ENGROSSED SECOND SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 2160
State of Washington 68th Legislature 2024 Regular Session
By House Capital Budget (originally sponsored by Representatives
Reed, Fey, Mena, Alvarado, Berry, Bateman, Ormsby, Ramel, Macri,
Street, Peterson, Gregerson, Ryu, Cortes, Riccelli, Doglio, and
Pollet; by request of Office of the Governor)
READ FIRST TIME 02/05/24.
1 AN ACT Relating to promoting community and transit-oriented
2 housing development; amending RCW 43.21C.229; reenacting and amending
3 RCW 36.70A.030; adding new sections to chapter 36.70A RCW; adding a
4 new section to chapter 44.28 RCW; adding a new section to chapter
5 64.38 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 64.90 RCW; adding a new
6 section to chapter 64.34 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 64.32
7 RCW; and creating a new section.
8 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
9 NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that the state has
10 made groundbreaking investments in state-of-the-art mass transit and
11 intermodal infrastructure. The legislature finds that to maximize the
12 state's return on these investments, land use policies and practices
13 must allow housing development to keep pace with progress being
14 implemented in transportation infrastructure development. The
15 legislature also intends new development to reflect the state's
16 commitment to affordable housing and vibrant, walkable, accessible
17 urban environments that improve health, expand multimodal
18 transportation options, and include varied community facilities,
19 parks, and green spaces that are open to people of all income levels.
20 The legislature recognizes that cities planning under chapter
21 36.70A RCW require direction and technical assistance to ensure the
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1 benefits of state transportation investments are maximized and shared
2 equitably while avoiding unnecessary programmatic and cost burdens to
3 local governments in their comprehensive planning, code enactment,
4 and permit processing workloads. The legislature further recognizes
5 that regulatory flexibility and local control are also important
6 features of optimal planning outcomes.
7 Sec. 2. RCW 36.70A.030 and 2023 c 332 s 2 and 2023 c 228 s 14
8 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
9 Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in
10 this section apply throughout this chapter.
11 (1) "Active transportation" means forms of pedestrian mobility
12 including walking or running, the use of a mobility assistive device
13 such as a wheelchair, bicycling and cycling irrespective of the
14 number of wheels, and the use of small personal devices such as foot
15 scooters or skateboards. Active transportation includes both
16 traditional and electric assist bicycles and other devices. Planning
17 for active transportation must consider and address accommodation
18 pursuant to the Americans with disabilities act and the distinct
19 needs of each form of active transportation.
20 (2) "Active transportation facilities" means facilities provided
21 for the safety and mobility of active transportation users including,
22 but not limited to, trails, as defined in RCW 47.30.005, sidewalks,
23 bike lanes, shared-use paths, and other facilities in the public
24 right-of-way.
25 (3) "Administrative design review" means a development permit
26 process whereby an application is reviewed, approved, or denied by
27 the planning director or the planning director's designee based
28 solely on objective design and development standards without a public
29 predecision hearing, unless such review is otherwise required by
30 state or federal law, or the structure is a designated landmark or
31 historic district established under a local preservation ordinance. A
32 city may utilize public meetings, hearings, or voluntary review
33 boards to consider, recommend, or approve requests for variances from
34 locally established design review standards.
35 (4) "Adopt a comprehensive land use plan" means to enact a new
36 comprehensive land use plan or to update an existing comprehensive
37 land use plan.
38 (5) "Affordable housing" means, unless the context clearly
39 indicates otherwise, residential housing whose monthly costs,
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 1 including utilities other than telephone, do not exceed ((thirty)) 30
2 percent of the monthly income of a household whose income is:
3 (a) For rental housing, 60 percent of the median household income
4 adjusted for household size, for the county where the household is
5 located, as reported by the United States department of housing and
6 urban development; or
7 (b) For owner-occupied housing, 80 percent of the median
8 household income adjusted for household size, for the county where
9 the household is located, as reported by the United States department
10 of housing and urban development.
11 (6) "Agricultural land" means land primarily devoted to the
12 commercial production of horticultural, viticultural, floricultural,
13 dairy, apiary, vegetable, or animal products or of berries, grain,
14 hay, straw, turf, seed, Christmas trees not subject to the excise tax
15 imposed by RCW 84.33.100 through 84.33.140, finfish in upland
16 hatcheries, or livestock, and that has long-term commercial
17 significance for agricultural production.
18 (7) "City" means any city or town, including a code city.
19 (8) "Comprehensive land use plan," "comprehensive plan," or
20 "plan" means a generalized coordinated land use policy statement of
21 the governing body of a county or city that is adopted pursuant to
22 this chapter.
