positioned our industry to address our pressing housing crisis and will enable greater investment in Washington. Senator Mullet also sponsored legislation that, if passed, would have greatly expanded allowable density near high-capacity public transit and would have required deeper study of anticipated costs associated with the state energy performance standards prior to code implementation.

The 105-Day 2023 legislative session wrapped up as scheduled on April 23, with legislators approving a final budget and related policy bills before session adjourned sine die. NAIOP Washington State defended against numerous bills that would have negatively impacted the commercial real estate market. In fact, no bill that NAIOPWA opposed passed into law.

To read more, click below. You must be logged in to your NAIOPWA member profile to access the full report. For more details about membership, email Danielle Duvall, [email protected].

Read the Full Report

On Monday, April 17, the legislature enters the final week of the 2023 legislative session.  Next week will focus on reconciliation of changes to bills from the opposite house.  The main priority will be passage of the two-year operating budget. To read more, click below. You must be logged in to your NAIOPWA member profile to access the full report. For more details about membership, email Danielle Duvall, [email protected].

Read the full report

The Washington State legislature is moving into the final two weeks of session.  Adjournment is scheduled on April 23. Full legislative reports are available exclusively to our NAIOPWA chapter members. To learn more about the benefits of membership, contact Danielle Duvall, [email protected].

Read the full report

The Washington State legislature has completed work in policy committees for this session. Fiscal committees meet over the weekend and have a deadline of Tuesday, April 4 to complete their work.  Other than bills that are part of the budget, committee consideration will end, and the focus for the remainder of the session will be floor consideration of the bills that remain.

Log in to your NAIOPWA member profile to access the complete report. To join, please reach out to Danielle Duvall, [email protected].

Read the full report

Today is day 75 of the 105-day legislative session.  Hearings in policy committees will be held Monday to Wednesday of next week, ending on March 29.  Fiscal committees will then meet until April 4.

Read the rest of the report, including exclusive bill tracking, using your NAIOPWA member profile. For more information about joining, email Danielle Duvall, [email protected].

Read the full report

The legislature is now focused on the policy committees considering bills from the opposite house.  The next deadline is March 29 when bills from the opposite house need to be passed from the policy committee.  Next week the focus will be on committee hearings, and you will see that reflected in the upcoming events section of the report.

On Monday at 2:00 the State Economic Forecast Council will release the final economic forecast that the biennial budget will be based upon.  The Senate is expected to make their budget public sometime next week, and on Friday the Senate Ways and Means committee will hold a marathon public hearing on the budget.

Join now to read the full report. For more information, contact Danielle Duvall, [email protected].

Click here to read the full report.

Today is day 54 of the 105 day legislative session.  We are past the halfway mark. The focus this week has been on floor action and the legislature has been working long hours to act on bills prior to the March 8 deadline for bills to pass out of the Houses of Origin. 

NAIOP Washington State members have full access to our state legislative reports. For more information about joining, please contact Danielle Duvall, [email protected]. 

Click here to read the full report.