Week of February 7th: Legislative Update

Image of livable, inclusive community titled Legislative Update

We’re reaching the halfway point of the 2022 legislative session, which is why I’m so pleased to share that we’re ahead of schedule to add climate to the GMA and close the GMA sprawl loophole. This week’s update is short and sweet – read on for status updates!

HB 1099 – Adding Climate Change to the Growth Management Act

HB 1099 is on a roll. After passing out of the House a few weeks ago, this week our climate bill had its first hearing in the Senate Housing and Local Government Committee. Many thanks to our supporters across the state who came out in droves to support the bill: we had 932 people sign in “PRO” on the bill, compared to just 187 “CON”. 🎉🎉

It’s critical that we keep this bill moving quickly so that we can be sure Central Puget Sound counties will include climate change planning in their next comprehensive plan updates.

Contact the committee members to vote YES on HB 1099!

SB 5042 – Closing the Sprawl Loophole in the GMA

SB 5042 also has great momentum! After nearly 15 years working on this bill, the end is in sight. SB 5042 passed out of the House two weeks ahead of cutoff and has already been referred to the House Environment and Energy Committee. We’re feel optimistic about its chances but we can’t get too comfortable. We’ve worked too hard for too long for this bill to fail now!

Contact the committee members to vote YES on SB 5042!

HB 1769 – Advancing Housing Affordability

HB 1769 would ensure that HB 1220, our housing justice GMA update that passed last year, will be fairly implemented in every community across Washington. The bill is currently in the House Rules Committee, and we’re hopeful that it will be headed to a vote on the house floor soon. Stay tuned for opportunities to take action!

Category Archives: News

Week of February 7th: Legislative Update

Image of livable, inclusive community titled Legislative Update We’re reaching the halfway point of the 2022 legislative session, which is why I’m so pleased to share that we’re ahead of schedule to add climate to the GMA and close the GMA sprawl … Continue reading

Week of January 31st: Legislative Update

Image of livable, inclusive community titled Legislative Update We’ve got a pretty short update this week and here’s why: another one of our priority bills, SB 5042, passed out of the Senate! 🎉🎉🎉 SB 5042 is our bill to close a nasty loophole … Continue reading

Week of January 24th: Legislative Update

It’s official: HB 1099, our climate update to the GMA, officially passed out of the House of Representatives! Let’s take a moment to celebrate. 🎉🎉🎉So what happens now? In the short term, we get a bit of a breather. HB 1099 now … Continue reading

2022 WA Can’t Wait: Op-Eds and Articles

Here is our most up-to-date list of articles and op-eds written about our 2022 WA Can’t Wait Campaign: Articles The Bellingham Herald Crosscut The Urbanist The Bellingham Herald The Seattle Times The Urbanist The Urbanist The Washington Observer Op-Eds and … Continue reading

Week of January 17th: Legislative Update

The Washington state legislature convened this week for the start of the 2022 legislative session. As a reminder, the 2022 session is what’s called a “short” session, meaning we have just 60 days to pass our priority legislation. Things are … Continue reading

Week of January 10th Legislative Update

Today marks the first day of the 2022 legislative session and Futurewise is here to win. We’re here to finish what we started in 2021, as well as highlight some new priorities for you to follow. It’s a short session … Continue reading

Week of January 10th Legislative Update

mage of diverse walkable and bikeable community with text reading Legislative Update Today marks the first day of the 2022 legislative session and Futurewise is here to win. We’re here to finish what we started in 2021, as well as … Continue reading

Victory: Protecting Farms in the Sammamish Valley

Image: Aerial shot of farm plots in the Sammamish Valley The Growth Management Hearings Board rules in favor of Futurewise and Friends of Sammamish Valley’s appeal of the King County wineries, breweries and distilleries ordinance. In 2019, King County adopted … Continue reading

Franklin County Appeal Summary

For the past 30 years, Futurewise has successfully protected farmland in Washington state by containing growth through the implementation of the Growth Management Act. For the last two years we’ve suggested the City of Pasco not encroach farms, but to … Continue reading

We are looking for new Board members!

Get on board to shape Washington’s future Futurewise is Washington’s only non-profit that works statewide on land use issues. Our work crosses the urban/rural divide—we encourage growth in cities to create healthy, affordable, low-carbon communities and we protect our state’s … Continue reading