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Counties seek six‑month extension for comprehensive plan reviews; SB 5558 would move 2026 deadlines to year-end
Summary
Sen. Gaynor’s SB 5558 would extend the Growth Management Act comprehensive plan review deadline for an identified group of counties from June 30, 2026 to Dec. 31, 2026; municipal and county officials told the committee the additional time would allow more public engagement and help implement recent housing and climate mandates.
Senate Bill 5558 would extend by six months the statutory deadline for a set of counties and their cities to complete the Growth Management Act 10-year comprehensive plan reviews and any related development regulations, moving a June 30, 2026 deadline to Dec. 31, 2026 for the jurisdictions named in the bill.
Karen Epps, committee staff, summarized which counties’ review cycles would be affected and explained the legislature has previously granted similar six-month extensions for other review cycles in 2022 and 2024. She said jurisdictions that receive the extension would resume their regular 10‑year cycle on June 30, 2036.
Sen. Keith Gaynor, sponsor of SB 5558, described the measure as a consistency adjustment to give the named jurisdictions the same additional time the legislature granted earlier cycles. He and witnesses said the extra time would help jurisdictions align comp-plan updates with a spate of recent legislative mandates and provide additional opportunities for public engagement.
Testimony in support came from local elected officials and planning staff. Paul Dillon of the Spokane City Council said the extension would “allow the necessary time to incorporate vital climate and housing data, ensuring that our planning processes benefit through public input and legislative scrutiny.” Jacob Gonzalez, a land-use advisor for the City of Pasco, said Pasco is among the fastest-growing communities in the region and needs more time for meaningful community engagement and to coordinate consultant work. Spokane County Commissioner Al French and county planning director Scott Chesney said Spokane County is effectively doing a near–clean-sheet rewrite of its plan and wants the extra time to finalize implementing development regulations.
Questions from committee members focused on whether the extension would also delay implementation dates for housing changes tied to a jurisdiction’s comprehensive-plan adoption; staff said she would verify the linkage and provide follow-up to the committee.
No vote was recorded; witnesses urged the committee to grant the six-month extension to give local governments time to complete comprehensive updates and implementation steps.
