City lobbyist briefs Bothell council on 2025 session: mixed outcomes for local priorities

Shelley Helder, Bothell’s state lobbyist, briefed the City Council on May 20 about outcomes from the 2025 Washington legislative session and how those results intersect with the city’s priorities.

Helder told council the 2025 session was the first year of the two‑year budget cycle and that lawmakers considered thousands of bills: “This year there were 2,387 bills that were introduced. And 433 passed the legislature,” she said. She described difficult budget tradeoffs driven by a projected multi‑year shortfall and said the capital budget was notably smaller than the prior biennium.

On the city’s priorities, Helder said the city requested $1.9 million in capital funds for the Woodcrest utility improvement project and secured $1.5 million in the final budget after delegation support led by Representative Dower. She described that $1.5 million as a substantial win given the constrained capital budget and that the award was carried into the final budget.

Helder said Bothell’s effort to secure state help to preserve the Shellnew forest was premature this session because the parcels have not yet been nominated for the trust land transfer (TLT) program and because DNR leadership and nomination status complicate immediate progress. She recommended continued outreach to tribal partners and DNR leadership as a next step.

On transit‑oriented development (TOD) incentives, Helder said House Bill 1491 (as described in her presentation) establishes minimum densities around light rail and bus rapid transit stations, includes affordability and anti‑displacement provisions, and creates a grant program for infrastructure; however, she noted there was no funding for the grant program in the current budget. She also said Senate Bill 5184 (transcribed as SB 51 84) established statewide limitations on parking minimums for qualifying cities and set residential parking caps per dwelling type for jurisdictions with population thresholds.

Helder also reported that the legislature adopted a smaller capital budget overall and reduced the average award size for local community projects; as a result some previously awarded projects had to be defended to retain funding. The Bothell Way multimodal project kept $5 million allocated to a later biennium (the 27/29 biennium), which she described as a two‑year delay rather than a permanent deferral.

On other laws with municipal impact, Helder flagged a set of housing bills that passed, including a bill authorizing implied warranties in condominium construction (House Bill 1403 as discussed) and rent‑stabilization legislation that caps allowable annual rent increases and tightened notice requirements (Helder referenced “rent stabilization” and said the governor signed the bill into law with immediate effect). She also noted passage of a health‑plan parity bill described as the mental health parity act.

Helder recommended that the city follow up with its delegation to thank them for their support, ensure the city uses awarded funds promptly (noting the legislature will likely not re‑appropriate unused allocations), and begin an interim action plan to prepare for the 2026 session.

Councilmembers thanked Helder and asked about next steps; Helder said staff would circulate a comprehensive list of bills and that the city should prepare for implementation tasks created by the new laws.

No formal council action occurred at the meeting related to state legislation; Helder’s briefing was informational and followed by council questions.