Dear friends and neighbors,
I’m back with another update on our work this session, this time with a focus on housing. First, though, I wanted to pass along a quick reminder about the 27th Legislative District telephone town hall at 5:30 tonight! I’ll be joining Rep. Fey and Sen. Trudeau to answer your questions. You can join by calling 877-229-8493 (toll-free) and then entering PIN # 116282. You can find more info about the event here.
I look forward to taking your questions and talking more about our work this year,
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 I’ve consistently heard housing is a high priority for our community, from getting people housed to building more housing to making housing more affordable. This is a big deal across the country right now, and our community is no exception. Last year we made significant progress by expanding middle housing options, righting some of the wrongs of the past with the Covenant Homeownership Act, and removing regulatory barriers for people building Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs).
This year we built on that progress. I’ve mentioned the co-living bill we passed which will legalize more kinds of affordable housing, things like apartments with shared kitchen spaces or other similar setups. We also created a loan program that will help speed up the construction of affordable housing, and requested changes to the housing code to make it easier to build triplexes, quads, and other multiplex housing options. My Senate seatmate, Sen. Trudeau, also sponsored (and passed) legislation that will remove hurdles and increase incentives for converting existing commercial structures into housing. We also worked hard this year to pass rent stabilization, which would have given renters the same stability and predictability that people like me have with a mortgage. Unfortunately, the bill died in the Senate. We can’t expect people to budget away the impacts of dramatic rent increases. Last year at one of the coffee hours I hosted, I heard from a constituent whose rent has gone up 70% in the last two years. That’s not sustainable, and we need to do something about it. I know we’ll be continuing to work on this idea over interim, and I’m hopeful we will bring more predictability and stability next session. Beyond individual legislation, we’re also making investments in our operating and capital budgets. In our supplemental operating budget we’re protecting and expanding services at the local level for housing programs and people experiencing homelessness. This includes $3 million for the City of Tacoma to prevent the closure of 307 temporary and emergency shelter beds. Thanks to the Climate Commitment Act, we’re also able to invest $150 million in clean energy credits for households with lower incomes. We also invested in supporting tenants rights and increasing opportunity for people historically excluded from homeownership. In our capital budget we’re adding $127.5 million for the Housing Trust Fund, which helps build more affordable housing across the state. We also invested in projects to build more housing in our community, things like the Bethlehem Baptist Church project converting units into permanent affordable housing. We’re experiencing a housing crisis. It’ll take work on all fronts to help get people into housing and keep people housed. We made a lot of progress this year, but there’s more to do. In the meantime, please continue to reach out to my office when you need help accessing state programs or want to talk about your experiences. The stories I hear from constituents truly help guide my work in Olympia. |
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I’d also like to let you know about another event coming up, a screening of “It’s Basic” – a documentary about universal basic income programs launched in cities across the country, including Tacoma. The screening will be on Friday, April 12th at 4PM, and I’ll be serving on a panel afterwards with Mayor Woodards, Council Chair Mello, United Way of Pierce County President/CEO Dona Ponepinto, and recipients from the GRIT 1.0 guaranteed income program. You can learn more about the event or reserve a spot here.
