Friday marked another key cutoff for bills in WA Legislature. Here’s some of what passed
Friday marked another deadline in the Legislature as lawmakers closed the end of the week with executive sessions in both the Senate Ways and Means Committee and House Appropriations Committee.
Legislation with fiscal impact had to be passed from their house of origin by Friday.
The Senate Ways and Means Committee scheduled 56 bills on their agenda to cap the week, while the House Appropriations was scheduled for 40, according to a press release by Gov. Jay Inslee’s office Friday.
“Non-budget bills that haven’t cleared a fiscal committee by the end of Friday are left on the cutting room floor,” the governor’s office noted. “Exceptions can be made if a legislator convinces legislative leaders their bill is ‘necessary to implement the budget’ and not subject to cutoff.”
The next cutoff date for state lawmakers is March 8, when bills must pass off the debate floor from their house of origin. Lawmakers will mostly focus on floor action through that deadline, and will work late hours passing legislation, Inslee’s office added.
While some floor debates took place this week, lawmakers’ efforts were mostly focused on passing bills from committee.
Here are some of the things that passed last week:
Cannabis
Senate Bill 5123: Some employers in Washington state would no longer be allowed to discriminate against applicants for their cannabis use outside of work under a bill passed by the Senate on Wednesday.
The bill was introduced by Sen. Karen Keiser, D-Des Moines, and passed with a 28-21 vote. If passed through the House and signed by the governor, the bill would go into effect on Jan. 1, 2024 and would only apply to pre-employment screenings, not an employer’s on-the-job policies after an employee is hired.
Housing
House Bill 1389: Landlords in Washington would no longer be able to quickly raise rents under this proposed legislation. Rents would not be able to be raised on tenants within the first 12 months after signing a lease, and rent increases could not be more than 3-7% in a 12-month period, although exemptions could apply in some circumstances.
The bill is sponsored by Rep. Alex Ramel, D-Bellingham, and was passed out of the House Appropriations Committee on Friday.
HB 1110: This proposed legislation would establish new requirements for “middle housing” regulations. Cities with more than 6,000 population could authorize at least four units on zoned residential lots, and up to six units could be authorized on zoned residential lots within a half-mile of major transit areas.
The bill is sponsored by Jessica Bateman, D-Olympia, and co-sponsored by several House Democrats and Republicans. It was passed out of executive session by the House Appropriations Committee on Friday.
Schools
SB 5670: Sophomores in Washington high schools would be able to enroll in no more than five quarter credits per term in online Running Start programs under this bill.
As the law currently stands, only high school juniors and seniors can enroll in Running Start programs, at no cost to the students, and earn both high school and college credits simultaneously.
The bipartisan legislation is sponsored by Sen. Brad Hawkins, R-East Wenatchee, and has several Republican and Democratic co-sponsors. It passed out of the Senate Ways and Means Committee on Friday.
SB 5257: Recess could become mandatory for elementary school children in Washington under legislation sponsored by Sen. T’wina Nobles, D-Fircrest.
On Monday, the bill passed off the Senate debate floor with a 28-21 vote. Public schools would be required to provide 30 minutes of recess for students except on half days, and the Washington State School Directors’ Association would be required to update a model physical education and nutrition policy.
The proposed legislation is already scheduled for a public hearing in the House Education Committee on March 1.
Prison reform
SB 5131: As the law currently stands, up to 95% of the money sent to people in prison by family members is kept by the Department of Corrections for various accounts such as payment of Legal Financial Obligations or simply the cost of being incarcerated.
This bill would prevent money sent by family members from being used for those deductions, and instead, inmates could only spend the money on commissary items.
The bill is sponsored by Sen. Claire Wilson, D-Auburn, and was passed out of the Senate Ways and Means Committee on Friday.
Policing
Substitute House Bill 1513: This bill would limit law enforcement officers from pulling over drivers for non-moving violations, such as broken tail lights or parking tickets. Officers could still enforce non-moving violations as a secondary offense if the vehicle is pulled over for a qualifying primary offense, such as driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, reckless driving, and vehicular assault.
The legislation is sponsored by freshman lawmaker Rep. Chipalo Street, D-Seattle, and passed out of executive session during the House Transportation Committee on Thursday.
State dinosaur
HB 1020: This bill passed from the chamber floor on Monday and would designate the Suciasaurus Rex as Washington’s official dinosaur. Fourth-grade students from Elmhurst Elementary in the Franklin Pierce School District brought the bill forward to Rep. Melanie Morgan, D-Parkland, in 2019 but the legislation has yet to clear all the legislative hurdles needed to become law.
The legislation passed from the House floor with an 88-5 vote. The nay votes were from five Republicans, while five Democrats were excused.
