WSNA in Olympia — 2025 Legislative Session

The Washington State Legislature reached another important cutoff deadline on Friday, February 28th - the fiscal committee cutoff. Bills that have an impact on the state budget must pass the fiscal committees (Finance, Appropriations, Transportation, and Ways & Means) by February 28th to remain alive for further legislative consideration. However, bills that are deemed by majority leadership to be “necessary to implement the budget” or “NTIB,” are exempt from cutoff deadlines.  Next week, lawmakers begin full-time floor action to pass bills to meet the House of Origin cutoff on March 12th.

In addition, Governor Bob Ferguson held a press conference regarding the large budget shortfall our state is facing where he outlined approximately $4 billion in proposed budget cuts for the legislature to consider. More information on these proposed cuts below.

HB 1162 was unanimously voted out of the House Appropriations committee on Tuesday evening. Given the national news of WPV on nurses and healthcare workers, we are happy the bill has passed this step in the legislative process. Due to the bill’s fiscal note, the committee added an amendment that makes the bill void (would not pass) if the fiscal note is not funded in the final budget. HB 1162 now sits in the Rules committee where it will have to be “pulled” to the House floor for a vote before the House of Origin cutoff date March 12.

SB 5041had a public hearing in the Senate Ways & Means Committee on Tuesday, February 25th. There was much discussion around the $1.2 million fiscal note of the bill with some Senators expressing skepticism on how low the fiscal note is estimated. Given the state’s budget situation, SB 5041 does face an uphill battle to passage. On Friday, February 28th in Ways & Means it was voted to pass out of Committee and has moved onto Rules as the next step in the process.

Link here to watch the public hearing of SB 5041 that took place on Tuesday.

This bill would allow striking workers to access UI benefits. It would put pressure on the bargaining parties to come to the table and restores the power imbalance between workers and employers.

HB 1430 is on the House Floor Calendar, which is where bills and resolutions are placed when waiting for House floor action. The bill must pass the House of Representatives by a simple majority before March 12th to make it to the Senate.

The quality of care and outcomes from services provided by ARNPs and PAs are equivalent to that of physicians, but commercial insurance plans withhold up to 15% of the reimbursement from ARNPs and PAs. HB 1430 requires commercial insurance plans to reimburse ARNP and PA care at the same rate as physicians.

This bill is no longer moving forward this legislative session as it did not pass out of House Civil Rights & Judiciary Committee before the February 21 policy deadline. As a result, we will no longer include this bill in our weekly updates for the remainder of this legislative session.

WSNA is committed to continuing to work on this policy with other supporters and interested parties over the interim.

This bill is no longer moving forward this legislative session as it did not pass out of the Senate Early Learning & K-12 Committee before the February 21 policy deadline. As a result, we will no longer include this bill in our weekly updates for the remainder of this legislative session.

On Thursday, February 27, Governor Ferguson held a press conference where he outlined more than $4 billion in proposed cuts for the Washington State Legislature to consider. These cuts, on top of those in Governor Inslee’s proposed budget, cover only about half of the state’s projected shortfall.

State agencies were instructed to assess programs based on the following criteria:

• Recently launched programs
• Programs funded by one-time federal dollars
• Services reaching fewer than 1,000 people annually
• Programs lacking performance tracking

Additionally, Governor Ferguson’s cost-reduction framework focused on improving efficiency before considering new revenue options. His plan includes:

• Consolidating agency management roles by 10-25%
• Cutting administrative positions
• Limiting equipment purchases
• Reducing travel expenses

While Governor Ferguson has been upfront about considering revenue only as a last resort, House and Senate Democratic budget leaders continue to talk about the impact an all-cuts budget would have on Washingtonians. House Majority Leader Joe Fitzgibbon said he welcomed the Governor’s recommendations, noting that many overlap with reductions the House is also considering. Senate Ways & Means Chair June Robinson stated, “…we have also reached the conclusion that reductions alone will not allow us to sustain the services Washingtonians rely on…”

The legislature, constitutionally required to pass a balanced budget, will use this as a foundation for negotiations. On March 18th, updated revenue and caseload forecasts will guide legislators in shaping their own budget proposals, incorporating spending reductions and potential revenue measures. The final budget must be approved by April 27th, or the state could face one or more special sessions. The Governor must agree to sign the final budget proposal.

