From: Michele, Housing Alliance <info@wliha.org>
Date: Feb 16, 2022, 4:07 PM -0800
To: Rob Huff <rhuff@mdc-hope.org>
Subject: House of Origin Cutoff Update & Action Items
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe.
Dear Rob,
Thank you for taking action to support House Bill 1904, which would have provided renters more notice of significant rent increases. In just the last few weeks, 1,600 people in our network sent 3,324 messages to lawmakers in support of this bill! That huge show of support makes clear what we know – that rent increases are out of control and left unchecked will continue to destabilize households across Washington.
Unfortunately, the legislature failed to advance this bill by Tuesday’s cutoff, so it won’t move forward this year. That doesn’t mean we’re done fighting though. We still have significant opportunities to move good policy forward this year and to secure major investments in affordable homes.
And when this short session is over, we’ll get back to organizing for a future where everyone in Washington has a safe place to call home and where major rent increases don’t contribute to instability and homelessness. Even though we didn’t get it done this year, your action sent a message to state lawmakers about the impact of major rent hikes that they’ll have to address in the future.
We won’t stop fighting and we’ve laid important groundwork that we will build off of next session. Right now, we need more folks who have been impacted by rent increases to get involved. A first step is to share your experience and how it has impacted you and your housing instability. Please contact Po at PoL@WLIHA.org to get involved!
One of the most important ways you can help make sure more progress is made in 2023 is to vote! Make sure you’re registered so that we can elect leaders who are renters, who will listen to renters, and who will advocate for housing justice!
Here are other important quick actions you can take now to weigh in PRO on good bills that are still advancing!
SB 5749/Trudeau to require landlords to allow for payment methods besides an online portal has a hearing this Thursday in the House Committee on Housing, Human Services & Veterans at 1:30 PM. Sign in pro here!
SB 5793/Wilson to allow stipends for impacted people (low-income or underrepresented communities) on state boards, commission, etc. has a hearing this Thursday in the House Committee on State Government & Tribal Relations at 10:00 AM. Sign in pro here!
HB 1755/Peterson to require the Department of Social and Health Services to allow a time limit extension to the five-year limit for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) during times of high employment has a hearing in the Senate Committee on Human Services, Reentry & Rehabilitation at 1:30 PM. Sign in pro here!
Our friends at Mockingbird Society also have key bills moving on in the process with hearings this week:
SB 5566/Kuderer expanding eligibility for the independent youth housing program has a hearing this Friday in the House Committee on Housing, Human Services & Veterans at 10:00 AM. You can sign in pro here.
HB 1905/Senn establishing & funding interventions for youth exiting systems also has a hearing on Friday in the Senate Committee on Human Services, Reentry & Rehabilitation at 10:30 AM. You can sign in pro here.
We’ll continue to uplift these bills related to human services and housing that are making good progress:
HB 1643/Hackney creating a Real Estate Excise Tax exemption as an incentive to sell property to be used for affordable housing was heard this morning in the Senate.
HB 1866/Chopp creating “apple health for homes” is now in the Senate.
HB 2075/Peteron establishing service requirements for the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) thanks to hard work by the Seattle/King County Coalition on Homelessness is also now in the Senate.
*Stay tuned for alerts from us about budget rollouts! The Senate Capital Budget, where we’ve asked for $500 million to build affordable homes, was just released and we’re reviewing it now. The Operating Budget forecasts which will hopefully include our other priority asks will likely be public by early next week.*
Thank you again for your commitment to housing justice. We are in this together.
WASHINGTON LOW INCOME HOUSING ALLIANCE
100 West Harrison St.
Seattle, Washington 98119
(206) 442-9455
info@wliha.org
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