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County lobbyist briefs commissioners as Olympia session nears final week
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Summary
County lobbyist Mike Burgess told commissioners the legislative session was entering its final days, highlighted a floor amendment funding the county’s traffic management center, and noted several bills of local interest — including an affordable housing measure now at the governor’s desk and a data‑center tax component that failed to advance out of Ways & Means.
Mike Burgess, the county’s lobbyist, told Spokane County commissioners on March 3 that the state legislative session was nearing its close and that budget negotiations were in their final stages. “Today's day 51 of 60, so week and a half left ish,” Burgess said, adding that cutoffs and committee work meant major budget and bill movements were imminent.
Burgess said capital-budget requests that the county prioritized were largely funded and that operating budget negotiations were continuing as leadership reconciled differences. He flagged a transportation budget development: a floor amendment offered by Senator Richeli was adopted and, Burgess said, that action “telegraphed” that funding for the county’s traffic management center may be part of a final agreement.
On legislation, Burgess summarized bills the county has tracked. He said House Bill 1859, which expands affordable housing opportunities for religious organizations, had passed both chambers and was sent to the governor’s office. Land‑banking and waste‑to‑energy measures had advanced to Senate Rules after Ways and Means, and a bill addressing large energy‑use facilities (file 2515) that included a tax component affecting Spokane County did not make it out of Ways & Means and therefore faced an uncertain path forward.
Commissioners asked for clarification about a local‑government funding flexibility bill (house bill 2442). Burgess said several provisions had been removed in committee, including a potential utility tax provision, and offered to circulate updated bill components to commissioners.
Why it matters: county staff rely on Olympia budget and statute changes to project local costs and revenues. Burgess’s briefing indicated that a few locally important items may survive to the final agreement, but he cautioned several measures remained fluid until negotiators release final budget language.
Next steps: Burgess said he would update the board as negotiations conclude and noted that the county would watch the transportation and operating budget releases later in the week.
