2026 Legislative Update: Week 7

The opposite house policy deadline passed this week, and lawmakers are now focused on the next big date: the opposite house fiscal deadline. Any bill that affects the budget must pass this step by Monday, March 2, or it will be considered dead for the rest of the session, unless it is labeled “necessary to implement the budget” (NTIB).

This week, budget leaders in both the House and Senate also released their own budget proposal, a key step as the Legislature enters the final weeks of the 2026 session. These proposals will drive tough negotiations over spending choices and decisions that will shape state programs and services in the coming fiscal year.

Operating Budgets:

The operating budget proposals (HB 2289 and SB 5998) spend around $79.2–$79.3 billion, an increase from the enacted biennial budget of about $77.8 billion. Both proposals assume passage of the Millionaire’s Income Tax. They both include targeted reductions for state agencies and higher education, move around one-time funds, and differ in how they use climate-related revenues.

Each budget takes over $700 million from the state’s Budget Stabilization Account (rainy day find) to help balance spending, which legislators say is needed because of inflation, increased caseloads, and other near-term cost pressures to help balance spending.

A major driver of new spending is the sharp increase in legal judgments and settlement costs against state agencies: the Senate proposal sets aside about $1 billion for these obligations, while the House sets aside about $400 million. Republican legislators have criticized the proposals for increasing spending and relying on reserves and other one-time resources rather than structural budget solutions.

Transportation Budgets:

The transportation proposals have similar goals but differ in size, how they’re paid for, and how they balance short‑term projects with long‑term debt.

The Senate proposal (SB 6005) adds about $1.5 billion in new spending, mostly funded by $1.1 billion in bonds (SB 6225). It prioritizes speeding up highway and bridge repairs, making Washington State Ferries more reliable and upgrading terminals, improving safety on dangerous roads, building climate and electric vehicle infrastructure, and fixing storm and flood damage. Senate leaders say this lets them tackle urgent repair needs and advance projects faster without raising taxes.

The House proposal (HB 2306) totals about $16.5 billion and reflects a more cautious fiscal approach amid declining gas tax revenues, rising construction costs, and growing long‑term obligations. It includes funding for highway and bridge preservation, ferry operations and capital timelines, targeted pedestrian and bicycle safety projects, and multimodal investments such as youth rail access and mobility programs during construction. The proposal plans for major future costs, including fish passage barrier removal, while relying on existing bond capacity rather than authorizing new debt.

Even with their differences, both proposals emphasize maintenance over expansion, invest in ferry system reliability, support safety improvements, and maintain funding for climate and multimodal projects. Negotiations are expected to focus on the appropriate level of new bonding, the pace of preservation work, and how best to balance immediate infrastructure needs with long-term fiscal sustainability.

Capital Budgets:

The Capital budget proposals build on the $7.5 billion 2025–27 capital budget adopted last year and emphasize job creation, housing, and community infrastructure. Key differences center on overall spending levels, Climate Commitment Act allocations, and the balance between expanded housing and climate investments versus the Senate’s emphasis on resilience and core infrastructure.

The House proposal (HB 2295) invests more on housing and Climate Commitment Act investments. It includes $221 million for housing and homelessness, bringing total biennial housing investments to nearly $1 billion, and $284 million for clean energy and decarbonization. Additional funding supports habitat restoration, salmon recovery, energy efficiency, community climate grants, and $78 million for K–12 school construction. The proposal also funds a range of local and state facility needs, including flood response, tribal resilience, and improvements at Western State Hospital and Department of Corrections facilities.

The Senate proposal (SB 6003) reflects a smaller infrastructure strategy. It includes $150 million for affordable housing, $93.6 million for school construction, and major investments in disaster response and water systems, including $50 million for flood recovery and preparedness and $20 million for irrigation, fish passage, and water conservation. Senate leaders also direct Climate Commitment Act resources toward focused initiatives such as a $50 million clean energy revolving loan program (Washington Builds), agricultural methane reduction, environmental cleanup, and $38.6 million for tribal clean energy and climate resilience.

