Dear Friends and Neighbors,
We are speeding through the legislative session this year. It’s already time for our first cut off deadline, the “policy cutoff.” If a policy bill doesn’t pass out of committee before the cutoff, it typically can’t move forward in the process. That date is February 4th this year.
If the legislation passes and only changes policy, it can move on to the Rules Committee, which decides which bills get a vote on the floor of the House.
After passing a policy committee, bills that raise or spend funds get referred to the relevant fiscal committee—Appropriations, Transportation, Capital, or Finance. Bills then continue along the process until they hit the next milestone.
There’s still time to share your thoughts and concerns, and I would like to hear them. As always please reach out to my office.
One bill that I’m sponsoring this year is HB 2394, which will give our state Office of the Insurance Commissioner more tools to help catch and prosecute insurance fraud. Combatting insurance fraud will help keep insurance rates from rising for everyone.
Learn more about this bill and how it could help you save some money (or at least prevent you from spending more) on insurance in my latest GoodMinute video.
Bill Highlights: Making Washington More Affordable
There are a number of important legislative proposals this session that will help you keep more money in your pocket. These include:
HB 1155 – bans noncompete agreements, allowing workers to freely pursue the work, jobs, and wages they want.
HB 2481 – ‘Fair Pricing and Transparency Act’ protects consumers from “surveillance-based” price setting, or using data like a person’s location, shopping history, or online behavior to quietly charge different people different prices for the same groceries.
HB 1496 – caps the fees health care providers charge you for electronic copies of your own medical record at $50.
HB 2294 – allows grocery stores and pharmacies to move into certain types of spaces by removing restrictions on what stores can take over vacant space, helping restore fair competition, reduce artificial scarcity, and lower prices for families.
HB 2478 – gives Labor & Industries more flexibility to investigate wage theft and hold employers that are not in compliance accountable, ensuring workers get the pay they’ve earned.
HB 2479 – helps workers get the pay they’re owed by strengthening how the state investigates wage theft and creating a new wage recovery program, so workers aren’t left waiting months or years for relief.
HB 2296 – allows balcony solar panels so more people, especially renters, can save on energy costs with self-install solar panels.
HB 2373 – requires electric utilities to offer monthly bill assistance programs tailored to household income levels, making energy support more predictable and accessible.
HB 2324 – expands access to tuition waivers at Washington’s public colleges and universities for families of veterans and service members whose military service has left them permanently disabled.
HB 2638 – provides tax relief to surviving spouses and domestic partners of state and local law enforcement officers, firefighters, and other public safety personnel who died on the job by partially or fully exempting the primary residence of an eligible survivor from property taxes.
We are committed to ensuring that Washington remains a state where all Washingtonians can live and every family can thrive.
Thank you for your interest in public policy. Keep an eye out for my next update.
All best wishes,
Rep. Roger Goodman