On Monday morning, the Washington Senate proposed a $7.9 billion capital budget that would allocate $625 million toward more affordable housing, developments near transit, and landlord mitigation assistance.
The 2023-2025 capital budget underscores the state’s building spending for the next two years and covers areas from housing, higher education, environmental protection, and human services. The proposal also includes $400 million in grants and loans through the Housing Trust Fund.
Other funding would go toward:
- Increasing supply and affordable units near major transit ($50 million).
- Connecting more affordable development to infrastructure ($20 million).
- Funding to aid landlord mitigation ($5 million).
- Sustaining the Housing Finance Commission Land Acquisition Program ($67 million).
- Supporting the Inflation Reduction Act HOMES program ($83,000).
The budget will also invest in natural resource projects that address water quality and supply, salmon recovery, state parks and air quality, among others. Underscored in the environmental component, a projected $12.3 million would be given for Affordable Housing Cleanup Grants, covering remedial action costs like planning or technical work needed to clean up contaminated development sites.
Behavioral Health needs would be given $860 million as a result of the approval of the budget. In Clark County, $20.6 million in additional funding could be given to the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services to build a 48-bed community behavioral health facility.
