Our Vision and Mission
Our Vision:
A world where all Washingtonians have enough money, all Washingtonians are housed, and structural racism no longer creates health inequities.
What we do:
Take action to provide a consistent health perspective to pass social justice policies that improve health.
Build our community and change social narratives about root causes of health inequities.
Deepen our understanding of economic and racial equity, health justice, and advocacy strategies.
Policy Priorities
Housing & Health
Housing insecurity, housing unaffordability, and homelessness are public health crises that jeopardize the physical and mental health of our communities for years, if not generations. Housing issues are also health equity issues. Due to generations of systemic racism, Black, Indigenous, and People of Color are more likely to be unhoused or inadequately housed than white Washingtonians, and Black adults are disproportionately represented in evictions throughout the state.
To address the egregious racial and health inequities that persist for unhoused and housing insecure people in our state, we advocate for policies that get and keep people housed. We focus on policies that (1) increase the supply and variety of housing options, (2) ensure the long-term affordability of housing, and (3) prevent those at risk of homelessness from becoming unsheltered through robust tenant protections.
Progressive Taxation
In the past few years, we’ve made significant strides towards balancing our upside-down tax code: we passed the historic Capital Gains Tax and were able to fully fund the Working Families Tax Credit. These were incredible wins, but there is still so much work to do! Washington remains the state with the second most regressive tax code in the country. We advocate for policies that invest in vital social programs to keep our communities healthy and a fair tax code where the wealthiest among us no longer pay a lower proportion of their incomes than those struggling to make ends meet. These policies include a Wealth Tax, an expansion of the Working Families Tax Credit, and a Guaranteed Basic Income pilot, among others.
2024 Ballot Initiatives - VOTE NO
This year, four dangerous initiatives are going to the ballot. These initiatives are the brainchild of a multimillionaire and seek to harm the health of our state, undo progressive taxation, remove education funding, and strip support from crucial climate investments. WPSR has endorsed a NO vote on all four of these initiatives.
2024 Policy Wrap-up
The Highs (what passed!):
Significant investments for homelessness prevention and services in the Operating Budget, including: An additional $60 million to fill a gap in funding. This will go a long way toward ensuring programs can maintain their current service levels.
Significant investments for housing in the Capital Budget, including: $127.5 million for the Housing Trust Fund with additional funding for energy efficiency improvements. This funding is added to last year’s $400 million investment.
Expansion of the Definition of Family for Paid Sick & Safe Days: Sponsored by Sen. Saldaña with its companion sponsored by Rep. Fosse, this bill changes the definition of family for Paid Sick & Safe days to include chosen family, making it a much more equitable policy.
Expansion of WA Cares: Sponsored by Rep. Macri, this bill allows people to keep their WA Cares benefits when they move out of state.
WA’s Behavioral Health System and Indigenous Health: Sponsored by Rep. Lekanoff, this bill makes much needed changes to better serve Indigenous folks by improving coordination and collaboration with the Indian behavioral health system.
The Lows (what didn't pass):
The Affordable Homes Act / REET 2.0: Sponsored by Rep. Berg and Sen. Frame, this bill would have created a permanent fund source for affordable housing, including funding the Housing Trust Fund. It would have modified the state Real Estate Excise Tax (REET) to be more progressive and creating a local REET option.
Rent Stabilization: Sponsored by Rep. Alvarado and Sen. Trudeau, this bill would have stabilized rents in Washington, creating a more fair system for renters and preventing rent gouging.
The Working Families Tax Credit Age Expansion: Sponsored by Rep. Thai and Sen. Shewmake, this bill would have allowed qualified applicants 18 and older to receive the Working Families Tax Credit. Currently, unless an applicant has at least one dependent, they must be ages 25-64.
The Wealth Tax: Sponsored by Sen. Frame and Rep. Thai, this 1 percent tax on intangible assets worth over $250 million would have been be a big step forward in balancing our egregiously inequitable tax code and funding the services we need most in our state. Polling shows two thirds of Washingtonians support this tax!
