Week Seven
Week seven is now complete and we are approximately one-third of the way through the 2021 legislative session. Following the fiscal committee cutoff on Monday both chambers spend the rest of the week on the floor voting on bills. The House and the Senate debated several bills including legislation related to police reform, climate change, graduation requirements, consumer protection, election security, labor standards, and open carry laws. The House passed a bill on Thursday sponsored by Rep. Melanie Morgan (D-29) that would make Juneteenth a legal holiday. The legislature will continue floor action next week until the House of Origin cutoff on March 9th. Following that cutoff all bills that made it out of the House will be sent to the Senate for further consideration, and all bills voted out of the Senate will be sent to the House.
On Monday, Senate and House Democratic leadership held another press conference where they discussed the virtual session and answered questions from the media. The media asked questions related to the various revenue proposals moving through the legislature and the need for new revenue. While the elected officials did not indicate which revenue proposal is their priority at this point they did express their desire for a more equitable tax system overall and the need to fund public health and childcare. Washington’s next revenue forecast is expected to come out in mid-march and many expect that it will be a positive forecast.
On Monday there was a hearing in the Senate Health & Long Term Care Committee SB 5371 which would create a tax on sugar sweetened beverages to fund public health. In 2010, a similar tax on soda, bottled water, candy and some processed foods was overturned by Washington voters via Initiative 1107. The bill has yet to move out of committee however it is not subject to cutoffs because it is a tax bill.
Also of note this week, on Saturday, the House debated HB 1091, Rep. Fitzgibbon’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard. The floor debate on the bill lasted for over six hours eventually passing the house 52-46. Five democrats joined the republicans in voting against the bill, Reps Sullivan, Springer, Walen, Rule and Shewmake. Also on Saturday the House passed Rep. Jesse Johnson’s HB 1054, establishing requirements for tactics and equipment used by peace officers.
Important Dates:
Feb 15 – House of Origin Policy Cutoff
Feb 22 – House of Origin Fiscal Cutoff
March 9 – House of Origin Floor Cutoff
March 26 – Opposite House Policy Cutoff
April 2 – Opposite House Fiscal Cutoff April 11 – Opposite House Floor Cutoff April 25 – Sine Die
The low carbon fuel standard legislation from Representative Fitzgibbon, HB 1091, saw floor action on Saturday. The floor debate on the bill lasted for over six hours and the bill eventually passed the house 52-46. Five democrats joined the republicans in voting against the bill, Reps Sullivan, Springer, Walen, Rule and Shewmake. Additionally, the Senate Environment & Energy committee took executive action on Thursday, February 25th on Senator Carlyle’s Cap & Invest bill, SB 5126. A do pass recommendation was made with a 7-3 vote count, and the bill will now move to the Senate Ways & Means committee for further consideration.
Decarbonization of buildings legislation brought forth by Representative Ramel (HB 1084) had a hearing in the House Appropriations committee on Wednesday, February 17th. We also continue to monitor the HEAL Act legislation from Senator Saldana concerning implementing recommendations from the environmental justice task force. This legislation currently sits in the Senate Rules committee awaiting a vote.
Finally, HB 1513 from Representative Lekanoff concerning green bonds will likely be heard in the House Environment & Energy committee next week.
Following executive action in the House Capital Budget committee, HB 1280 has moved to the House Rules committee where it can be pulled at any time to the floor for a vote. This legislation sponsored by Representative Ramel would set requirements for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in public facilities design.
We continue to monitor HB 1393, the bill is now in the House Rules committee where it can be pulled to the floor at any time for a vote. HB 1393 is related to delaying the stewardship plan and annual report for solar panel manufacturers.
Clean Tech Alliance Bill Status & Upcoming Events Report
Upcoming Events
Environment, Energy & Technology (Senate) – Virtual, – 3/4 @ 8:00am
- SB 5373 – Public Hearing – Concerning carbon pollution. (Hearing is on the Proposed Substitute.) (Remote testimony.)