23 (9) "Cottage housing" means residential units on a lot with a
24 common open space that either: (a) Is owned in common; or (b) has
25 units owned as condominium units with property owned in common and a
26 minimum of 20 percent of the lot size as open space.
27 (10) "Courtyard apartments" means up to four attached dwelling
28 units arranged on two or three sides of a yard or court.
29 (11) "Critical areas" include the following areas and ecosystems:
30 (a) Wetlands; (b) areas with a critical recharging effect on aquifers
31 used for potable water; (c) fish and wildlife habitat conservation
32 areas; (d) frequently flooded areas; and (e) geologically hazardous
33 areas. "Fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas" does not
34 include such artificial features or constructs as irrigation delivery
35 systems, irrigation infrastructure, irrigation canals, or drainage
36 ditches that lie within the boundaries of and are maintained by a
37 port district or an irrigation district or company.
38 (12) "Department" means the department of commerce.
39 (13) "Development regulations" or "regulation" means the controls
40 placed on development or land use activities by a county or city,
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 1 including, but not limited to, zoning ordinances, critical areas
2 ordinances, shoreline master programs, official controls, planned
3 unit development ordinances, subdivision ordinances, and binding site
4 plan ordinances together with any amendments thereto. A development
5 regulation does not include a decision to approve a project permit
6 application, as defined in RCW 36.70B.020, even though the decision
7 may be expressed in a resolution or ordinance of the legislative body
8 of the county or city.
9 (14) "Emergency housing" means temporary indoor accommodations
10 for individuals or families who are homeless or at imminent risk of
11 becoming homeless that is intended to address the basic health, food,
12 clothing, and personal hygiene needs of individuals or families.
13 Emergency housing may or may not require occupants to enter into a
14 lease or an occupancy agreement.
15 (15) "Emergency shelter" means a facility that provides a
16 temporary shelter for individuals or families who are currently
17 homeless. Emergency shelter may not require occupants to enter into a
18 lease or an occupancy agreement. Emergency shelter facilities may
19 include day and warming centers that do not provide overnight
20 accommodations.
21 (16) "Environmental justice" means the fair treatment and
22 meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color,
23 national origin, or income with respect to development,
24 implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations,
25 and policies. Environmental justice includes addressing
26 disproportionate environmental and health impacts in all laws, rules,
27 and policies with environmental impacts by prioritizing vulnerable
28 populations and overburdened communities and the equitable
29 distribution of resources and benefits.
30 (17) "Extremely low-income household" means a single person,
31 family, or unrelated persons living together whose adjusted income is
32 at or below ((thirty)) 30 percent of the median household income
33 adjusted for household size, for the county where the household is
34 located, as reported by the United States department of housing and
35 urban development.
36 (18) "Floor area ratio" means a measure of development intensity
37 equal to building square footage divided by the developable property
38 square footage. Developable property excludes public facilities and
39 portions of lots with critical areas and critical area buffers as
40 designated in RCW 36.70A.060, except for critical aquifer recharge
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 1 areas where a single-family detached house is an allowed use provided
2 that any requirements to maintain aquifer recharge are met.
3 (19) "Forestland" means land primarily devoted to growing trees
4 for long-term commercial timber production on land that can be
5 economically and practically managed for such production, including
6 Christmas trees subject to the excise tax imposed under RCW 84.33.100
7 through 84.33.140, and that has long-term commercial significance. In
8 determining whether forestland is primarily devoted to growing trees
9 for long-term commercial timber production on land that can be
10 economically and practically managed for such production, the
11 following factors shall be considered: (a) The proximity of the land
12 to urban, suburban, and rural settlements; (b) surrounding parcel
13 size and the compatibility and intensity of adjacent and nearby land
14 uses; (c) long-term local economic conditions that affect the ability
15 to manage for timber production; and (d) the availability of public
16 facilities and services conducive to conversion of forestland to
17 other uses.
18 (((19))) (20) "Freight rail dependent uses" means buildings and
19 other infrastructure that are used in the fabrication, processing,
20 storage, and transport of goods where the use is dependent on and
21 makes use of an adjacent short line railroad. Such facilities are
22 both urban and rural development for purposes of this chapter.
23 "Freight rail dependent uses" does not include buildings and other
24 infrastructure that are used in the fabrication, processing, storage,
25 and transport of coal, liquefied natural gas, or "crude oil" as
26 defined in RCW 90.56.010.
27 (((20))) (21) "Geologically hazardous areas" means areas that
28 because of their susceptibility to erosion, sliding, earthquake, or
29 other geological events, are not suited to the siting of commercial,
30 residential, or industrial development consistent with public health
31 or safety concerns.
