OLYMPIA — The 2025 session of the Washington State Legislature wrapped up on time last week, and the dust is starting to settle on what proved to be a tense, frantic few months for lawmakers and state officials.

Alongside the passage of state operating, transportation and capital budgets, hundreds of bills passed the legislature last week and have already been signed into law or are still awaiting Gov. Bob Ferguson’s signature — including five bills introduced by lawmakers from the 19th Legislative District.

A bill from state Rep. Joel McEntire (R-Cathlamet), as detailed in a recent Observer story, figures to be among the most closely followed pieces of legislation locally coming out of this year’s session. Substitute House Bill 1309, which Ferguson signed into law in late April, formally establishes a research program at the Washington State Department of Agriculture for the control of burrowing shrimp. The crustaceans are inadvertently killing oysters grown by local shellfish farmers by undermining them and causing them to suffocate in the mud.

“This is a big step forward for one of our state’s most iconic industries,” said McEntire in a news release. “Burrowing shrimp have been wiping out shellfish beds and putting jobs, families, and local economies at risk. This bill gives us a smart, science-based path forward.”

One other bill sponsored by the third-term representative, Engrossed House Bill 1393, also passed both chambers of the legislature this spring and has been signed into law by the governor. The bill requires school districts, charter schools and state-tribal education compact schools to permit students to wear an item of cultural significance with their gown at high school commencements and other official graduation events.

Students’ cultural items must adhere to their school’s existing decorum requirements and otherwise be befitting of the event. Schools may prohibit items that are likely to cause “substantial disruption” or interfere with an official event.

None of the 13 bills introduced by McEntire’s fellow 19th District legislator, state Rep. Jim Walsh (R-Aberdeen), were passed and signed into law.

Wilson’s bills

State Sen. Jeff Wilson (R-Longview) saw three of the nearly 30 bills he introduced be passed by the legislature during this year’s session.

Substitute Senate Bill 5033 passed the legislature unanimously in both the senate and house and is currently awaiting Ferguson’s signature. The bill requires the state Department of Ecology to establish sampling or testing requirements for PFAS chemicals — more commonly known as “forever chemicals” — for certain biosolids by July 2028, and to complete an analysis of PFAS chemicals by July 2029 along with a report and recommendation to the legislature by December of that year.

Another bill waiting on the governor’s signature is Substitute Senate Bill 5365, which both chambers of the legislature passed unanimously. The bill amends the definition of recreational facilities to include community centers that could include public libraries within less than 50 percent of the usable space for park and recreation districts. According to Wilson, the legislation would allow small towns to share spaces and be more effective as it relates to shared space.

One bill of Wilson’s that Ferguson has already signed is Substitute Senate Bill 5049, which requires the Public Records Exemptions Accountability Committee to hold four meetings annually, rather than once a quarter. According to Wilson and supporters of the legislation, the tweak brought forward in the bill is due to difficulty that the committee’s legislative members have had in being able to participate while the legislature is in session, and is intended to promote attendance.

Housing bills fall short

Several other bills introduced by Wilson managed to pass the senate during this year’s session, but were ultimately not voted on by the house and will have to wait until next year for a chance to become law.

Two of those bills were related to housing, including Substitute Senate Bill 5552, which passed unanimously in the upper chamber. The bill would require the State Building Code Council to perform rulemaking applicable to kit homes by the end of 2025.

Kit homes are constructed from a series of prefabricated components that are assembled on site, are a maximum of 800 square feet, and typically do not use materials such as brick, concrete or masonry. These types of homes, Wilson testified, can play an important role in the solution to the state’s housing crisis due to their simplicity and ability to be used as accessory dwelling units, or ADUs.

Another housing bill, Substitute Senate Bill 5749, received strong support in the senate when it passed in a 47-2 vote. The bill would allow cities to designate housing development “opportunity zones” in areas of large commercial development where residential development must be prioritized.

Additionally, cities would be authorized to waive one-time impact fees associated with the development within such an opportunity zone, and exempts resolutions or ordinances made to implement an opportunity zone from being revised or reviewed under the state’s Growth Management Act.

Supporters of the legislation who testified at a public hearing argued it would allow cities to develop housing more easily and more quickly in areas that have already gone through much of the development process.