Week 2: Budget Pressure, Federal Overreach, and Choosing Dignity
Week 2 of the short session sharpened the stakes. As lawmakers confront a projected budget shortfall, Governor Bob Ferguson continues to signal a path forward that relies on tapping reserves and significant agency cuts reigniting debate about whether Washington will meet this moment with austerity or with values-driven solutions. At the same time, escalating federal immigration enforcement actions has heightened fear in communities across the state, underscoring the urgency of bills that protect privacy, due process, housing stability, and human dignity. FAN and coalition partners continue to show up with a consistent message: Washington must choose dignity over fear, accountability over unchecked power, and justice over austerity.
Building a moral budget: HB 2100 Washington Well Fund
Fan testified in support of HB 2100, which creates a dedicated funding stream for the Washington Well Fund to support health care access and basic needs through progressive revenue. The bill would apply a 5% payroll tax on employers with more than $7 million in annual payroll, primarily affecting companies offering salaries of $125,000 or more, and is intended as a long-term response to fiscal instability rather than a one-time budget fix. With families facing rising costs for housing, childcare, and healthcare — and a tax system where working families pay more while wealth remains lightly taxed — HB 2100 begins to correct this imbalance. As State Superintendent Chris Reykdal noted in testimony, Washington now spends less per student, adjusted for inflation, than it did seven years ago. This bill asks those with the greatest capacity to contribute more fairly, helping stabilize funding for schools, housing, healthcare, and essential public services.
Climate justice in the AI economy: HB 2515 / SB 6171
Hearings also continued on HB 2515 and SB 6171 addressing the rapid expansion of large data centers. These bills establish standards to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, manage massive energy and water use, and prevent disproportionate environmental harm to overburdened and frontline communities.
Justice reform: HB 2102 Legal Financial Obligations Reform
FAN testified on HB 2102, which reforms Legal Financial Obligations (LFOs) that trap people, especially low-income individuals and communities of color in cycles of debt long after court involvement ends. Coalition partners highlighted how LFO reform strengthens reentry, family stability, and long-term community safety by removing permanent financial punishment from the justice system.
Surveillance, ICE, and civil liberties: HB 2332/SB 6002 ALPR and SB 5906 Safe Act
With federal immigration enforcement expanding its reach, HB 2332 and its Senate companion SB 6002 took on added urgency this week. These bills regulate the use of Automatic License Plate Readers (ALPRs), placing limits on data collection, sharing, and retention. Immigrant rights and civil liberties advocates testified that without guardrails, ALPR technology can enable surveillance and data-sharing that puts immigrant communities at risk especially amid increased ICE activity nationwide.
FAN also testified in support of SB 5906, the SAFE Act. At a time of escalating ICE activity and federal overreach, SB 5906 reinforces due process, protects civil rights, and helps ensure that immigrants can access schools, healthcare, courts, and emergency services without fear of detention or retaliation. This bill is about safety rooted in trust, dignity, and community stability.
Big Housing Committee day: dignity over criminalization
One of the most significant moments of Week 2 came in the House Housing Committee, where advocates packed hearings to push back against policies that criminalize poverty and homelessness.
HB 2489 — Preventing the Criminalization of Homelessness:
HB 2489 prohibits local jurisdictions from criminalizing life-sustaining activities like sleeping or resting in public when adequate shelter is not available. Housing advocates were clear: sweeps, citations, and arrests do not solve homelessness — housing and services do. The hearing underscored a growing movement to treat housing as a human right, not a crime.
HB 2266 Encouraging permanent supportive housing, transitional housing, indoor emergency housing, and indoor emergency shelters. This bill restricts local governments from preventing the development of permanent supportive housing and emergency shelter. Right now, many local governments block housing and shelter, which hurts the ability to build the solutions to homelessness that all our communities need. Together with HB 2489, the bill reflects a broader push to move Washington away from punitive approaches and toward solutions rooted in dignity, prevention, and long-term stability. | 
