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Legislation to support efforts linking Washington’s cap-and-invest carbon market to those of California and Quebec passed the Washington State Senate Monday. Senate Bill 6058, sponsored by Sen. Joe Nguyễn (D-White Center), makes numerous technical changes to carbon markets to help align Washington’s market with those of California and Quebec, and is an important step forward for the cap-and-invest program created by 2021’s Climate Commitment Act. Linking markets with California and Quebec is expected to have major benefits for Washington’s carbon market. With a larger and more stable market, it’s expected that allowance prices would be significantly lower than ...

A Department of Revenue analysis of Initiative 2109 found that its passage would result in the loss of more than $5.6 billion in funding for early learning, childcare and K-12 education programs across Washington by 2029. Senate Majority Leader Andy Billig issued the statement below in response: “That figure is even worse than we thought. The initiative would reduce K-12 funding and devastate early learning and childcare programs relied on by families across Washington. “For many parents, these programs are essential in order for them to have a family and a career. For businesses, these programs are essential ...

OLYMPIA — A bill to create more affordable homeownership opportunities passed the Senate on a 48-1 vote Friday.  Senate Bill 6173, sponsored by Sen. T’wina Nobles (D-Fircrest), aims to expand the production of affordable housing by enabling local municipalities to support organizations in creating homeownership opportunities for households earning up to 80% of area median income.  It also seeks to address the significant gap between median incomes and home prices in areas where homeownership is largely unattainable for those earning less than the median income, particularly among communities of ...

OLYMPIA — Legislation to allow students to receive state financial aid for the same amount of time they can receive federal aid passed the Senate on a 34-14 vote Friday.  Senate Bill 5904, sponsored by Sen. T’wina Nobles (D-Fircrest), would align the maximum eligibility time frames for the Washington College Grant, College Bound Scholarship, and Passport to Careers programs with that of the federal Pell Grant at 150% — the equivalent of 18 full-time academic quarters.   More than 6,800 Washington students in the 2023–24 academic year are on track to complete their ...

UPDATE March 29, 2024: All four bills were signed into law by Gov. Jay Inslee. Video of the signing ceremony can be found here. OLYMPIA — Four bills to improve Washington state’s behavioral health system passed the Senate unanimously this week. “Over the last seven years we have been working to build capacity for services across the behavioral health crisis continuum: A Place to Call, Someone to Come, A Safe Place to Be,” said Sen. Manka Dhingra (D-Redmond), chair of the Senate Law & Justice Committee and sponsor of the legislation. “The 988 system is the place to ...

OLYMPIA – The Keep Our Care Act to ensure hospital mergers don’t limit access to critical health care  passed the Senate 28-21 on Thursday.   Senate Bill 5241, sponsored by Sen. Emily Randall (D-Bremerton), would ensure hospital mergers and acquisitions don’t restrict patients’ access to critical health care, such as end-of-life, reproductive and gender-affirming care.   Research has shown hospital consolidations commonly result in price increases for patients of up to 20% or more.   Washington state has seen multiple consolidations that restrict access to these critical health ...

OLYMPIA – People planning on installing solar panels at their homes or businesses would receive added consumer protections under legislation passed unanimously yesterday by the Senate. SB 6256 would prevent deceptive sales tactics, ensure that contracts are clear and contain all necessary provisions, require work be done by licensed electricians, and provide for enforcement under the state Consumer Protection Act. “The solar industry is one of the cornerstones of a greener future in Washington state,” said Sen. Derek Stanford (D-Bothell), the bill’s prime sponsor. “As solar installations continue to grow, we need to ensure that consumers can be ...

OLYMPIA — A bill to continue a statewide program to improve active transportation connectivity in overburdened communities unanimously passed the Senate Thursday.  Senate Bill 6283, sponsored by Sen. T’wina Nobles (D-Fircrest), would eliminate the expiration date for the Sandy Williams Connecting Communities Program, which is set to end in 2027. Williams, a Black community organizer and advocate, worked to address historic injustices created by highway projects in the mid-century. She led the effort to reconnect her Spokane neighborhood after Interstate 90 geographically split it in half.  "Sandy dedicated ...

OLYMPIA – Workers would gain protection against employers who seek to force them to attend meetings where they are required to listen to the employer’s opinions on religious or political matters, under legislation passed by the Senate today. SB 5778 would make Washington the sixth state in the nation to prohibit employers from disciplining or firing employees who refuse to attend such meetings. “Workers are hired to do a job. Going to work should not obligate a worker to listen to their employer's views on religious and political matters,” said Sen. Karen Keiser (D-Des Moines), chair of the ...