Dear friends and neighbors,
Spring has sprung at the Capitol! With fewer than 20 days left in this year’s legislative session, the cherry blossoms are in full bloom and the Legislature is turning its focus to passing the state’s biennial operating, transportation and capital construction budgets.
Over the last few months, many of you have reached out to share your top priorities for our community and our state. More affordable housing. Increased access to behavioral health support. Better education opportunities for our young people. Protecting our environment. These were the responses I heard time and time again — not just from families in the 5th district, but from across Washington.
As vice chair of the House Capital Budget committee, I’ve spent the last several weeks working closely with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to craft a bipartisan state construction budget that reflects what you care about most. Last week, we unveiled our proposed $8.3 billion budget to address our state’s most urgent needs by investing directly back into our communities. It includes $4.62 billion in new state bonds, $3.16 billion in other funding (federal, local, and dedicated state funds), $525 million in Climate Commitment Act Revenue and $160 million reserved for the supplemental budget in 2024.
Below you’ll find a few of the biggest highlights.
Affordable housing and home upgrades
- $400 million for the Housing Trust Fund
- $83.2 million for whole-home energy retrofits
- $75 million for utility and infrastructure costs related to affordable housing construction
- $50 million for affordable Transit-Oriented Development
- $40 million for land acquisition for affordable housing
- $35 million for low-income weatherization
- $14.5 million for youth shelter and transitional housing
- $6 million for low-income rural home rehabilitation
Behavioral health
- $613 million for construction of a new 350-bed forensic hospital at Western State
- $211 million for competitive grants to community behavioral health providers
- $24 million for construction of a 48-bed civil commitment facility in southwest Washington
- $21 million for 136 new civil commitment beds at Maple Lane
- $13 million for family-centered drug treatment
Public schools, colleges and universities
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Rep. Ramos, Sen. Mullet and I with students from Maple Hills Elementary
- $806 million for K-12 construction, including $588 million for the School Construction Assistance Program
- $400 million for Community and Technical Colleges
- $344 million for public universities
Community facilities & essential public infrastructure
- $400 million for the Public Works Assistance Account
- $129 million for Local & Community Projects
- $75 million for the Early Learning Facilities Fund
- $50 million for broadband matching dollars, leveraging federal funds
- $36 million for healthcare infrastructure
- $26 million for the Building Communities Fund program
- $25 million for Community Economic Revitalization Board infrastructure projects
Clean energy and environmental preservation
- $821 million in natural resource investments including drinking water, forest management, toxic cleanup, recreation and conservation, and state parks
- $198 million for electric heat pumps for low-income households and small businesses
- $60 million for the Clean Energy Fund
- $40 million for projects in hard-to-decarbonize sectors
- $20 million for solar and energy efficiency grants to public buildings
The Senate passed its version of the state capital budget, and the House is expected to sit down with our Senate counterparts to hammer out the differences and pass a final version before the Legislature adjourns on April 23. I’ll be sure to keep you updated as it moves through the process!
It continues to be an honor to represent the families of the 5th in Olympia. Never hesitate to reach out and feel free to follow me on Facebook for all the latest updates.
Best wishes,
State Representative Lisa Callan
5th Legislative District