Millionaire’s Tax:

The proposed Millionaire’s Income Tax (SB 6346) was heard again this week in the House Finance Committee. A total of 284 individuals signed in to testify, and 129,687 people registered positions through the Legislature’s online system, with roughly 90% opposed.

However, supporters of the measure have raised concerns about the accuracy of those figures. The coalition, Invest in Washington Now, alleges that approximately 37,000 “con” sign-ins may have been duplicate or fraudulent. Some submissions reportedly used the names of public officials such as former Congressman Derek Kilmer (D) and organizational leaders such as Larry Delaney (WEA) and Adam Glickman (SEIU 775) without their consent. Supporters have asked the Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown and House Clerk Bernard Dean to investigate, arguing the inflated numbers could misrepresent public sentiment. Indeed, the entire situation could throw sign-ins into question. In response, House Finance Committee Chair Rep. April (D-44) issued this statement:

“Public comments and feedback to a proposed policy is a critical aspect of our work in the Legislature. It allows us to more easily hear from constituents who may not be able to participate in the legislative process in-person. It’s become clear, however, that the system is easy to manipulate. Following reports of impersonation from concerned stakeholders who had their information misused to sign in against SB 6346, initial investigation into the committee sign in reports have shown potentially tens of thousands of instances of fraudulent or duplicate data.

Investigations into the full extent of the manipulation are ongoing through the Chief Clerk’s Office, as are plans to make system improvements to prevent this sort of abuse in the future. In addition, the Washington State Attorney General’s Office has been informed of the situation and alerted to the need for possible investigation.  To those who participated in the manipulation of the public comment system, I want to be clear: your efforts have not benefited your cause and have in fact done damage to the democratic process and called into question every sign in on this bill.”

Important Dates:

• March 2 – Fiscal Committee Cutoff (Opposite House)
• March 6 – Floor Cutoff (Opposite House)
• March 12 – Sine Die

Upcoming Events:

Finance (House) – HHR A and Virtual JLOB – 3/2 @ 8:00am

• E2SSB 6027 – Exec Session – Modifying certain funding and exemptions related to providing and maintaining affordable housing and related services.
• ESSB 6113 – Exec Session – Concerning taxes administered by the department of revenue.
• ESSB 6162 – Exec Session – Concerning property tax reform.
• SSB 6343 – Exec Session – Providing tax relief to Washington residents impacted by the atmospheric river and winter weather event.
• ESB 6347 – Exec Session – Undoing the recent changes to the estate tax. (REVISED FOR ENGROSSED: Undoing certain changes to the estate tax.)
• HB 2745 – Public Hearing – Increasing temporarily insurance premium taxes on insurers to fund health insurance premium assistance. (Remote Testimony Available). (If measure is referred to committee.)

Appropriations (House) – HHR A and Virtual JLOB – 3/2 @ 10:30am

• E2SSB 5496 – Exec Session – Preserving homeownership options by limiting excessive home buying by certain entities.
• 2SSB 5968 – Exec Session – Improving regulatory efficiency by integrating executive order 25-03, concerning permitting and licensing processes, into chapter 43.42A RCW.
• E2SSB 6026 – Exec Session – Concerning residential development in commercial and mixed-use zones.
• SSB 6160 – Exec Session – Improving government efficiency related to reports by state agencies.
• ESB 6246 – Exec Session – Concerning emissions from emissions-intensive, trade-exposed facilities under the climate commitment act.
• SSB 6289 – Exec Session – Creating a statewide economic development and competitiveness strategic plan.

Transportation (House) – HHR B and Virtual JLOB – 3/2 @ 1:00pm

• 2SSB 5690 – Exec Session – Concerning actions of the department of transportation to notify utility owners of projects and seek federal funding for utility relocation costs.
• ESB 5705 – Exec Session – Improving traffic safety by modifying penalty amounts for certain traffic infractions.
• ESSB 6262 – Exec Session – Increasing the maximum weight of certain vehicles subject to transportation benefit district vehicle fees.
• ESSB 5374 – Exec Session – Including tribal representation in certain transportation activities.