Just like that, another year’s worth of bills are passed, and another Washington legislative session comes to a close. Though a lot of progress was made on climate this year, the actions taken this session fell quite short of the urgency of the climate crisis. We must continue to be advocates for the planet and our future generations, urging our legislators to keep pushing the envelope when it comes to reducing our negative impact on our ecosystems and increasing our resiliency for the future. 

We would like to thank you for all of your efforts these last few months, and would like to share with you some of the victories from this year’s legislative session. 

Bills that passed

HB 1181 – Adding climate to the Growth Management Act

HB 1181 was our biggest priority this year, and it ensures that we are planning for a future in Washington that is resilient and prepared for the changing climate.  It was passed by both the House and the Senate, and was just signed by the Governor on May 3rd!

The bill modifies the Growth Management Act to:

• Ensure that Washington’s 11 largest counties, which includes Spokane, are planning to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through vehicles miles traveled. This could be driven by denser housing, better access to public transit, or even greater access to active transit options. 
• Include a requirement for Washington communities to plan for climate related extreme weather events, to improve community resilience for the future. 
• Add a definition of environmental justice. 

Additionally, a significant budget allocated 44 million for implementation of the bill.

HB 1110 – Middle Housing

HB 1110 was a great opportunity for our state to build a more diverse and energy efficient housing inventory. The bill will allow fourplexes and duplexes in most neighborhoods in most cities across Washington State. It was passed by both the House and the Senate, and awaits signature by the Governor.

• In cities of 75,000 people or more, fourplexes will be allowed throughout the city. Sixplexes will be allowed if they are located within a quarter-mile of a major transit stop, or if two of the six units are affordable housing.
• In cities of between 25,000 and 75,000, duplexes will be allowed almost everywhere and fourplexes are allowed if they are within a quarter-mile of a major transit stop or if one of the four units is affordable.
• In cities of less than 25,000, duplexes will be allowed everywhere.
• In all cities, these zoning changes will not apply to environmentally critical areas.

Consider this excellent write-up on the impact that housing density has on the health of ecosystems and people.

HB 1125 Transportation Appropriations

Makes transportation appropriations for the 2023-25 fiscal biennium and supplemental appropriations for the 2021-2023 fiscal biennium. 

Highlights include:

• $5,000,000 of the multimodal transportation account—state appropriation is provided solely for the department to address emergent issues related to safety for pedestrians and bicyclists.
• $200,000 of the multimodal transportation account—state appropriation is provided solely for the department to develop the preliminary phase of an action plan for the establishment of cycle highways in locations that connect population centers and support mode shift.
• The amounts identified in the LEAP transportation document 33 referenced under subsection (1) of this section for pedestrian safety/safe routes to school are as follows: (a) $34,673,000 of the multimodal transportation account—state appropriation and $37,563,000 of the climate active transportation account—state appropriation are provided solely for pedestrian and bicycle safety program projects.
• The climate active transportation account is hereby created in the state treasury. Moneys in the account may be spent only after appropriation. Expenditures from the account may be used only for the 6 following active transportation grant programs: Safe routes to schools, school-based bike program, bicycle and pedestrian grant program, complete streets grants program, and connecting communities grant program, as well as pedestrian and bicycle or other active transportation projects identified in an omnibus transportation appropriations act as move ahead WA projects.
• $1,200,000 of the multimodal transportation account—state appropriation and $2,000,000 of the carbon reduction emissions account—state appropriation are provided solely for the pilot program to provide clean alternative fuel vehicle use opportunities to underserved communities and low to moderate income members of the workforce.
• $4,407,000 of the multimodal transportation account—state appropriation is reappropriated and provided solely for the green transportation capital grant projects identified in LEAP Transportation Document.

SB 5452 – Impact Fees for Pedestrians and Cyclists

Public facilities, within the context of impact fee statutes, are the following capital facilities owned or operated by government entities: public streets and roads; publicly owned parks, open space, and recreation facilities; school facilities; and fire protection facilities. This bill changes the definition of public facilities to add bicycle and pedestrian facilities that were designed with multimodal commuting as an intended use.

Bills that did not pass, but should be on our priority list for 2024

HB 1832 – Road Usage Tax

The bill would have the Department of Licensing create a program for a road use fee of 2.5¢/mile which the owners of plugin vehicles under 10,000 pounds could choose to pay instead of the gas tax, beginning in 2030. The bill would waive the $175 in additional registration fees those owners currently pay, for vehicles in the program.

HB 5466 – Transit-Oriented Development

This bill would provide incentives to build multifamily housing along Spokane’s developing North Division Bus Rapid Transit Corridor, and it may extend to other Spokane transit hubs as well, helping to turn driving-intensive neglected neighborhoods into walkable, more prosperous, transit-served communities.

This bill failed in the House after passing 40-8 in the Senate. It will almost certainly return and should remain a high priority for us when it does.

Want to dive deeper into what the legislature did in the 2023 session? Here is a link to the summary by Climate Solutions: https://www.climatesolutions.org/article/2023-04/2-billion-climate-and-clean-energy-coming-you