NAIOPWA Legislative Session Report - Week 7

Krystelle Purkey and Ehren Flygare, State Lobbyists

The most significant development of the week besides fiscal committee actions prior to the February 28 Fiscal Committee cutoff was Governor Bob Ferguson’s news conference, where he outlined approximately $4 billion in additional budget cuts for the legislature to consider. These cuts, on top of those in Governor Inslee’s proposed budget, could cover nearly half of the state’s projected shortfall.

Currently, the state operates on a balanced budget that extends through June 30, 2025. However, the primary focus of the 2025 legislative session is crafting a new operating budget for the following years. A significant challenge looms: a projected $15 billion gap between expected tax revenue over the next four years and the state’s existing financial commitments, including funding for education, healthcare, corrections, and human services.

NAIOPWA Legislative Session Report - Week 6

Krystelle Purkey and Ehren Flygare, State Lobbyists

The 2025 legislative session is now one third of the way over. Friday, February 21 was the cutoff for bills to be voted out of policy committees in the House of Origin. Fewer than 20% of bills introduced become law and this was the first of the hurdles bills must jump to stay alive. It is a very quick turnaround until the next cutoff Friday, February 28, where bills with a fiscal impact to the state budgets must be voted out of the main fiscal committees, Finance, Appropriations, Transportation, and Ways & Means.

To read the full legislative update using your NAIOPWA member profile, click here. 

NAIOPWA Legislative Session Report - Week 5

Krystelle Purkey and Ehren Flygare, State Lobbyists

This week saw several supply-side bills work their way through committee. Bills have until Friday of next week to pass out of their original Policy Committee in the chamber where they were introduced. 

Senator Liias introduced SB 5604 which would establish a new 20-year MFTE program in TOD station areas while also reducing certain impact fees by 50% and instituting a sales and use tax deferral.

NAIOPWA Legislative Session Report - Week 4

Krystelle Purkey and Ehren Flygare, State Lobbyists

With only two more weeks until the February 21 policy committee cutoff, Washington State legislators have been busy introducing, hearing, and passing broadly consequential bills out of committee and sending them to the Rules committee for further consideration in the coming weeks.  

We are beginning to see revenue bills introduced in the House and Senate. HB 1785 (Doglio, D-22) imposes a tax where CEO pay in publicly traded companies vastly exceeds median worker pay. 

NAIOPWA Legislative Session Report - Week 3

Krystelle Purkey and Ehren Flygare, State Lobbyists

We are now three weeks into the 2025 session, 1,442 bills have been introduced, and legislative business is moving quickly. At the same time, Majority Democrats are forging a path with the new governor, Bob Ferguson (D) as well as their Republican colleagues, and drawing firm lines with the new Trump Administration. 

House Democrats in Washington state have made significant changes to a longstanding rule that restricted access to the wings of the House chamber. The new policy now allows access only for the governor, excluding the governor’s staff unless specifically invited by a House member. The rule adjustment was part of a broader overhaul of legislative procedures, which included reducing the threshold to end debate, allowing a simple majority vote instead of a two-thirds majority.

NAIOPWA Legislative Session Report - Week 2

Krystelle Purkey and Ehren Flygare, State Lobbyists

This week saw movement on several major legislative issues, including waste management, rental housing, and gun violence prevention. House Bill 1217, on Rent Caps, passed out of the Housing Committee and now awaits a committee hearing in House Appropriations. Its Senate Companion Bill, SB 5222, had its first hearing on Wednesday. This week also included several appointments in both the Legislative and Executive branches.

Final appointments took place with Rep. Emily Alvarado (D-34) transitioning to the Senate and Brianna Thomas (D), a senior advisor to Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell, filling her House seat. Meanwhile, Janice Zahn (D), a Bellevue City Councilmember and Port of Seattle employee, succeeded Rep. Tana Senn (D-41), who now serves as the Secretary of the Department of Children, Youth, and Families. Governor Bob Ferguson announced this week the appointment of former journalist Jesse Jones as the new director of Results Washington, the agency tasked with improving government performance for the people of Washington. 

NAIOPWA Legislative Session Report - Week 1

Krystelle Purkey and Ehren Flygare, State Lobbyists

The Washington State Legislature started off with a bang this session. On Day 1 the rent cap bill was up for a public hearing in the House of Representatives Housing Committee. Over 700 people signed in to testify on the bill. Ultimately, the House kept the hearing to less than an hour and wrapped before panels were completed. The House Bill, HB 1217, will be voted out of the House Housing Committee on Monday.

The Senate Bill, SB 5222, sponsored by Senator Trudeau, will be heard in the Senate Housing Committee on Wednesday, January 22, at 1:30 p.m. The second sponsor on the bill is now-Senator Mike Chapman, who voted against the bill on the House Floor last year.

To read the full legislative update using your NAIOPWA member profile, click here. 

Developer Rob Aigner Inducted into NAIOPWA Hall of Fame; Vulcan Real Estate Takes Home Developer of the Year Trophy

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact: Sarah Warnberg, [email protected]
 
BELLEVUE—Announced Friday evening at the Night of the Stars Gala, the Night of the Stars winners feature a premier slate of development projects and top brokers in the Puget Sound region.  Winners represented widespread innovation and excellence across office, retail, industrial, hospitality, and multifamily development.