The Washington Future Fund (Baby Bonds): Sponsored by Sen. Trudeau and Rep. Stonier, the WA Future Fund would have deposited funds into an account for each baby in WA that received Medicaid before their first birthday. These fund would grow over 18+ years and could be withdrawn when the babies reach adulthood for wealth building activities. Baby bonds programs are designed to disrupt generational poverty and reduce racial and geographic wealth gaps.
Guaranteed Basic Income Pilot: Sponsored by Rep. Berry, the Evergreen Basic Income Pilot Program would have created a statewide Guaranteed Basic Income (GBI) pilot for low-income Washingtonians. Given what we know about the positive health impacts of direct cash assistance, we are committed to seeing GBI pass in the future!
Gift Card Accountability: This package of several bills would have added consumer protections and closed a loophole in Washington state law that allows big corporations to claim unspent customer dollars left on gift cards as revenue. In other states, unspent gift card money instead funds vital services. In WA, the Gift Card Accountability bill package could raise approximately $2.5 billion over 10 years for public health, education, housing, and more.
2023 Policy Wrap-up
The Highs (what passed!):
The Working Families Tax Credit (WFTC) Technical Fix: Sponsored by Rep. Thai, this bill gives applicants three years to claim their tax credit, rather than one. Additionally, people married filing separately - a common filing status for survivors of domestic violence - will be able to claim the WFTC, which is groundbreaking on a national level.
The Covenant Homeownership Act: Sponsored by Rep. Taylor, this historic policy creates support for first-time homebuyers, who were affected by Washington's history of discriminatory housing practices, such as redlining and racially restrictive covenants.
Significant funding for affordable housing in the Capital Budget, including: $400 million to fully fund the Housing Trust Fund.
Significant funding for homelessness prevention and services in the Operating Budget, including: backfilling a funding loss that would have led to major cuts in homeless services.
The Lows (what didn't pass):
The Wealth Tax: Sponsored by Sen. Frame and Rep. Thai, this 1 percent tax on intangible assets worth over $250 million would have been a big step forward in balancing our egregiously inequitable tax code. Polling shows two thirds of Washingtonians support this tax!
The Estate Tax: Sponsored by Rep. Street, this bill would have made Washington’s estate tax more progressive, contributing to a more balanced and equitable tax code.
The Working Families Tax Credit Age Expansion: Sponsored by Rep. Thai and Sen. Shewmake, this bill would have allowed qualified applicants 18 and older to receive the Working Families Tax Credit. Currently, unless an applicant has at least one dependent, they must be ages 25-64.
Guaranteed Basic Income Pilot: Sponsored by Rep. Berry, the Evergreen Basic Income Pilot Program would have created a statewide Guaranteed Basic Income (GBI) pilot for low-income Washingtonians. Given what we know about the positive health impacts of direct cash assistance, we are committed to seeing GBI pass in the future!
The Affordable Homes Act: Sponsored by Rep. Chopp, this bill would have created a permanent fund source for affordable housing, including funding the Housing Trust Fund. It would have done so by modifying the state Real Estate Excise Tax (REET) to make it more progressive and creating a local REET option.
Rent Stabilization: Sponsored by Rep. Macri, Rep. Ramel, and Sen. Trudeau, these bills would have stabilized rents in Washington, creating a more fair system for renters and preventing rent gouging.
Increased Notice for Significant Rent Increases: Sponsored by Rep. Peterson, this bill would have required landlords to help ensure tenants' housing security by providing 6 months' notice for rent increases of 5% or more.
2022 Policy Wrap-up
The Highs (what passed!):
The Apple Health & Homes Act: Sponsored by Rep. Chopp, this bill recognizes chronic homelessness as a health issue by creating the new Apple Health & Homes program. This integrated approach will increase permanent supportive housing and pair it with community health services.
Over $440 million in the Capital Budget for housing, including: $240 million for rapid housing acquisition, $114 for the Housing Trust Fund, $60 million for the Apple Health & Homes program, $15 million for homeless youth facilities, and more.
Significant investments for housing in the Operating Budget, including: $68.5 million for rental assistance, $45 million to help transition people experiencing homelessness into affordable housing, $55 million for frontline homelessness service providers, and more.
