May 16, 2019
A New Washington State Funding Tool for Affordable Housing
Washington State Substitute House Bill 1406 was signed into law by Governor Inslee on May 9, 2019 and will provide cities and counties with a new source of funds for affordable housing and supportive services. Cities and counties will need to act quickly to access this tool. The bill authorizes cities and counties to implement a local sales tax, credited against the state sales tax, to fund affordable housing. The offset against the state sales tax results in no tax increase to consumers and shifts the funding of the affordable housing to the state.