Notable winning projects include a massive Microsoft modernization project, East Campus Modernization Project; dedicated practice facility for Seattle’s WNBA team, the Seattle Storm; and Holland Partner Group’s newest high-rise residential tower, The Ayer, among others.  Vulcan Real Estate was named the Developer of the Year for their expansive portfolio, market leadership in sustainability and diversity, and nimbleness in changing market conditions.  The full list of winners is below.

NAIOPWA Announces 2024 Night of the Stars Finalists & First Winners: Historic Renovation, Local Taproom, & Tenant-Focused Industrial Project Ushering Community Renaissance

 

People’s Choice Award with Daily Voting on the NAIOPWA website begins Wednesday, September 18

 

SEATTLE – Announced today at the “Women Who Build Seattle” breakfast panel, finalists for NAIOP Washington State’s 2024 Night of the Stars Awards showcased the premier commercial real estate developments that are revitalizing the Puget Sound region, from office and residential towers to well-positioned industrial and biotech campuses.  

This year, finalists include six candidates for Developer of the Year, representing a mix of industrial, multifamily, mixed use and office developers.

Best practices for Electric Vehicle (EV) charging in a multifamily building
As the EV market continues to gain momentum, the need for EV charging capacity will only increase. All multifamily buildings will need to consider how to provide the charging infrastructure needed to fulfill this demand and create a more sustainable future. The high cost of development leaves most developers and owners budget constrained; this is why it becomes imperative to provide the most responsive charging system. This piece will consider the practical realities of what an EV driver desires and needs from a charging system and offer solutions for the most cost-effective way to deliver the most expansive system possible. You’ll learn that it is imperative for a developer to plan for charging capacity from the utility for 20-30% of the parking spaces with L2 type stations. (that is only for capacity. Actual deployment of stations is better served with a mix of L1s and L2 stations.) This will set up developments to maximize tenant satisfaction and charging capacity in the future.

The EV driver and their wants and needs
What does an EV owner and resident of a multifamily building want in terms of charging capacity, and how does this compare to what they need? Sure, we’ve seen the stations with a credit card reader that give a relatively quick charge, but are these types of stations the right ongoing solution for an EV driver living in a multifamily building? The reality is that these pay stations are best suited for someone in a bind who needs an emergency charge of their vehicle. Most often an EV driver needs a dedicated charging station located where they park frequently for long periods of time. This means that residents of a multifamily building are best served by a dedicated parking space and charger. It’s that simple. All the other chargers serve as backups or sources needed for taking longer trips.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media contact: Sarah Warnberg, [email protected]

NAIOPWA to Partner with Commercial Brokers Association on Industry Awards

Commercial real estate association now soliciting nominations for 2024 awards cycle recognizing leading brokers in Washington State.

NAIOP Washington State has partnered with University of Washington (UW) to create the NAIOPWA Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DEI) Scholarship to support women and underrepresented minorities seeking ways to strengthen their place in the CRE industry. This scholarship provides financial aid to students enrolled in UW's Commercial Real Estate Certification Program, an eight-month course that prepares students for a career in CRE by providing insight into best practices and trends and helping them build industry connections. 

During the NAIOPWA event, “Navigating the Carbon Offset Market” attendees met in a cozy lounge space at MG2 to network and listen to four diverse local industry experts talk about a timely topic: carbon offsets.

Across the AEC Industry, many are focusing on how to reduce the embodied carbon in our projects. With concrete and steel being the biggest culprits in ground-up projects, it’s only fitting that they get the most press. In this piece we’re focusing on the cement component of concrete.

Through the NAIOP Washington State Foundation, NAIOPWA is able to apply the skills and resources of our membership to initiatives that give back to our community, engage students and foster their careers, and help create a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive commercial real estate industry. These initiatives are possible because of the generous support of our Foundation Committee Sponsors. Click on any committee name below to learn more about these sponsorship opportunities:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact: Sarah Warnberg, [email protected]

Major Week for Priority Bills: Housing Affordability, REET, Energy Efficiency, Rent Control. 

The Seattle City Council recently rejected a proposal to move forward with a comprehensive plan amendment that would pave the way for Transportation Impact Fees in the City. As a commercial real estate association that advocates on behalf of our members, NAIOP Washington State opposed this effort to add unnecessary and harmful fees to the already costly development process. Though the City made the right decision, other municipalities continue to consider impact fees or fee increases, and the proposal could come forward again in Seattle in the future.

In 2023, NAIOP Washington State successfully defeated a bill during the legislative session that would have increased the real estate excise tax (REET). We anticipate similar legislation during the 2024 Washington State Legislative Session. During this session, REET may be rebranded as a “transfer tax.”  While we were previously successful in our efforts to stop a REET increase from moving forward, NAIOPWA’s Government Affairs team is actively engaged to defeat its passage once again.

With the start of the 2024 Washington State legislative session, bills overturning the current state pre-emption to rent control have been brought forward, as well as proposals which would implement state-wide rent control measures.  We strongly oppose any efforts to implement rent control, as well as efforts to overturn the state’s pre-emption.  It is important to take a sober look at why rent control is bad policy.