| Bill # | Abbrev. Title | Short Description | Status | Sponsor |
| HB 1036 (Dead) | Transportation fuel/carbon | Reducing greenhouse gas emissions by reducing the carbon intensity of transportation fuel. | H Env & Energy | Fitzgibbon |
| HB 1046 (Dead) | Community solar programs | Concerning community solar programs. | H Env & Energy | Bateman |
| E2SHB 1050 | Fluorinated gases | Reducing greenhouse gas emissions from fluorinated gases. | S Environment, En | Fitzgibbon |
| HB 1080 (SB 5083) | Capital budget 2021-2023 | Concerning the capital budget. | H Cap Budget | Tharinger |
| HB 1081 (SB 5084) | State gen. obligation bonds | Concerning state general obligation bonds and related accounts. | H Cap Budget | Tharinger |
| SHB 1084 (SB 5093) | Building decarbonization | Reducing statewide greenhouse gas emissions by achieving greater decarbonization of residential and commercial buildings. | H Approps | Ramel |
| E3SHB 1091 (SB 5231) | Transportation fuel/carbon | Reducing greenhouse gas emissions by reducing the carbon intensity of transportation fuel. | H 3rd Reading | Fitzgibbon |
| HB 1093 (SB 5091) | Operating budget, 2nd supp. | Making 2019-2021 fiscal biennium second supplemental operating appropriations. | H Approps | Ormsby |
| HB 1094 (SB 5092) | Operating budget 2021-2023 | Making 2021-2023 fiscal biennium operating appropriations. | H Approps | Ormsby |
| SHB 1103 (SB 5366) | Building materials | Improving environmental and social outcomes with the production of building materials. | H Approps | Duerr |
| HB 1125 | Energy investments | Incentivizing investment in energy conservation and efficiency measures and expanding opportunities for energy rate discounts to, among other objectives, reduce the energy burden of low-income customers and vulnerable populations. | H Env & Energy | Shewmake |
| HB 1130 | Energy supply/consumers | Concerning consumer affordability and reliability in energy supply. | H Env & Energy | Dye |
| HB 1135 (SB 5165) | Transp. budget 2021-2023 | Making transportation appropriations for the 2021-2023 fiscal biennium. | H Transportation | Fey |
| SHB 1204 (SB 5256) | Transp. electrification | Concerning the electrification of transportation. | H Rules R | Macri |
| HB 1393 | Photovoltaic module program | Delaying certain implementation dates for the photovoltaic module stewardship and takeback program. | H Passed 3rd | Shewmake |
| HB 1406 (SB 5426) | Wealth tax | Improving the equity of Washington state’s tax code by creating the Washington state wealth tax and taxing extraordinary financial intangible assets. | H Finance | Frame |
| HB 1513 | Carbon emissions | Improving environmental health by reducing carbon emissions through increasing climate resilience and mitigating the effects of climate change by levying a carbon pollution tax, authorizing a climate finance bond program, and investing in clean economic growth. | H Env & Energy | Lekanoff |
| HB 1534 | Carbon pollution tax | Establishing a carbon pollution tax that recognizes the nature of energy-intensive, trade-exposed industries. | H Env & Energy | Shewmake |
| SB 5083 (HB 1080) | Capital budget 2021-2023 | Concerning the capital budget. | S Ways & Means | Frockt |
| SB 5084 (HB 1081) | State gen. obligation bonds | Concerning state general obligation bonds and related accounts. | S Ways & Means | Frockt |
| SB 5091 (HB 1093) | Operating budget, 2nd supp. | Making 2019-2021 fiscal biennium second supplemental operating appropriations. | S Ways & Means | Rolfes |
| SB 5092 (HB 1094) | Operating budget 2021-2023 | Making 2021-2023 fiscal biennium operating appropriations. | S Ways & Means | Rolfes |
| SB 5093 (SHB 1084) | Building decarbonization | Reducing statewide greenhouse gas emissions by achieving greater decarbonization of residential and commercial buildings. | S Environment, E | Liias |
| SSB 5126 | Climate commitment act | Concerning the Washington climate commitment act. | S Ways & Means | Carlyle |
| SB 5165 (HB 1135) | Transp. budget 2021-2023 | Making transportation appropriations for the 2021-2023 fiscal biennium. | S Transportation | Hobbs |
| SB 5168 | Electric utility advisory | Concerning renewable and nonemitting resources analysis and advisory opinions. | S Environment, E | Short |
| SSB 5174 | Wind turbine blade recycling | Providing for the recycling of wind turbine blades. | S Rules 2 | Wilson |
| SB 5206 | Energy facility evaluation | Eliminating expedited processing of an alternative energy resource facility fueled by solar energy on certain designated lands before the energy facility site evaluation council. | S Environment, E | Warnick |
| SB 5231 (E3SHB 1091) | Transportation fuel/carbon | Reducing greenhouse gas emissions by reducing the carbon intensity of transportation fuel. | S Environment, E | Stanford |
| SB 5244 | Nuclear reactor production | Encouraging the production of advanced nuclear reactors, small modular reactors, and components through the invest in Washington act. | S Environment, E | Brown |
| SB 5256 (SHB 1204) | Transp. electrification | Concerning the electrification of transportation. | S Environment, E | Liias |
| SB 5308 | Hybrid vehicle fees | Reducing certain transportation electrification fees on hybrid vehicles. | S Transportation | Short |
| SB 5373 | Carbon pollution | Concerning carbon pollution. | S Environment, E | Lovelett |
| SB 5415 | Energy facil site eval cncl | Concerning the energy facility site evaluation council. | S Environment, E | Lovelett |