Washington Is Now Closer Than Ever to Rent Stabilization

HK

On Monday, HB 1217, the rent stabilization bill capping rent hikes at 7%, earned a historic "Do Pass" recommendation from the Washington Senate Ways & Means Committee, surviving the very step where it languished last year. While this marks the furthest Democrats have ever managed to push the perennial progressive priority through Olympia, the policy didn’t make it out unbruised.

The committee approved an amendment from Sen. Lisa Wellman (D–Mercer Island) that slices in deeper carve-outs for new construction, leaving renters in newer buildings at the mercy of their landlords who will retain the power to rent-gouge without a ceiling.

Still, Rep. Nicole Macri (D–Seattle), the bill’s lead sponsor in the House, is staying upbeat.

“Moving the bill out of Ways and Means is a huge milestone for this policy,” Macri told The Burner via text. “It’s taken many years and thousands of people advocating from across the state to get this far.”

Macri conceded that “[t]he compromises on this bill have been hard to take,” but she's happy that the bill retains a 7% cap for most residential units and a 5% cap for manufactured housing.

She also pointed out that it could’ve been worse—way worse. On Monday, the committee voted down 18 "bad amendments," Macri noted. "Bad" is one way to put it. I might have suggested "unhinged," "diabolical," or "class-war inspiring" amendments. To name a few, Sen. Judy Warnick (R–Quincy) wanted to exempt rent hikes linked to local levies. Sen. Keith Wagoner (R–Sedro Woolley) thought it’d be cute to make renters pay their landlord’s legal fees if they lose a noncompliance suit. And Sen. Ron Muzzall (R–Oak Harbor) tried to carve out single-family homes altogether.

And no, Wellman’s amendment doesn’t get a free pass either. Her changes extend the exemption for new buildings from 12 years (10 in an earlier version) to 15, and also shorten the bill’s sunset clause from 20 years to 15. As Macri noted, that combination leaves out a lot of tenants—especially seniors and people with disabilities who rely on newer buildings for accessibility.

Still, Olympia insiders say Wellman may not be the only culprit. Word around the rotunda is that Sen. Jamie Pedersen (D–Seattle) originally shopped the amendment around himself. Some speculate he handed it off to Wellman to keep his own fingerprints off it—handy, when your district is full of renters who know how to organize.

Pedersen told The Burner, "No. I asked [Wellman] to get amendments in that she needed to vote yes."

So where does that leave us? The bill now heads to the Senate Rules Committee, and if it clears that, it’ll move to the floor for a vote. Lawmakers have until next Wednesday to figure it out—and renters across the state are watching closely.