PORT ANGELES — As the state Legislative session moves well past its halfway point, politicians are beginning to get a clearer idea of which bills might shape local policies over the next few years.
One bill that is still being considered is SB 5576, which would allow local jurisdictions to adopt a short-term rental lodging tax of up to 4 percent. Funds collected from this tax would be dedicated to affordable housing projects.
“The Legislature has heard so frequently that it’s such a struggle to find operational funding dollars [for affordable housing],” Clallam County Commissioner Mark Ozias, who sits on the Washington State Association of Counties (WSAC) Legislative Steering Committee, said. “This was an attempt to create a revenue stream.”
HB 1334 is also still in play due to its revenue nexus, Ozias said.
This bill would raise the property tax lid from one to three percent or the amount of inflation, excluding seniors and those with disabilities.
“I expect this bill to come back into play by the end of the session,” Ozias said. “It is likely something will be reflected in the budget that shows new revenue attached to this mechanism.”
To decrease the impact this might have on certain residents, the WSAC has asked for an amendment to the bill that would allow frontier counties such as Clallam to raise their property tax lids but credit it against the state’s portion. Rather than raising the total property tax, this mechanism would be a redirect some of the state’s funds to local municipalities.
On the tax front, the bill authorizing counties to impose a public utilities tax and the bill making the Real Estate Excise Tax (REET) more progressive are both likely dead, Ozias said.
“The state seems to be focused on property tax this year,” he said.
While the bill proposing more funding for local public defense costs is dead, Ozias said advocates have switched strategies and are working to bolster funding for the Office of Public Defense.
Currently, Governor Bob Ferguson’s proposed budget has an $8 million placeholder for that office, compared to the traditional $5 million, according to Ozias.
The House and Senate proposed budgets, released Tuesday, provide more detail into proposed revenue and program spending, Ozias said.
Ozias typically provides a legislative session update to the county commissioners during their Monday morning work session every two weeks.
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Reporter Emma Maple can be reached by email at emma.maple@peninsuladailynews.com.
