Published date: January 8, 2024
APWA Week 1 Legislative Update
The 2024 session begins on Monday, January 8th, the day after the Seahawks’ season ended but on the same day the Huskies play for a national championship. This is a 60-day session when the legislature addresses supplemental budget issues, and usually works around the edges of various policy issues. This year, many legislators need to get out on time so they can start the arduous process of campaigning for other offices.
Governor Inslee’s and Congressman Kilmer’s decisions not to run for another term have created a musical-chairs situation in Olympia: Sen. Mullet is running for Governor; and Sen. Randall and Sen. MacEwen are running for Kilmer’s seat, and several legislators are running for the Public Lands Commissioner office since the current commissioner, Hillary Franz, was running for Governor before switching to run for Kilmer’s seat. Also, long-time Insurance Commissioner, Mike Kreidler, is not seeking re-election, so Sen. Kuderer is campaigning to replace him. Also, the entire State House of Representatives is up for election as is half the State Senate.
Adding another layer of interest to this session is the possibility of six separate initiatives being sent to the Legislature for consideration. Several deal with solely with tax issues (repealing the capital gains tax, and limiting local governments from instituting income taxes), and two others repeal legislative acts that have revenue consequences (repealing the long-term care act, and the climate commitment act). The remaining two deal with policy matters (one involving public education while the other concerns police vehicle pursuit). The Legislature can either pass them, ignore them (which would send them to the November ballot), or pass a substitute version, which would be placed on the ballot with the original initiative version. Repeals of both the capital gains tax and the Climate Commitment Act would have substantial implications for the state budget, since both are generating substantial revenue – the latter being a major source for the Move Ahead Washington (MAW) transportation package.
Below are the hearings scheduled for this first week of the session. The policy committees have 3 weeks to hear policy bills and pass them. Those bills that survive the “house-of-origin” on February 13th, will then be considered by the other chamber, but, according to the 2024 Cutoff Calendar, the policy committees in the other chamber will have only a week to hear and pass bills from the opposite chamber. For example, the House Local Government Committee will have only 3 hearings to hear and pass any senate bills referred to that committee. Given that all the bills that did not pass last session are still “alive” for this session, and that, so far, there are 599 new bills “prefiled”, there is not much chance for most bills passing. And sometimes that’s a good thing, since the State is dealing with some budget constraints.
The transportation budget is in bad shape. Many of the transportation projects that budget writers thought they funded last year have increased in cost. The transportation committees will need to figure out how many of those projects they thought they had already “purchased” will be cut. Here is where the initiative (I-2117), to repeal the Climate Commitment Act, will cast a large shadow.
The capital budget will also be limited. Legislators are being told local projects will be hard to fund this session – perhaps limited to about $100k per legislative district. The state operating budget will have a bit more money than initially anticipated, but class and caseload increases will overwhelm that, and additional spending cannot create a “bow-wave” impact on future budgets given that the capital gains tax may be repealed.
Due to a lot of legislative turnover, many of the current legislators have not experienced a “tight” budget session – federal COVID money helped fund a lot of state programs. How they handle this current budget reality will be interesting and makes those of us who lobby for local governments nervous.
Hearings of interest to APWA:
Innovation, Community & Economic Development, & Veterans (House) – HHR C and Virtual JLOB – 1/9 @ 10:30am
HB 1982 – Public Hearing – Concerning the authority of the community economic revitalization board with respect to loans and grants to political subdivisions and federally recognized Indian tribes for broadband. (Remote Testimony Available). (If measure is referred to committee.)
Postsecondary Education & Workforce (House) – HHR B and Virtual JLOB – 1/9 @ 1:30pm
HB 1950 – Public Hearing – Concerning the public service loan forgiveness program. (Remote Testimony Available). (If measure is referred to committee.)
Transportation (Senate) – SHR 1 and Virtual J.A. Cherberg – 1/9 @ 4:00pm
SB 5947 – Public Hearing – Making supplemental transportation appropriations for the 2023-2025 fiscal biennium. (Remote Testimony Available). (If measure is referred to committee.)
Innovation, Community & Economic Development, & Veterans (House) – HHR C and Virtual JLOB – 1/10 @ 8:00am
HB 2020 – Public Hearing – Creating a state administered public infrastructure assistance program within the emergency management division. (Remote Testimony Available). (If measure is referred to committee.)
Transportation (House) – HHR B and Virtual JLOB – 1/10 @ 4:00pm
HB 2134 – Public Hearing – Making supplemental transportation appropriations for the 2023-2025 fiscal biennium. (Remote Testimony Available). (If measure is referred to committee.)
Capital Budget (House) – HHR B and Virtual JLOB – 1/11 @ 1:30pm
HB 2089 – Public Hearing – Concerning the capital budget. (Remote Testimony Available). (If measure is referred to committee.)
Ways & Means (Senate) – SHR 4 and Virtual JACB – 1/11 @ 4:00pm
SB 5949 – Public Hearing – Concerning the capital budget. (If measure is referred to committee.)
Innovation, Community & Economic Development, & Veterans (House) – HHR C and Virtual JLOB – 1/12 @ 10:30am
HB 2135 – Public Hearing – Including federally recognized tribes as part of the Washington emergency management division emergency worker program. (Remote Testimony Available). (If measure is referred to committee.)