What bills survived cutoff in Olympia

Many pro-worker bills are still alive in the State Legislature as labor continues advocating for policies to improve jobs and quality of life for working families

OLYMPIA, WA (March 13, 2025) — Wednesday was the final day for the State Legislature to pass policy bills from their houses of origin. If a bill hasn’t passed the Senate or House by now, that bill is considered dead unless it’s resurrected by the Legislature in order to pass the budget (a rarely used procedural maneuver).

Many pro-worker bills remain viable in both the House and the Senate. Below is an update — effective today — on the status of priority legislation listed in the 2025 Legislative Agenda of the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO. Some bills the WSLC and its affiliates are supporting or opposing may not be listed in this agenda.

PRIORITY BILLS:

SB 5041 — Concerning unemployment insurance benefits for striking or lockout workers. SB 5041 passed the Senate 28-21; referred to the House Labor & Workplace Standards Committee. 

HB 1644 — Concerning the safety and health of working minors. HB 1644 passed the House 60-35; scheduled for public hearing in the Senate Committee on Labor & Commerce on March 18. 

HB 1622 — Allowing bargaining over matters related to the implementation of artificial intelligence. HB 1622 passed the House 58-38; referred to Senate Committee on Labor & Commerce. 

SB 5062/HB 1128 — Establishing a child care workforce standards board. SB 5062 and HB 1128 were both referred to fiscal committees, but did not advance in time for cutoff. 

Two other priorities did not make it out of committee this year: HB 1764/SB 5578, raising the minimum wage and passing paid vacation, and HB 1237/SB 5246, facilitating predictable and timely application decisions by the energy facility site evaluation council. These bills received hearings but were not acted on by cutoff.

WORKPLACE PROTECTIONS:

• Personnel Files: enforces workers’ right to access their own personnel records (HB 1308). HB 1308 passed the House 56-41; referred to Senate Committee on Labor & Commerce.
• Home Care Provider Background Checks: updates the required checks for home care providers to improve equity and streamline the process (HB 1395). HB 1395 passed the House 78-19; referred to Senate Committee on Labor & Commerce. 
• Update non-compete laws: protects workers from unnecessary restraints by employers (HB 1155). HB 1155 passed out of committee, but did not receive a vote on the House floor by cutoff.
• Healthy Starts Act 2.0: requires that breaks for pumping milk be paid breaks and exempts lactating people from jury duty (SB 5217). SB 5217 passed the Senate 43-6; scheduled for public hearing in the House Committee on Labor & Workplace Standards on March 19.
• Public Safety Interest Arbitration Cleanup (HB 1068 & HB 1182): provides interest arbitration for excluded public safety employees who have limited availability to withhold their labor (HB 1068/HB 1182). HB 1068 passed the House 78-25; referred to Senate Committee on Labor & Commerce. HB 1182 received policy and fiscal committee hearings but failed to advance by cutoff.
• Third Party Administrators: requires “good faith and fair dealing” for all injured workers (SB 5463). SB 5463 passed the Senate 29-20; scheduled for public hearing in the Senate Committee on Labor & Commerce on March 18. 
• Time-Loss Formula for Worker’s Comp: ensures the full value of family sustaining health insurance for injured workers when calculating time loss (HB 1788). HB 1788 passed the House 78-18; scheduled for public hearing in the Senate Committee on Labor & Commerce.
• Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML) Job Protection: extends job protections for workers of employers with 50 or fewer employees (HB 1213). HB 1213 passed the House 55-41 and will now move to the Senate.
• Streamlining ILWU PFML Premium Payments: allows dockworker’s earnings for work performed under their CBA to be aggregated for the purposes of applying the social security wage cap (SB 5191). SB 5191 passed the Senate 48-1; scheduled for public hearing in the House Committee on Labor & Workplace Standards on March 14.
• Responsible Bidder: updates the contractor criteria on projects funded by state money (HB 1549). HB 1549 passed the House 95-0; referred to the Senate Committee on State Government, Tribal Affairs & Elections

PAY EQUITY:

• High-Hazard Prevailing Wages: current federal data has proven a flawed, erratic, and unenforceable basis for wages. Washington should use its own triedand-true prevailing wage standards instead (HB 1173). HB 1173 passed the House 82-13; Scheduled for public hearing in the Senate Committee on Labor & Commerce on March 18.
• Child Care Provider Wages: fully funds subsidy rates to provide quality care and livable wages (SB 5500/HB 1350). SB 5500 failed to get a vote on the Senate floor before cutoff. HB 1350 did not advance from committee. 
• Salary Survey for Ferry Workers: ensures wages for ferry workers are competitive by updating the maritime salary survey (HB 1264). HB 1264 passed the House 93-3; scheduled for public hearing in the Senate Committee on Transportation.
• Prevailing Wage Escalator: eliminates existing wage freezes on public works projects (SB 5061). SB 5061 passed the Senate 35-13 and will now move to the House. 
• Wage replacement for workers left out: takes steps to provide a supplemental wage replacement benefit for workers not currently covered due to their immigration status (SB 5626/HB 1773). Both bills were heard in fiscal committees, but did not move forward by cutoff. 
• COLA for Plan 1 Retirees: funds Cost-of-Living Adjustments for plan 1 retirees (SB 5113/HB 1292). SB 5113 received a hearing in the Senate Ways & Means Committee, but neither bill advanced by cutoff. 

