Legislative Update Week 9: Floor Cutoff

 

Week of March 10 Legislative Update

What an incredible week of action, I have some big wins to share! As lawmakers in Olympia reach the halfway point of legislative session, they’re making tough decisions about which bills will be heard on the House and Senate floors. There’s only so much time left before the final cutoff on Wednesday, which means a lot of bills won’t make it past this point. 

But our efforts are paying off. Thanks to your advocacy, three of our top priority bills are on their way to the Senate! 

Read on for updates on the amazing outreach we accomplished this week with our Sprouts and Shouts campaign, what’s going on with our priority bills, and a few ways you can get involved next week to keep things moving.

Three huge wins in the House this week! Some of our biggest priorities were passed off the House floor and are on their way to the Senate. We’re celebrating big time, and going to roll with this momentum right into advocating for these bills on the Senate side.

Transit-Oriented Development – HB 1491

HB 1491 was passed by the House, and is headed to the Senate! This is a huge win for designing communities that reduce carbon emissions, have more housing near transit centers, and help us be less dependent on cars to get around. 

We’ll keep you updated on it’s progress through the Senate- it’s in great shape but will need our continued support to make sure it remains a priority, and makes it all the way to the Governor’s desk.

Rent Stabilization – HB 1217

Housing costs are consistently one of the top concerns for people across Washington state, and HB 1217 will give renters more predictability with their rent prices, and help them plan to stay in their homes, by capping increases at 7%, among other protections. 

Futurewise has been working in partnership with a ton of other community-led organizations to get this bill passed this year, and last night it was PASSED by the House! Stay tuned for more critical updates, we can’t let up the pressure on this bill.

Our Executive Director, Alex, penned a great op-ed this week that explains how this fits into a larger strategy to tackle the housing affordability crisis- you can check out the article here.

GMA Compliance- HB 1135

Advocating for smart, equitable, climate-friendly land-use through the Growth Management Act is a foundational piece of what we advocate for at Futurewise. So one of our priorities this year has been HB 1135, which will close a legal loophole to make sure cities and counties are in compliance with the latest GMA updates. 

Not only did this bill get voted through the House this week, but it’s already been scheduled for its first committee hearing in the Senate! Let’s show the Senate how big of a priority this bill is- sign in PRO for its hearing in the Senate Committee on Local Government on Thursday afternoon. 

Green garden photo. Text overlay says: Sprouts & Shouts Week of Action

For those of you that were able to join in on the Sprouts and Shouts action campaign- thank you! Every call, email, text, and social share makes a difference, especially when we all raise our voices together. Thanks to your efforts, we reached our goal of 1,000 emails and calls for the week.

But the work isn’t over yet! We’ve got strong momentum- let’s keep it going all the way to the finish line. Join us tomorrow at 1pm for a final Sprouts and Shouts Lunchtime Power Hour. Grab your lunch, hop on zoom with us, and we’ll be reaching out to fellow supporters to remind them to take action before Wednesday’s cutoff.

Onward to Floor Cutoff on Wednesday next week!

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Legislative Update Week 9: Floor Cutoff

 

Week of March 10 Legislative Update

What an incredible week of action, I have some big wins to share! As lawmakers in Olympia reach the halfway point of legislative session, they’re making tough decisions about which bills will be heard on the House and Senate floors. There’s only so much time left before the final cutoff on Wednesday, which means a lot of bills won’t make it past this point. 

But our efforts are paying off. Thanks to your advocacy, three of our top priority bills are on their way to the Senate! 

Read on for updates on the amazing outreach we accomplished this week with our Sprouts and Shouts campaign, what’s going on with our priority bills, and a few ways you can get involved next week to keep things moving.

Three huge wins in the House this week! Some of our biggest priorities were passed off the House floor and are on their way to the Senate. We’re celebrating big time, and going to roll with this momentum right into advocating for these bills on the Senate side.

Transit-Oriented Development – HB 1491

HB 1491 was passed by the House, and is headed to the Senate! This is a huge win for designing communities that reduce carbon emissions, have more housing near transit centers, and help us be less dependent on cars to get around. 

We’ll keep you updated on it’s progress through the Senate- it’s in great shape but will need our continued support to make sure it remains a priority, and makes it all the way to the Governor’s desk.

Rent Stabilization – HB 1217

Housing costs are consistently one of the top concerns for people across Washington state, and HB 1217 will give renters more predictability with their rent prices, and help them plan to stay in their homes, by capping increases at 7%, among other protections. 

Futurewise has been working in partnership with a ton of other community-led organizations to get this bill passed this year, and last night it was PASSED by the House! Stay tuned for more critical updates, we can’t let up the pressure on this bill.

Our Executive Director, Alex, penned a great op-ed this week that explains how this fits into a larger strategy to tackle the housing affordability crisis- you can check out the article here.

GMA Compliance- HB 1135

Advocating for smart, equitable, climate-friendly land-use through the Growth Management Act is a foundational piece of what we advocate for at Futurewise. So one of our priorities this year has been HB 1135, which will close a legal loophole to make sure cities and counties are in compliance with the latest GMA updates. 

Not only did this bill get voted through the House this week, but it’s already been scheduled for its first committee hearing in the Senate! Let’s show the Senate how big of a priority this bill is- sign in PRO for its hearing in the Senate Committee on Local Government on Thursday afternoon. 

Green garden photo. Text overlay says: Sprouts & Shouts Week of Action

For those of you that were able to join in on the Sprouts and Shouts action campaign- thank you! Every call, email, text, and social share makes a difference, especially when we all raise our voices together. Thanks to your efforts, we reached our goal of 1,000 emails and calls for the week.

But the work isn’t over yet! We’ve got strong momentum- let’s keep it going all the way to the finish line. Join us tomorrow at 1pm for a final Sprouts and Shouts Lunchtime Power Hour. Grab your lunch, hop on zoom with us, and we’ll be reaching out to fellow supporters to remind them to take action before Wednesday’s cutoff.

Onward to Floor Cutoff on Wednesday next week!

Follow us on Facebook   Follow us on Instagram    Follow us on Bluesky

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