The House and Senate will reconvene on Friday, April 17. The final day for legislative action in this session is Sunday, April 27.
Current Action Items
Rent Stabilization. The Senate made crippling amendments to this bill. Contact majority leadership to fix these problems in the reconciliation process with this link.
Additional action items appear on the Human Rights Task Force tracking page.
Priority Bills: All the current priority bills have passed in their second chambers, with one exception, a gun control bill (SB 5219). Also, HB 1607 will wait for action later, if needed, because it is NTIB (“necessary to implement the budget”).
Great work, Quaker activists! You can check how your legislators voted on the bill information page, with the “roll call” link next to the record of the vote in each house. You may want to send them a thank you note if they voted the way you wanted, or some other feedback if not.
We still need to watch the progress of these bills through important reconciliation processes and Governor’s signature. In particular, as noted above, HB 1217, the rent stabilization bill needs “fixing.”
Revenue and budget bills: New revenue options were introduced suddenly Thursday, April 16. The Senate bills received public hearings Thursday at 5:30 pm, and the House bills are in public hearings on Friday morning, April 18, at 8 am. Only one of these new options is really progressive, SB 5813, an expansion of the capital gains tax. This bill is scheduled for executive action in Ways & Means on Friday at 8 a.m.
Four of the original progressive set of bills have also now been scheduled for executive action on Friday: SB 5794 (Eliminating obsolete tax preferences, clarifying legislative intent, and addressing changes in constitutional law), SB 5797 (Enacting a tax on stocks, bonds, and other financial intangible assets for the benefit of public schools), SB 5798 (Concerning property tax reform), and HB 2049 (Increasing State and Local Flexibility to Fund Schools and Public Safety). You can write to your Senators and Representatives on any or all of these with your Quaker Voice affiliation, using the “send a comment to your legislator” button on the left of the bill information page. The votes will be taken quickly, so you should act quickly as well, as led.
Quaker Voice is supporting progressive revenue options and not taking a stance on specific items in the budget, except to oppose any raiding of the Climate Commitment Act funds for actions that do not reduce greenhouse gases. We are therefore not calling for action on any of the other revenue bills because they are not clearly progressive, that is, asking wealthy individuals and companies to contribute more.
Criminal Justice Priorities
HB 1131. Concerning clemency and pardons.
Changes Clemency and Pardon Board from five to ten members, which must include persons with lived experience as an incarcerated individual or has worked with formerly incarcerated persons or successful community reentry.
- Passed in the House.
- Passed by the Senate Committee on Human Services on March 25. Hearing held in Ways & Means on April 4. Passed the Committee on April 7.
- Passed in the Senate.
SB 5219. Concerning partial confinement eligibility and alignment.
SB 5219 would provide the possibility of up to 18 months of partial confinement at the end of a sentence, which could help with adjustment to life outside and thus improved re-entry and reduction in recidivism
- Passed the Senate.
- Public hearing in the House Committee on Community Safety on March 18. Passed by the committee on March 26. Hearing held in Appropriations on April 4. Passed by Appropriations on April 7.
- Referred to House Rules Committee on April 8.
- Passed in the House.
Environmental Stewardship Priorities
HB 1483: Right to Repair – Has passed both houses
The Right to Repair bill requires manufacturers of digital electronics to make repair information, parts, and tools available to independent repair businesses and makes it possible to salvage working parts from nonfunctional tech. It would reduce e-waste by allowing users to repair and extend the lives of their computers, tablets, cellphones, and appliances. Consumer costs would go down; used electronics would go to people who need them. Manufacturing of new products, with associated greenhouse gas emissions and resource extraction, would be reduced. See the factsheet here.
- Current status
- House HB 1483 — Passed by the House on March 4.
- Passed in the Senate.
SB 5284: Improving Washington’s Solid Waste Management Outcomes – Has passed both houses
This bill would reduce plastic waste by requiring producers of packaging to create a Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO) under supervision of the Department of Ecology. PROs are effective because they make producers of packaging responsible for reducing the amount of packaging produced and increasing the amount being reused, composted, or recycled. Residential recycling collection would be provided wherever residential garbage is collected. See the fact sheet here.
- Current status
- Senate SB 5284 — This bill has passed the Senate and is now making its way through the House.
- Passed in the House.
HB 1607. Concerning recycling and waste reduction.
Requires beverage brands to form a producer responsibility organization to fund and implement a 10-cent refund value redemption program for beverage containers. Thus, its nickname is the “Bottle Bill.” It works together with HB 5284 to strengthen recycling. As a side effect, it may provide a small source of income for people who make their living scavenging.
- Don’t be worried about the fact that this bill is still in its house of origin. Because it generates revenue, it has been declared “necessary to implement the budget” (NTIB) and can still move forward.
- On the House floor calendar.
- It will still need to pass the Senate as well, but because of the NTIB status, there is a bit more time for that if leadership decides to move the bill.
Economic Justice Priorities
HB 1217. Improving Housing Stability
This bill limits the size of rent and fee increases, requires advance notice of increases, and establishes a landlord resource center among other provisions to address the rental crisis in Washington. Nearly 50 percent of households in Washington now spend more than 30% of household income on rent, constricting household funds available for food, education, healthcare and transportation. Arguments pro and con are summarized in the Bill Report, pages 6-9.
- Current status:
- House: HB 1217 has already passed in the House.
- A public hearing was held in the Senate Committee on Housing on March 19.
- The bill passed the Housing Committee on March 26 with amendments.
- Referred to Ways & Means. Hearing held in Ways & Means on April 4. Passed there on April 7.
- Referred to Senate Rules on April 8.
