
April 17, 2023
*The Legislative Bulletin* is produced weekly during the legislative session.**	One click to view all Legislative Bulletin headlines and articles.
REET bill is on the move and needs your continued support! If a long legislative session is analogous to a marathon, the bill that would create new real estate excise tax (REET) revenue for affordable housing has just passed Mile 2. With 24.2 miles to go in just one week, this makes it an underdog – especially given the recent attack by Washington REALTORS® – but AWC stands strongly behind the bill, given the high stakes. Reach out to your legislators and express your support now for HB 1628! More Blake bill passes House; AWC sends message to legislators on reconciling the Senate and House versions Last week the House passed SB 5536, keeping drug possession a misdemeanor and creating off-ramps into treatment and services. The bill as amended by the House changes the charge from a gross misdemeanor to a simple misdemeanor, adds public use of a drug as a potential criminal charge, creates a complicated and prescriptive diversion process, allows for judicial discretion in imposing jail time, and adds a new state preemption on the regulation of drug paraphernalia. The two versions of the bill differ substantially, meaning SB 5536 will likely enter a conference committee where representatives from both chambers hash out the differences. AWC sent a message to legislators outlining our preferred provisions for the final bill. More New bill, new hope for property tax cap fix – contact legislators to share your support! A new bill was introduced last week revising the arbitrary 1% cap on state and local property tax to inflation and population (up to 3%), as rumors continue to circulate that a property tax cap fix may be part of final budget negotiations. With just one week left in session, the window for action is narrow. Ask your legislators to pass SB 5770. More Register for Labor Relations Institute before it sells out! May 3-5 \| Yakima With just two weeks left, don’t miss your chance to attend AWC’s premier training event for public sector human resources professionals in Washington. This popular event offers legal updates, practical guidance, labor relations strategies, and networking opportunities to help navigate the complex and ever-changing world of HR. Check out the schedule and session topics and then register today! Note: Attendance at the Institute is limited to those who solely represent the interests of management. AWC lobbyists cover the legislative homestretch We've made it to the last inning of the legislative session! AWC met up with our lobbyists to ask how things are shaping up. Watch this video where they detail the final days of the 105-day session and discuss important bills of interest, budget items to track, and what you can do to help. Find out the real news we all need: What’s the best legislative “food day”? Summit Law's Otto Klein looks back on 40+ years of employment law and LRI For decades, the attorneys at Summit Law Group have been the go-to experts on the employer side of HR & labor relations. Otto Klein, a key part of that team, has worked with AWC and public and private sector employers of all sizes for over 30 years. In that time, he was instrumental in founding AWC’s annual Labor Relations Institute. HR Insights recently visited with Otto to discuss his role in creating LRI, his career, and what he thinks his future holds. Listen here.	The end is near The 2023 Legislative Session is set to adjourn Sunday, April 23. This week will be a scramble to finish negotiations on high-profile policy bills, such as the Blake response bill (SB 5536), and to finalize the operating, capital, and transportation biennial budgets. Some questions hanging in the air center on new revenue options. Will the Legislature pass a local and state REET option for affordable housing? Or will they pass the late entry SB 5770, revising the property tax cap up to 3% based on inflation and population growth? Both represent important new local revenue for cities. These last days of session are sure to see late nights and a few twists and turns. Check out our final Bill Hot Sheet highlighting the policy bills we’re focused on. AWC is also tracking bills as they head to the Governor’s desk for signature. Bills that are delivered to the Governor more than five days before the Legislature adjourns have five days to be acted on. Bills that are delivered fewer than five days before sine die have 20 days to be acted on by the Governor, minus Sundays. You can check on the signing status of bills on the Governor’s website. Final AWC city action call – Members only Friday at 12:30 pm \| Online Don’t miss our last call this Friday for AWC members to hear updates directly from your team of lobbyists. Hear the latest action on the hill and progress on bills of importance to cities. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing the Zoom link for this week’s call. Register now for this Friday's call. Affordable housing Where are the key affordable housing bills now? AWC has been tracking nearly five dozen bills intended to address affordable housing this session. Check out the status of those still standing. More COVID-19 President Biden ends COVID-19 national emergency, impacts some uses of ARPA funds. A bill ending the COVID-19 national emergency was signed on April 11 after passing Congress with bipartisan support. More General government Voting Rights Act expansion signed by Governor. Read up on the latest actions regarding voting rights and two open government bills that failed to make it past cutoff. More Two bills benefiting small cities survive cutoff, set to become law. Check out these bills increasing contract limits for small cities. More HR & labor relations HR bills still in play as Legislature enters final week. Some HR & labor relations bills have survived the cutoff deadlines, while others need differences reconciled ahead of sine die. More Pensions Pension bills working their way towards the finish line. Bills impacting city employee pensions need final action as we enter the reconciliation period. More Public safety & criminal justice House passes a vehicular pursuits bill with amendments; other public safety bills in various positions. Read a summary of public safety bills and where they stand – from liquor licenses for adult entertainment nightclubs to expanding access for courthouse dogs. More Public works & infrastructure Prospects are high for a statewide small works roster, more equity in public works procurement. Changes to the public works procurement process, as introduced in SB 5268, are one step closer to enactment in Washington. More Transportation Future of transportation revenue forecast just around the bend. Aiming to create better coordination and consistency between forecasts, HB 1838 travelled a straight path through the House, only to turn circles in the Senate. More
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