HEALTHCARE:

• Emergency Supply of Insulin: caps out-of-pocket cost at $10 for a 30-day emergency supply of insulin (SB 5326). SB 5326 was heard in a Senate policy committee and referred to Senate Ways & Means Committee, but did not advance by cutoff.
• Healthcare Trust for Nursing Home Workers: funds high-quality healthcare for nursing home workers, often left behind due to low wages and costly health benefits (SB 5344/HB 1523). SB 5344 was heard in a Senate policy committee and referred to Senate Ways & Means Committee, but neither bill advanced by cutoff. 
• Fertility Services: requires insurance plans to include fertility coverage (SB 5121/HB 1129). Both bills were heard in policy committees and referred to the Senate Ways & Means and House Appropriations Committees, respectively; neither advanced by cutoff. 
• Healthcare mergers: increased transparency and oversight of mergers, acquisitions and contracted affiliations between healthcare entities (HB 1881/SB 5704). HB 1881 was heard in the House Civil Rights & Judiciary Committee, but neither bill advanced out of policy committees by cutoff. 

WORKERS’ RIGHTS:

• Student Worker Collective Bargaining: creates a framework for student workers to collectively bargain at certain regional universities (SB 5119/HB 1570). Both bills received hearings in policy committees, and HB 1570 was heard in the House Appropriations Committee; however, neither bill advanced by cutoff. 
• DOC Community Corrections Unit: creates a standalone contract for community corrections workers (HB 1105). HB 1105 passed the House 83-12; scheduled for executive session in the Senate Committee on Labor & Commerce on March 21. 
• Bargaining Retiree Healthcare: allows state employees to bargain over certain supplemental benefits, like retiree healthcare (HB 1069). HB 1069 passed the House 78-18; scheduled for public hearing in the Senate Committee on Labor & Commerce on March 14.
• Consolidate Ferry Captain Bargaining Units: consolidates the Masters, Mates and Pilots Union bargaining units (HB 1511). HB 1511 passed the House 93-3; scheduled for executive session in the Senate Committee on Transportation on March 17.
• Public Employment Relations Commission (PERC) Omnibus: give PERC authority to close costly loopholes & prevent delays in the fair resolution of workplace issues (SB 5503). SB 5503 passed the Senate 31-18; scheduled for public hearing in the House Committee on Labor & Workplace Standards on March 21.
• Washington Call Center Jobs Act: retains call center jobs in Washington, leveraging state grants, loans, tax preferences, and public transparency to penalize companies who move their WA workforce overseas where worker exploitation is common (SB 5459). SB 5459 passed the Senate 30-19; scheduled for public hearing in the House Committee on Labor & Workplace Standards on March 19. 
• Cannabis Ag Worker Organizing Protections: extend collective bargaining rights to agricultural workers in the cannabis industry (HB 1141). HB 1141 passed the House 55-40; referred to Senate Labor & Commerce Committee. 

HEALTH & SAFETY:

• Protect Bus and Rail Operators: increases criminal penalties for assaults on bus and rail operators (HB 1989). HB 1989 did not receive a hearing. 
• Dept. of Corrections (DOC) PTSD Coverage: extends presumptive coverage of PTSD to DOC workers (SB 5043/HB 1070). Both bills passed out of policy committees; HB 1070 was heard in the House Appropriations Committee, but failed to advance by cutoff.
• Driver Safety Course: adds specific training on driving in work zones to driver education programs (HB 1822). HB 1822 passed the House 94-3 and will now move to the Senate. 
• Workplace Violence in Healthcare: adds reporting requirements, including common cause analysis, for safety/workplace violence committees in hospitals to prevent violent acts (HB 1162). HB 1162 passed the House 97-0; scheduled for public hearing in the Senate Committee on Labor & Commerce on March 18. 
• Autonomous Vehicles: requires human safety operators (HB 5042). HB 5042 did not receive a hearing.

HOUSING ACCESS & STABILITY:

• Rent Stabilization: limits rent and fee increases, requires notice of rent and fee increases, limits fees and deposits, establishes a landlord resource center and associated services, authorizes tenant lease termination, creates parity between lease types, and provides for attorney general enforcement (HB 1217). HB 1217 passed the House 53-42; scheduled for public hearing in the Senate Committee on Housing on March 19. 
• Housing Stability: establishes limits on municipalities mandating parking (SB 5184). SB 5184 passed the Senate 40-8; scheduled for public hearing in the House Committee on Local Government on March 14. 
• Housing Stability: incentivizes construction of housing near transit (HB 1491). HB 1491 passed the House 58-39; scheduled for public hearing in the Senate Committee on Housing on March 14. 
• On-time Rent Credit Reporting: establishes a pilot for landlords to report on-time rent payments to credit bureaus (HB 1927). HB 1927 was heard in the House Committee on Housing, but did not advance out of a fiscal committee by cutoff. 

WORKERS’ VOICE:

• Labor Voice on Higher Education Boards: expands the statute to add a labor trustee on community college and regional 4-year Boards (HB 1036). HB 1036 was heard in committee but did not make it to a vote on the House floor by cutoff.