issue area reports | energy and environment this program. Notably, one of the elements that was negotiated when it first passed was that state and private buildings are both responsible to comply with this law. Tying the public buildings to this requirement has helped increase awareness for the cost faced by private buildings. Another bill, which AWB opposed, would have de-linked public and private buildings. That bill failed to advance out of the policy committee. Keeping that linkage is important to help keep the focus on the costs associated with compliance.
HB 1237 facilitating predictable and timely application decisions by the energy facility site evaluation council
Failed / AWB Supported sponsor: Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon, D-West Seattle
This bill aimed to address the bottlenecks faced by developers trying to build energy generation under review by the state’ s Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council( EFSEC). Unfortunately it was one of the bills which did not move out of the policy committee, likely due to fiscal issues. AWB sees promise in the conversation and will continue working to help find ways to make EFSEC a better place for developers to quickly build energy infrastructure.
HB 1912 concerning the exemption for fuels used for agricultural purposes in the climate commitment act
Passed / AWB Neutral sponsor: Rep. Tom Dent, R-Moses Lake
This bill was governor priority legislation, and it sought to fix the ag exemption issue in the CCA. The bill was heavily worked over
Rep. Mary Dye, R-Pomeroy, is the ranking minority member on the House Environment & Energy Committee.
session and ultimately ended up passing. Most AWB members supported it, however some members of the ag community remained concerned, so AWB stayed neutral on the bill. Overall it fixes the issue where ag-exempt fuel buyers were being charged the CCA costs for fuels. The ag exemption for on-road use was extended two years to expire at the end of 2029. Ecology must update a directory of retail fuel users using a cardholder or membership program to allow the purchase of exempt fuel.
HB 1188 requiring local government and tribal approval of wind and solar siting recommendations by the energy facility site evaluation council
Failed / AWB Opposed sponsor: Rep. Mary Dye, R-Pomeroy
This bill would have essentially given local governments and tribes a veto over development of wind and solar sites
Bill considered as part of AWB’ s voting record
Favorable outcome for Washington businesses
Missed Opportunities
special edition 2025 19