- It passed in the Senate on April 10 with a crippling amendment, raising the permitted annual increase to 10% plus CPI. Another amendment exempted all single-family homes. Our coalition is now calling on us to urge the reconciliation process to repair this damage. Take action here.
- Senate companion SB 2222 will not move further. The House version is now the vehicle.
SJM 8004 Concerning Universal Healthcare
This is a letter from Washington to the U.S. Congress asking for a waiver to pursue our own universal healthcare plan. The previous priority bills, HB 1445/ SB 5233 Developing Washington State Health Trust, are not moving forward this year.
- Current Status:
- SJM 8004 passed the Senate.
- A public hearing was held in the House on March 21. Passed by the committee on March 26. Referred to House Rules on March 28.
- Passed in the House.
- It appears that no further action is needed on this letter and that is ready for the appropriate official to send it to Congress.
Progressive revenue bills
A third Economic Justice priority is progressive revenue. A first round of proposals is described here. Some of those bills are now scheduled for executive action on Friday, April 18:
- SB 5794 (Eliminating obsolete tax preferences, clarifying legislative intent, and addressing changes in constitutional law)
- SB 5797 (Enacting a tax on stocks, bonds, and other financial intangible assets for the benefit of public schools)
- SB 5798 (Concerning property tax reform)
- HB 2049 (Increasing State and Local Flexibility to Fund Schools and Public Safety)
On April 16, another set of revenue bills was introduced. These proposals are not particularly progressive and some involve policies we might oppose. Quaker Voice is only supporting the most progressive of these, SB 5813, which expands the capital gains tax. That bill had a hearing on April 16 and is scheduled for executive action on April 18 in the Senate Ways & Means Committee.
Chances to sign in PRO for 5813 flew past in a few hours, but you can express support to your Senator or Representatives on any of these bills with the “send a comment on this bill to your legislators” button on the left side of the bill information page. Act fast: All legislative business for this year must be finished Sunday, April 27, so the new revenue bills will be flying like the wind through the process.
NOT MOVING FORWARD THIS YEAR [listed in order of bill numbers]
HB 1125: Judicial Discretion Act
This bill would allow incarcerated persons who have already served a long time to petition for a second look, with a re-sentence at the discretion of the original sentencing court.
- Final status: The bill was not moved to a vote on the House floor. Next session, it will be reassigned to a policy committee for a new hearing.
HB 1178: Unstacking Sentencing Enhancements
Mandatory enhancements to base sentences can add many years in prison and are typically stacked on top of each other. HB 1178 provides judicial discretion to serve enhancements concurrently. It eliminates the sentencing enhancement for drug violations committed in protected zones. These provisions would greatly reduce racial inequity.
- Final status: The bill was not moved to a vote on the House floor. Next session, it will be reassigned to a policy committee for a new hearing.
HB 1274: Resentencing without Juvenile Offenses
For a person being sentenced today, certain specified previous convictions as a juvenile are not counted (scored) in determining the length of sentence. HB 1274 would make this procedure retroactive, by reducing sentences for persons already incarcerated, by not counting offenses as a juvenile that are no longer being scored for new convictions.
- Final status: The bill was not moved to a vote on the House floor. Next session, it will be reassigned to a policy committee for a new hearing.
HB 1380 Objectively Reasonable Regulation of Use of Public Property
This bill acknowledges that a growing number of Washington state residents face displacement due to lack of affordable housing. Currently there is a “patchwork of legislation” regulating the use of public land. This legislation requires that regulation of the act of sitting, sleeping, or keeping warm, though not with the use of fire, on public land open to the public be objectively reasonable as to time, place and manner and consider health and safety of all citizens. This legislation would allow individuals to sue municipalities over restricting tent encampments. Arguments pro and con are summarized in the Bill Report, pages 3-5.
- Final status: The bill was not moved to a vote on the House floor. Next session, it will be reassigned to a policy committee for a new hearing.
HB 1445/ SB 5233 Developing Washington State Health Trust
The Health Trust would ensure that all Washington residents could enroll in “nonprofit health insurance providing an essential set of health benefits including dental, vision, mental health and pharmacy. Currently many Washington residents are either uninsured or have high co-payments and deductibles leading to increased debt due to medical expenses. The health plan administered by the Washington Health Trust would correct some of the inequities of the most vulnerable, including the unhoused, the uninsured and the unemployed.
- Final status. Was not heard in its policy committee in either House or Senate.
SB 5066 / HB 1056: AG Investigations of Law Enforcement Agencies
SB 5066 grants authority to the WA State Attorney General (AG) to investigate systemic violations of the state constitution and laws by local law enforcement agencies and sue them. Currently, this investigative authority is limited to the federal Dept. of Justice, which lacks the time and resources to do this on the local level. Many other states have provided their attorneys general with this authority.
- Final status:
- Senate — passed out of Senate Law & Justice Feb 6. Referred to Senate Ways and Means. It was scheduled for executive action on Friday, February 28, but no action was taken. The bill will not move forward this year.
- House — Public hearing in House Civil Rights & Judiciary on Feb 11. Was scheduled for executive session in the House Committee on Civil Rights & Judiciary but it was removed from the schedule. This version of the bill will not be going forward this year.
SB 5098. Restricting the possession of weapons in public places where children are likely to be present.
Restricts the possession of weapons on the premises of state or local public buildings, parks or playground facilities where children are likely to be present, and county fair facilities.
- A second substitute passed the Senate.
- Public hearing was held in the House Committee on Civil Rights & Judiciary on March 18. Passed by the committee on March 26. Hearing held in Appropriations on April 4. Passed by the committee on April 7.
- Referred to House Rules Committee on April 8.
- Did not move forward on the House floor calendar. It is therefore not moving forward this year.