The legislature considers hundreds of bills outside our own legislative priorities. Here is a list of bills we’re watching as they move through the legislative process that may impact members. We will continue adding bills to this list as we move through the legislative session. Click on any of the links to learn more about each bill and where it is in the legislative process.

HB 1308/SB 5345, concerning access to personnel records

HB 1213/SB 5539, expanding protections for workers in the state paid family and medical leave

HB 1416, increasing tobacco and vapor products taxes

HB 1879, concerning meal and rest breaks for hospital workers

HB 1784, concerning medical assistants

HB 1672, addressing technology used by employers in the workplace

HB 1069/SB 5044, allowing bargaining over contributions for certain supplemental retirement benefits

SB 5101, expanding access to leave and safety accommodations to include workers who are victims of hate crimes or bias incidents

HB 1203/SB 5183, prohibiting the sale of certain tobacco and nicotine products

HB 1334, modifying the annual regular property tax revenue growth limit

SB 5503, concerning public employee collective bargaining processes

HB 1686/SB 5561, creating a health care entity registry

HB 1560/SB 5638, funding health care access by imposing an excise tax on the annual compensation paid to certain highly compensated hospital employees

SB 5240, concerning anaphylaxis medication in schools

SB 5335, establishing the rural nursing education program

SB 5387, concerning the corporate practice of medicine

SB 5493, concerning hospital price transparency

HB 1622/SB 5422, allowing bargaining over matters related to the use of artificial intelligence

HB 1531, preserving the ability of public officials to address communicable diseases

HB 1022, creating a home for heroes program.

HB 1069/SB 5044, allowing collective bargaining over contributions for certain supplemental retirement benefits.

HB 1155/SB 5437, prohibiting noncompetition agreements and clarifying non solicitation agreements.

HB 1220, concerning appropriate response to assaults by individuals in behavioral health crisis.

HB 1948/SB 5652 (DEAD), reducing environmental and health disparities and improving the health of Washington residents in large port districts

SB 5271 (DEAD), requiring school districts of the first class to employ a school nurse

HB 1445/SB 5233 (DEAD), developing the Washington health trust

HB 1567 (DEAD), concerning licensure of health care administrators

HB 1077 (DEAD), raising awareness of pain control options for intrauterine device placement and removal

SB 5526 (DEAD), concerning the regulation of tobacco products, alternative nicotine products, and vapor products

SB 5116 (DEAD), concerning the immediate use of marriage licenses for medical necessity

HB 1764/SB 5578 (DEAD), concerning labor standards

How does a bill become a law?

How do I read a bill?

Washington State Labor Council’s 2025 Legislative Priorities

On Tuesday, February 25th, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a budget proposal that outlines nearly $880 billion in cuts to Medicaid and other healthcare programs. Then on Thursday, February 27th U.S. Senator Patty Murray held a press conference regarding those proposed cuts and the impact they would have on all Washingtonians and access to care. Julia Barcott, Vice President of WSNA and an ICU nurse, participated in that press conference and stated that 69% of the patient population at Astria Toppenish near Yakima rely on Medicaid.

WSNA President Justin Gill was interviewed by KOMO about these proposed cuts where he stated deep concerns about patients’ ability to access timely care and that delaying care will lead to more costly services in the long run. These cuts would be devastating to the most vulnerable people in our state.

CLICK HERE to take action today and tell your Members of Congress why Medicaid is so important for your community and healthcare access. You will be directed to AFT’s action alert, where you first fill out your information, and then the letter you send to your Member of Congress which can be edited before submittal if you choose to do so.

More than 1.1 million people in Washington are enrolled in Medicaid, and cuts would take away revenue from hospitals, especially in rural and remote areas. The proposal to reduce the federal match rate for states that expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act would force Washington to pay an extra $1.2 billion a year to maintain its Medicaid expansion, when our state is already facing a severe budget shortfall.

Learn more about Medicaid here.