In Memoriam
State Senator Bill Ramos
(Photo Courtesy: Washington State Democratic Caucus)
We are saddened to share that Senator Bill Ramos of the 5th Legislative District passed away on Saturday, April 19 while on a trail run with his beloved dog Sadie.
Senator Ramos was elected to the State Senate in 2024 following six years of service in the House of Representatives. Ramos served as the Vice Chair of the Senate Transportation Committee.
Senator Ramos was a beloved member of the Legislature who will be deeply missed. We join his colleague in extending our condolences to his wife, King County Councilmember Sarah Perry, and their children.
Note to Reader
The operating, capital and transportation budget releases (and subsequent legislative votes) will hopefully occur following the publication of this scheduled Notes from Olympia. Should this occur, our plan is to release a summary of the budget details and final weekend activity in an abbreviated Notes from Olympia early next week. Keep your eyes out for another email that includes a recap of all of the final Sine Die action!
Trivia!
The Capitol Gift Shop holds an annual contest for customers to select their preferred design for a “Sine Die” t-shirt that is available for purchase.
Which of these two designs won this year’s contest?
(Photo Courtesy: Erica Hallock)
Highlights of the Week
Will session end on time??
That is a very, very good question. As of this publication deadline, it is unclear whether the Legislature will conclude its core business – enacting a balanced, biennial budget – by the scheduled 11:59 p.m. Sine Die on Sunday, April 27. As noted above, we will release a supplemental Notes from Olympia early next week summarizing the weekend’s activity that will either recap budget details or layout next steps for a special session. Stay tuned…
Fair Start for Kids Act Restructure Bill Amended – Again – and Passes House
On April 23, the House adopted a striking amendment to ESSB 5752 (C. Wilson) prior to passing the bill by an 87-10 vote. This is the bill that restructures the Fair Start for Kids Act and other early learning programs to achieve budget savings.
Because the bill has undergone substantial changes throughout the legislative process, we thought it would be helpful to summarize the main components of the latest version of the bill as passed by the House on April 23.
Changes to ECEAP
- Moves entitlement date to the 2030-31 school year.
- Removes categorial eligibility for members of assistance units eligible for or receiving basic food benefits under the federal SNAP program or state food assistance.
- Removes categorial eligibility for children eligible for Part C of the federal Individual with Disabilities Education Act.
Programs Moved to Subject to Appropriation
- Early ECEAP (and subject to space availability)
- Trauma informed care provider supports, outside of Collective Bargaining Agreements
- Dual Language provider supports, outside of Collective Bargaining Agreements
- Infant Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation
Working Connections Child Care Eligibility and Payments
- Moves income eligibility expansion to 75% of the State Median Income to July 1, 2029 and to 85% of the State Median Income by July 1, 2031, Subject to Appropriation.
- Directs DCYF to adopt a rule that requires prospective payments to child care providers who accept child care subsidies to occur when child care is expected to begin.
- Also directs DCYF to adopt a rule that prohibits child care providers who accept subsidies from claiming a prospective payment when a child has not attended at least one day within the authorization period in the previous month.
- Strikes language from existing statute that 12-month authorization for care starts on the date care is expected to begin. Impact of this change is to start 12-month authorization at eligibility determination.
- Repeals eligibility expansion for children of child care employees and participants in apprenticeships.
Cost of Quality/Market Rate Survey
- Directs DCYF to conduct both a cost of quality and market rate survey by June 1st of each even-numbered year and share information with relevant legislative committees.
School-Age Child Care Pilot Program
- Authorizes DCYF pilot program for a school district and metropolitan park district for a school-age child care program.
Working Connections Child Care Co-Payment Rates
Maintains the current co-payment structure until October 1, 2026:
Co-payment structure effective October 1, 2026:
Note that the current and proposed “traunches” do not evenly align, so use care when making year-to-year comparisons.
Potential Conflict with Federal Requirements
- Contains a provision providing that if any part of the bill is found to be in conflict with federal requirements, the conflicting part of the bill is inoperative, but only to the extent of the conflict.
