Housing
My plan to move people “From Homelessness to Housing”
The homeless population is exploding and housing prices are skyrocketing… a state Senator has a plan to tackle both. Tracy Ellis explains. #waleg LISTEN: https://ow.ly/aH4K50PGyIY
Read More
Amid mismanagement, Fortunato blasts governor’s veto of housing crisis study
While the Legislature met earlier this week for a one-day special session to address the controversial drug-possession law known as the Blake fix, Gov. Jay Inslee signed the three state budgets into law. However, he quietly vetoed bipartisan provisions to look at why housing and homelessness in Washington is so...
Read More
Democrats switch course, adopt Republican-led homeless approach
Gov. Jay Inslee recently held a news conference in Spokane, touting the work of a new approach to dealing with the state’s daunting homelessness crisis. The only problem? The policies being touted as effective were originally part of a package that homeless advocates and Democratic lawmakers sought to kill. The...
Read More
If government gets to build, so should everyone else
Sen. Phil Fortunato sent a letter to the governor demanding that the state reconsider how businesses are deemed essential. The impacts of stopping private construction is devastating to workers and their families, to the industry and will have significant impacts on the state’s budget.
Read More
Fortunato proposal ices Seattle winter eviction ban
State Sen. Phil Fortunato, R-Auburn, has introduced legislation, Senate Bill 6651, to preempt efforts by local jurisdictions that undo the state’s carefully crafted landlord tenant laws concerning evictions. In an extraordinary and arguably unconstitutional move, a Seattle City Council committee approved a policy sponsored by Seattle City Council Member Kshama...
Read More
Tiny Homes
During the 2019 legislative session, addressing our state’s housing affordability crisis was paramount. Unfortunately, the only solutions that were adopted nibbled around the edges of the problem and in some cases made the problem worse with new taxes on housing. The Tacoma News Tribune lauded efforts to expand tiny homes...
Read More
Affordable housing work in jeopardy
Washington state’s housing problems spurred the creation of a housing-policy committee in the 2019 legislative session. However, tax efforts by legislative Democrats may undermine the committee’s work to address affordable housing. Too many solutions legislative Democrats are promoting to address affordable housing are focused on raising taxes to subsidize ever-increasing...
Read More