32 (((21))) (22) "Green infrastructure" means a wide array of
33 natural assets and built structures within an urban growth area
34 boundary, including parks and other areas with protected tree canopy,
35 and management practices at multiple scales that manage wet weather
36 and that maintain and restore natural hydrology by storing,
37 infiltrating, evapotranspiring, and harvesting and using stormwater.
38 (((22))) (23) "Green space" means an area of land, vegetated by
39 natural features such as grass, trees, or shrubs, within an urban
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 1 context and less than one acre in size that creates public value
2 through one or more of the following attributes:
3 (a) Is accessible to the public;
4 (b) Promotes physical and mental health of residents;
5 (c) Provides relief from the urban heat island effects;
6 (d) Promotes recreational and aesthetic values;
7 (e) Protects streams or water supply; or
8 (f) Preserves visual quality along highway, road, or street
9 corridors.
10 (((23))) (24) "Long-term commercial significance" includes the
11 growing capacity, productivity, and soil composition of the land for
12 long-term commercial production, in consideration with the land's
13 proximity to population areas, and the possibility of more intense
14 uses of the land.
15 (((24))) (25) "Low-income household" means a single person,
16 family, or unrelated persons living together whose adjusted income is
17 at or below ((eighty)) 80 percent of the median household income
18 adjusted for household size, for the county where the household is
19 located, as reported by the United States department of housing and
20 urban development.
21 (((25))) (26) "Major transit stop" means:
22 (a) A stop on a high capacity transportation system funded or
23 expanded under the provisions of chapter 81.104 RCW;
24 (b) Commuter rail stops;
25 (c) Stops on rail or fixed guideway systems; or
26 (d) Stops on bus rapid transit routes.
27 (((26))) (27) "Middle housing" means buildings that are
28 compatible in scale, form, and character with single-family houses
29 and contain two or more attached, stacked, or clustered homes
30 including duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, fiveplexes, sixplexes,
31 townhouses, stacked flats, courtyard apartments, and cottage housing.
32 (((27))) (28) "Minerals" include gravel, sand, and valuable
33 metallic substances.
34 (((28))) (29) "Moderate-income household" means a single person,
35 family, or unrelated persons living together whose adjusted income is
36 at or below 120 percent of the median household income adjusted for
37 household size, for the county where the household is located, as
38 reported by the United States department of housing and urban
39 development.
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 1 (((29))) (30) "Overburdened community" means a geographic area
2 where vulnerable populations face combined, multiple environmental
3 harms and health impacts, and includes, but is not limited to, highly
4 impacted communities as defined in RCW 19.405.020.
5 (((30))) (31) "Per capita vehicle miles traveled" means the
6 number of miles traveled using cars and light trucks in a calendar
7 year divided by the number of residents in Washington. The
8 calculation of this value excludes vehicle miles driven conveying
9 freight.
10 (((31))) (32) "Permanent supportive housing" is subsidized,
11 leased housing with no limit on length of stay that prioritizes
12 people who need comprehensive support services to retain tenancy and
13 utilizes admissions practices designed to use lower barriers to entry
14 than would be typical for other subsidized or unsubsidized rental
15 housing, especially related to rental history, criminal history, and
16 personal behaviors. Permanent supportive housing is paired with on-
17 site or off-site voluntary services designed to support a person
18 living with a complex and disabling behavioral health or physical
19 health condition who was experiencing homelessness or was at imminent
20 risk of homelessness prior to moving into housing to retain their
21 housing and be a successful tenant in a housing arrangement, improve
22 the resident's health status, and connect the resident of the housing
23 with community-based health care, treatment, or employment services.
24 Permanent supportive housing is subject to all of the rights and
25 responsibilities defined in chapter 59.18 RCW.
26 (((32))) (33) "Public facilities" include streets, roads,
27 highways, sidewalks, street and road lighting systems, traffic
28 signals, domestic water systems, storm and sanitary sewer systems,
29 parks and recreational facilities, and schools.
30 (((33))) (34) "Public services" include fire protection and
31 suppression, law enforcement, public health, education, recreation,
32 environmental protection, and other governmental services.
33 (((34))) (35) "Recreational land" means land so designated under
34 RCW 36.70A.1701 and that, immediately prior to this designation, was
35 designated as agricultural land of long-term commercial significance
36 under RCW 36.70A.170. Recreational land must have playing fields and
37 supporting facilities existing before July 1, 2004, for sports played
38 on grass playing fields.
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 1 (((35))) (36) "Rural character" refers to the patterns of land
2 use and development established by a county in the rural element of
3 its comprehensive plan:
4 (a) In which open space, the natural landscape, and vegetation
5 predominate over the built environment;
6 (b) That foster traditional rural lifestyles, rural-based
7 e