2024 Washington Legislative Session Kicks off Jan. 8

Posted by Joe Adamack on December 22, 2023

The 2024 Washington State Legislature will convene in Olympia in just a few weeks on January 8th when the state’s 147 lawmakers return to the Capitol to address a number of key issues. The session will be a short 60-day sprint from Jan. 8th through March 7th, which means limited time for lawmakers to consider new policies. On the minds of lawmakers on both sides of the aisle is public safety, behavioral health, consumer protection, the use of artificial intelligence, transportation challenges, and much more.

The session is shorter because lawmakers crafted a two-year budget in 2023. So, this year, budget and tax policy can be focused on simply updating the existing spending plan versus creating a new one from scratch. That said, Gov. Jay Inslee proposed a supplemental budget that would increase state spending by nearly $2.5 billion over the next year and a half, focused on investments in reducing homelessness, climate change, and improving behavioral health treatment. Read more here.

The session also comes before the 2024 elections, which is a major cycle in the state when all 98 of the House of Representative seats, half the Senate (25 seats), and all statewide offices will be on the ballot.

Credit union advocates will of course have an opportunity to visit Olympia on January 30th, during the GoWest Credit Union Day at the Capitol. It’s an opportunity to meet with legislators to share credit union priorities. Registration and details are here.

GoWest’s Advocacy on the Move blog will provide real-time updates throughout the session on the topics relevant to credit unions as well as other interesting news and information.

Posted in Advocacy on the Move.