The 2025 legislative session is now more than halfway through with Wednesday’s 5 p.m. house of origin cutoff. This key date marks the point that the Senate will begin public hearings on House bills and vice versa.
FIGHTING HATE
10:30 a.m. Thursday, March 13
The Law & Justice Committee will hear public testimony on House Bill 1052, sponsored by Rep. Cindy Ryu. The bill updates Washington’s hate crime laws to allow prosecution when bias is a partial motive. You can read more here. Watch on TVW.
HAIR EQUITY TRAINING
8:30 a.m. Friday, March 14
The Labor & Commerce Committee will hear public testimony on House Bill 1874, sponsored by Rep. Melanie Morgan. The bill requires licensed cosmetologists, barbers, estheticians and hair designers to receive training on working with textured hair. Watch on TVW.
HOUSING REFORMS
10:30 a.m. Friday, March 14
The Housing Committee will hear public testimony on a slate of bills to reform housing laws and regulations to help create more housing options in Washington.
HB 1353, sponsored by Rep. Alex Ramel, allows cities under the GMA to run self-certification programs, letting registered architects certify detached ADUs’ compliance with building codes. Similar programs in other states have reduced costs and permitting time.
HB 1491, sponsored by Rep. Julia Reed, promotes transit oriented development which can reduce traffic, boost public transit use, expand affordable housing, and benefit surrounding communities.
HB 1096, sponsored by Rep. Andrew Barkis, requires cities subject to middle housing requirements to establish an administrative process for lot splitting, without requiring a pre-decision public hearing, which will increase access to affordable housing more quickly. Lot splitting increases affordable housing opportunities by allowing property owners to more easily divide their lots and build additional homes.