The bill now returns to the Senate for concurrence with House amendments. As of this writing, this process has not yet occurred.
Update on Revenue Bills
As reported in the April 18 edition of Notes from Olympia, Senate and House Democrats released a revised revenue package last week that, paired with reductions, aim to close the state’s estimated $16 billion four-year budget gap.
Over the past week, these revenue bills have made their way through the typical bill process, albeit in an expedited manner. Demonstrating that when the Legislature puts their mind to something, they can act swiftly.
Since introduction, bill details have shifted with some industries’ successful efforts in removing their sector from various revenue proposals. As a result, the expected revenue the overall package would generate was reduced as the week went on. This means we can expect to see increased cuts and reductions to offset this reduced anticipated revenue when the final budget is released.
Following is an update on the status of the key revenue bills. You will see that some of the vehicles are House bills, while others are Senate vehicles.
ESHB 2049 (Bergquist)
- This bill may have seen the largest shift when Representative Bergquist offered an amendment that removed a proposal to repeal a limit on property tax growth. The bill now increases the maximum per-pupil limit for school enrichment levies gradually over several years.
- ESHB 2049 narrowly passed the House 50-48 in a late Monday night/early Tuesday morning floor season. It received a public hearing in Senate Ways and Means on Wednesday, April 23 and is scheduled for executive session on April 25 and a Senate floor vote shortly thereafter. (To my point about swift action).
ESHB 2081 (Fitzgibbon)
- This bill makes several changes to the Business & Occupations (B&O) tax rate. During the course of the past week, a number of changes were made to the bill, exempting various industries and occupations from increased taxes.
- ESHB 2081 also narrowly passed the House 50-48 in the late Monday night/early Tuesday morning floor season. It, too, received a public hearing in Senate Ways and Means on Wednesday, April 23 and is scheduled for executive session on April 25 and a Senate floor vote shortly thereafter.
ESSB 5794 (Salomon)
- This bill seeks to repeal a number of tax preferences on the books. This is one of the bills that has seen changes as sectors have worked to reinstate their tax exemption(s).
- ESSB 5794 passed the Senate 26-22 on April 19 and passed the House on a 53-45 vote on April 23. It now returns to the Senate for Concurrence with the House amendments prior to going to the Governor’s desk for his consideration.
ESSB 5813 (C. Wilson)
- This bill increases the current capital gains and estate taxes with funding dedicated to the Education Legacy Trust Account.
- ESSB 5813 passed the Senate on a 27-21 vote on April 19 and passed the House on a 53-43 vote on April 23. It now returns to the Senate for Concurrence with the House amendments prior to going to the Governor’s desk for his consideration.
ESSB 5814 (Frame)
- This bill extends sales and use tax to a number of services and, you guessed it, a number of services were removed from the imposition of taxation as the week went on, including the proposed additional cigarette tax.
- Notably, the controversial proposal for certain businesses to “pre-pay” July 2027 sales tax in June 2027 (to catch the revenue in the 2025-27 biennium) was removed from the bill on the House Floor. This removal reduces the amount of revenue the bill is expected to generate.
- This bill also passed the Senate on Saturday, April 19 (on a 27-22 vote) and was approved by the House on a 50-47 vote during the House’s late Monday night Floor session. It, too, now returns to the Senate for concurrence with the House amendments prior to going to the Governor for his consideration.
Calling back to the theme of “swift,” the status for each of these bills could change by the time this newsletter hits your inbox. Check the legislative website for the latest status on bills and amendments during this fast-changing stage in the process.
Taking Care of Business…
In the hours when legislators were not engaged in revenue hearings or floor debates on revenue bills, they were busy “concurring” with amendments made to bills in the opposite chambers. As a refresh about this “Concurrence” process, check out the April 18 edition of Notes from Olympia.
To get the latest status update on bills, check out Start Early’s bill tracker. We will release a final tracker after Governor Ferguson concludes his action on bills.
