2026 Washington State Legislative Session
The 2026 Washington legislative session begins on January 12 and will run for a very busy and robust 60-days. Some of the key topics your lobby and leadership teams are tracking include budget matters and housing issues. It's going to be an active period with lots of discussions and decisions.
By Mary Hull-Drury, Washington REALTORS® Government Affairs Director
Budget and Revenue
The state expects to face another budget shortfall of around $2 billion. The shortfall is largely attributed to slower revenue growth, structural challenges with this biennium’s budget adopted last year, and less federal funding for Medicaid starting in 2027. Lawmakers will need to determine if they are going to increase taxes, make targeted policy decisions to reduce programs, or a combination of both as they did in the 2025 Session. Additionally, they may need to consider addressing the structural challenges with some of last year’s record tax package, such as the new sales tax on certain services (SB 5814) and the fallout from substantially increasing the inheritance tax.
Some of the tax ideas currently being socialized include a 9.9% tax on adjusted gross income above $1 million, a wealth tax on intangible assets over $50M (SB 5797), or a payroll tax to large companies with high wage earners (SB 5796) like Seattle’s Jumpstart Tax, removing the mortgage interest deduction for community banks, and a REET on residential homes over $3M. However, this is certainly not the entire list up for consideration and the lobby team diligently tracking all tax related developments.
Housing
Another of the legislature’s main concerns is the shortage of affordable housing. Some of their efforts may include giving cities new tools and resources to build more homes. This could involve offering incentives for developing condominiums, further condominium liability reforms, and using publicly owned land for housing projects. The Legislature is unlikely to push further zoning and development regulations on cities, given the number of bills passed on these topics between 2023 and 2025, and the recent adoption of GMA Comprehensive Plans by many local governments.
In addition, a few bills from last session Washington REALTORS® would like to see pass include allowing ADU’s outside of the UGA (HB 1345), and divesting HB 1003 from HB 1217 to eliminate the certified mail requirements for tenant communications and continued work to speed up and incentivize home building. New bills may include authority for development of underutilized commercial areas that have substantial potential for new housing supply.
These are just a few things your lobby and leadership teams are proactively engaging on while keeping our knees bent for anything else that arises. For more information, feel free to reach out to our team at gaadmin@warealtor.org and we hope to see you all at our annual Hill Day event on January 29th!
Mary Hull-Drury, Washington REALTORS® Government Affairs Director
2026 LEGISLATIVE STEERING COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Krista Gross • Chair, Leg. Steering
WHITMAN COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Mike Wallin • Vice Chair, Leg Steering
LOWER COLUMBIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
James Fisher • Member
TACOMA PIERCE COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Jasmyn Jefferson • Member
TACOMA PIERCE COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Julie Carpenter • Member
WHATCOM COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Lee McIntyre • Member
SPOKANE ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Denice Neddo • Member
CLARK COUNTY BOARD OF REALTORS®
Colette Rarden • Member
KITTITAS COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Scott Dickinson • Member
SEATTLE KING COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Gina Madeya • Member
SEATTLE KING COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Sol Villarreal • Member
SEATTLE KING COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Connie Bovee • Member
CLARK COUNTY BOARD OF REALTORS®
Brian Hayter • Member
SNOHOMISH COUNTY-CAMANO ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Jeff Strickler • Member
WALLA WALLA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Rich Bergdahl • Member
NORTH PUGET SOUND ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Garrett Nelson • Member
SEATTLE KING COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Ken Sax • Member
SPOKANE ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Mikaela Ji • Alternate
SEATTLE KING COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Byron Pullen • Alternate
TACOMA PIERCE COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
John Blom • Ex-officio
CLARK COUNTY BOARD OF REALTORS®
Jeff Smart • Ex-officio
TRI CITY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Matt Side • Ex-officio
SPOKANE ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Ryan Beckett • Ex-officio
YAKIMA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Craig Soehren • Ex-officio
WASHINGTON REALTORS®
2026 RPAC TRUSTEES COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Keri McCombs • Chair, RPAC
SPOKANE ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Allison Trimble • Vice Chair, RPAC
WHATCOM COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Miles Eaton • Member
TACOMA PIERCE COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Glenn Franko • Member
PORT ANGELES ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Keith Fuller • Member
MASON COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Cheyenne Gillooly • Member
SEATTLE KING COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Kevin Gordham • Member
THURSTON COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Chris Gordy • Member
YAKIMA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
JoEll Snyder • Member
WHATCOM COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Katie Copeland • Member
TRI CITY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Helene Hopkins • Member
WHITMAN COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Whitney Johnsen • Member
TACOMA PIERCE COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Annette Nitz • Member
KITSAP COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Georgia Stevens • Member
SEATTLE KING COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Debi Trull • Member
LOWER COLUMBIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Glenda Krull • Member
SNOHOMISH COUNTY CAMANO ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
David Pope • Member
SNOHOMISH COUNTY CAMANO ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Heather Renner • Member
CLARK COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
DiAnn Sager • Member
NORTH PUGET SOUND ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Jeff Smart • Ex-officio
TRI CITY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
John Blom • Ex-Officio
CLARK COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Ryan Beckett • Ex-Officio
YAKIMA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Ron Wortham • Ex-Officio
NORTH PUGET SOUND ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Krista Gross • Ex-Officio
WHITMAN COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Alisha Harrison • Ex-Officio
KITSAP COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Hailey Rarden • Ex-Officio
SEATTLE KING COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
James Fisher • Member
TACOMA PIERCE COUNTY ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
RE Magazine Winter 2026 Issue
Quick Links to Articles
- Presidents' Message
- Market Statistics — Changes in Insurance Premiums Affecting Housing
- WASHINGTON REALTOR® Profile: Steve Chung
- Why Hill Day Matters — A Conversation with James Fisher
- 2026 Washington State Legislative Session
- REALTORS® + Housing Program Expanding in 2026
- RPAC Did That For Homebuyers & Sellers!
- The Last Print Edition of RE Magazine
- Enhancing the Value of Your Membership