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117 bills already introduced during pre-filing period

Michael Goldberg   December 16, 2019  

With the pre-filing period well underway, members of the House and Senate have already introduced a combined total of 117 bills. Pre-filed bills are submitted for a first reading before the legislative session begins and introduced on the first day of the session. Here’s a quick glance at some of the bills that caught our eye. 

Senate Bills

  • Senators Kuderer and Dareille have introduced a ban on assault weapons and high capacity magazines, as requested by Governor Jay Inslee and Attorney General Bob Ferguson. (SB 6076)   
  • By request of the Insurance Commissioner, Senators Das, Lovelett, Nguyen, Saldana, and Kuderer have sponsored a bill that would authorize the commissioner to act as the group-wide supervisor for internationally active insurance groups. (SB 6048)
  • Sponsored by several senators, including some Republicans, the Washington State Bar Association has requested a bill that would require each public company to have a gender-diverse board of directors. Under the bill’s current language, a public company is deemed to have a gender-diverse board of directors if, for at least two hundred seventy days of the fiscal year preceding the applicable annual meeting of shareholders, individuals who self-identify as women comprised at least twenty-five percent of the directors serving on the board of directors. (SB 6037)
  • Senator John Braun has introduced a bill that would establish an additional funding source, beyond the state portion of the fuel tax and fees for registering motor vehicles, for transportation infrastructure. According to the bill’s text, an additional funding source not subject to bonding would “offer greater flexibility and efficiency in addressing transportation infrastructure needs.” (SB 6041) 
  • A group of Republican senators have introduced a bill that would prohibit the use of title-only bills. Title Only bills are also the target of a recent lawsuit. (SB 6042) 
  • A bill brought forth by Senator Steve O’Ban would exempt health care and veterinary services from the business and occupation surcharge. The effort has sparked disagreements among legislators in recent weeks. (SB 6055)

House Bills

  • A large group of representatives have come together to sponsor a bi-partisan bill that would assist spouses and dependents of active duty military by “ensuring affordable access to higher education.” (HB 2185) 
  • Rep. Drew MacEwen seeks to require each commercial advertiser who has accepted or provided political advertising or electioneering communications during an election campaign to maintain current records open for public inspection during the campaign and for a period of no less than five years after the date of the applicable election. (HB 2214)
  • Rep. Gael Tarleton has introduced a bill which adds several new sections to the revised uniform unclaimed property act. (HB 2234)
  • The Growth Management Act, another bill by Rep. MacEwen aims to provide local governments with increased flexibility to extend water and sewer services outside of “arbitrary urban growth boundaries.” The bill targets communities experiencing insufficient economic growth. (HB 2206)

The pre-filing period will last until the beginning of the session. An updated list of pre-filed bills can be found here.

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