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Committee hears clarifying bill to exclude building permits from Local Project Review Act timelines
Summary
House Bill 1935 would amend the definition of 'project permit' used for local project-review procedures to explicitly exclude building permits, clarifying implementation of 2023 changes to permit review timelines.
House Bill 1935 would amend the Local Project Review Act definition of “project permit” or “project permit application” to exclude building permits for the purpose of local project-permit procedures, committee staff said.
Committee staff briefed the panel that in 2023 the Legislature amended permit review timelines for projects subject to the Local Project Review Act and that Commerce’s implementation guidance identified a need for statutory clarity to ensure building permits were excluded. Staff said building permits are tied mostly to life-safety code compliance and that including them in the longer discretionary review timelines would lengthen overall building timelines.
Representative Devina Duerer, who described the measure as a “simple trailer bill,” said stakeholders were in agreement and that clarifying the statute will prevent unintended timeline expansion for building permits. Marion Daca of the Washington Association of Building Officials testified in support, saying the bill correctly implements the 2023 changes and urged passage. County and city associations also testified in favor.
The House passed the bill 96–0 before the Senate hearing; committee testimony emphasized that the change is technical and intended to align practice with legislative intent.
