2026 Legislative Session Recap
OLYMPIA UPDATE
The 2026 session of the Washington State legislature ended on March 12 and passed 267 bills to the desk of the Governor.
In this article I’ve provided a summary of the 11 bills which may have the most impact here on Mercer Island. Feel free to click on the links adjacent to each House Bill (“HB”) and Senate Bill (“SB”) for more details.
Among the bills officially signed into law, the following eleven will likely have the greatest impact on Mercer Islanders:
HB 1796. Topic: School funding. This bill, which the governor signed into law on March 24, will allow school districts to issue bonds for capital levies for up to 0.375% of the property value in the district. Capital levies only require a simple majority to pass. By my back-of-the envelope calculations, 0.375% of the property value on Mercer Island is about $82 million. That’s about 1/2 the size of the school bonds that had well over a simple majority but failed to get a 60% majority last year. The law takes effect 6/11/26.
HB 1859. This law gives religious organizations more flexibility in developing affordable housing on land that they own.
HB 2294. This law prevents the creation of “food deserts” and “pharmacy deserts” by prohibiting the establishment of negative use restrictions on commercial property relating to food and medicine.
SB 5855. This law prohibits law enforcement at all levels of government from using masks while in the State of Washington.
SB 6110. This new law takes a step in the direction of regulating e-motorcycles statewide. It creates a task force that will recommend e-motorcycle regulations to next year’s legislature.
SB 6002. This new law sets a variety of regulations around the use of cameras that can read license plates. All such cameras used by governments need to be registered with the state. The data is not subject to public disclosure. The data cannot be used for immigration enforcement. Strict rules have been placed on how long the data may be retained and for what purposes it can be used.
SB 6162. This law expands the number of people who qualify for reduced property taxes based on income. It also exempts up to $6,000 per year of rental income, effectively encouraging empty nesters to create more affordable housing by renting out one of their rooms.
SB 6346. Commonly known as the Millionaires’ Tax, this bill assesses a 9.9% tax on the portion of income above $1 million per year starting in 2028. It also exempts all hygiene products from sales tax, exempts over-the-counter drugs from sales tax, expands the Working Families Tax Credit, increases funding for the Fair Start for Kids Act, and reduces the B&O tax burden on small businesses. Essentially, it’s a big first step towards making the state’s tax code less regressive. As opponents will likely challenge it in court and with an initiative, there’s still a lot of ball game left on this one.
HB 1974. Enables the creation of Land Bank authorities. These non-profit organizations can acquire and consolidate land over time to be used for affordable housing.
HB 2266. Restricts certain permit requirements that hinder the creation of affordable housing.
SB 6200. Protects tenants from extreme heat by requiring landlords to allow the installation of cooling devices.