What are WA lawmakers doing about the cost of living? Here’s what to know
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Lawmakers propose bills to lower costs for housing, health care and groceries.
- Republicans warn some Democratic tax and regulatory proposals will raise costs.
- Contested bills include an income tax on high earners, nicknamed the “millionaires tax.”
Washington state lawmakers are turning their focus this session to affordability.
Republicans have repeatedly accused Democrats of prioritizing measures that would hurt Washingtonians’ pocketbooks, while the majority party has pointed to proposals that they say would make life cheaper.
House Speaker Laurie Jinkins, a Tacoma Democrat, referenced efforts by her caucus to improve affordability amid inflation. She also told reporters Feb. 11 that President Donald Trump’s tariffs have hit the trade-dependent state hard.
“We’ve got a good number of bills that are working on that affordability piece,” Jinkins said. “It’s hard to overcome what the feds are doing, but we’re going to try to do everything we can.”
Republicans cast blame for the state’s cost of living on their across-the-aisle colleagues.
Senate Minority Leader John Braun, a Centralia Republican, said during a Feb. 10 media availability that Democrats are passing bills that would increase the price of food, energy, workers compensation and more.
House Republican Deputy Leader Chris Corry said there’s a string of new taxes up for debate.
“Hopefully we’ll be able to stop those as Washingtonians tell us they want real affordability, not … the word ‘affordable’ but going in the exact opposite direction,” the Yakima Republican said.
Democrat-sponsored affordability bills
Senate Bill 5993 by Sen. Emily Alvarado of West Seattle is one example of a bill that Democrats say would help out bank accounts. The proposal aims to ease the burden of medical debt, which is a leading cause of personal bankruptcy. It would restrict interest charged on new medical debt after the end of this year to an annual rate of 1%.
Rep. Liz Berry of Seattle sponsored House Bill 1155 prohibiting noncompete agreements, which she says prevent employees from seeking new work opportunities.
HB 2294 by Seattle Rep. Darya Farivar aims to remove barriers on where grocery stores or pharmacies can set up shop. Farivar’s HB 2297 would create tax breaks to help keep grocery stores in underserved neighborhoods.
A controversial proposed income tax on millionaires is also being pitched as a way to give back to Washingtonians struggling to get by. SB 6346 by Senate Majority Leader Jamie Pedersen of Seattle, nicknamed the “millionaires tax” by Democrats, would impose a 9.9% tax on income over $1 million, with some of the revenue going to provide tax relief for working families.
Gig Harbor Sen. Deb Krishnadasan is behind SB 6162, which would broaden the senior citizen property tax relief program and consolidate the state property tax. Democrats say this would, in part, help ensure elderly Washingtonians can continue living in their own homes.
Real estate brokers would need to advertise all homes to the general public, rather than to a limited group of potential brokers and buyers, under Edmonds Sen. Marko Liias’ SB 6091; Democrats hope this would lead to more competitive home prices.
HB 2159 by Rep. Steve Bergquist of Renton would establish the PreK Promise Account for the state to receive philanthropy dollars for use by the Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program.
Olympia Rep. Beth Doglio’s HB 2515 would ensure new data centers cover the expense of infrastructure work and additional power generation instead of that cost getting passed down to ratepayers.
Republican-sponsored affordability bills
The state Senate’s minority party has counted them up: They say there are 72 proposed new and higher taxes and fees sponsored by Democrats this session. This comes after Democrats passed the largest tax hike in state history last year.
House Republican Floor Leader April Connors of Kennewick has pursued certain housing-related bills, including HB 2141 that would have halted new building code updates to offer certainty for new housing, affordable housing and other projects. It received a hearing but did not advance before the Feb. 4 policy cutoff. Connors’ HB 1438, which sought to expedite the housing permitting process, also stalled.
Orting Rep. Joshua Penner’s HB 1564 would have created a tax credit for businesses to help employees offset the cost of child care, but it fizzled out.
Puyallup Sen. Chris Gildon, the upper chamber’s Republican budget lead, sought to impose a limit on state spending via SB 5151, which didn’t receive a hearing.
SB 6244 by Pasco Sen. Nikki Torres, however, lives on. It seeks to extend a tax exemption for certain agricultural crop protection products, such as pesticides, that are warehoused, with proponents saying it would improve the state’s competitiveness and offer security for local farmers.
Kennewick Sen. Matt Boehnke’s SB 5909, also still in the running, would discontinue certain undergraduate programs with low enrollment at universities.
Braun laid out a number of bills that his caucus is worried about in a recent newsletter. Among the “anti-affordability” bills highlighted by the Senate minority leader: the income tax — which he says will hurt small and mid-sized businesses and drive up costs for everyone.
Republicans have also underscored concerns about proposals to raise the cigarette tax and to ban tires with a certain chemical, which they argue would reduce competition in the tire market and thus raise costs.
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