$10 million in the Operating Budget for WFTC outreach: This will fund language accessibility and community-based education and outreach to help ensure everyone who is eligible for the WFTC can claim it starting in 2023!
The Lows (what didn't pass):
The Wealth Tax: Sponsored by Rep. Frame, this 1 percent tax on intangible assets worth over $1 billion would have been a big step forward in balancing our egregiously inequitable tax code. Over 4500 people signed in PRO for this bill, so while it didn't pass this session, we know we are building strong momentum!
Guaranteed Basic Income: Sponsored by Rep. Berry, the Evergreen Basic Income Trust would have created a statewide Guaranteed Basic Income program for low-income Washingtonians. Given what we know about the positive health impacts of direct cash assistance, we are committed to seeing this bill pass in the future!
The Housing Justice Act: Sponsored by Reps. Davis and Simmons, this important bill would have protected formerly incarcerated tenants and their families from housing discrimination. This is an essential piece of legislation for racial justice and housing equity.
Increased Notice for Significant Rent Increases: Sponsored by Rep. Peterson, this bill would have required landlords to help ensure tenants' housing security by providing 6 months' notice for rent increases of 7.5% or more.
2021 Policy Wrap-up
The Highs (what passed!):
The Working Families Tax Credit: Sponsored by Rep. Thai. According to our partners at the WA State Budget and Policy Center, “the Working Families Tax Credit [will] transform our tax code from one that holds back hardworking but low-paid Washingtonians to one that promotes economic security. Ultimately, it [will] increase opportunities for working families to get ahead, mitigate the effects of historically racist policies, and strengthen the economy. Lawmakers can make lasting positive impacts on the well-being of Washingtonians by enacting this real, commonsense reform to our tax code.”
The Capital Gains Tax: Sponsored by Senator Robinson. This bill creates a more progressive tax system in Washington by enacting an excise tax on sales and extraordinary profits of high-valued assets. 7% of all profits on sales of stocks and bonds over $250,000 will be taxed. The revenue of this (estimated at $500 million/year) will be invested in early childhood education and related programs. Our state is in crisis, the health of our communities is at risk, and ours is the most regressive tax code in the nation. Washington's Office of Financial Management estimates that only 8,000 taxpayers across the state will be impacted and we know that all Washingtonians will benefit from this influx of sustainable and equitable revenue.
Addressing Landlord-Tenant Relations: Sponsored by Senator Kuderer, this bill will provide certain tenant protections during and after public health emergencies including legal representation in eviction cases and authorizing landlord access to state rental assistance programs.
Rental Assistance: Sponsored by Rep. Ormsby, this bill will create a state-funded rental assistance program that directs over $290 million to rental assistance, landlord support (“mitigation”), homelessness prevention, etc.
Just Cause Eviction Protections: Sponsored by Rep. Macri, this bill will protect residential tenants from the beginning to end of their tenancies by penalizing the inclusion of unlawful lease provisions and limiting the reasons for eviction, refusal to continue, and termination. From Dr. Annemarie Dooley, WPSR Board Member: “One of the things the eviction moratorium has done… is prevent a health crisis from becoming a health catastrophe…”
Apple Health for Pregnant Women: Sponsored by Senator Randall, this bill will extend Medicaid coverage from sixty days postpartum to twelve months postpartum for individuals 198% below the federal poverty line and low-income undocumented individuals. Previously, postpartum Medicaid coverage ended sixty days after pregnancy, creating an unsafe gap in care. Gaps in care, particularly during the postpartum period, contribute to pregnancy-related deaths. Maternal mortality data reveal significant racial and ethnic disparities. In Washington, American Indian and Alaska Native women are six to seven times as likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than white women.
Fair Start for Kids Act: Sponsored by Senator Wilson, this bill will expand accessible, affordable child care and early childhood development programs.
The Lows (what didn't pass):
The Wealth Tax: Sponsored by Rep. Frame, this 1 percent tax on intangible assets worth over $1 billion would have been a big step forward in balancing our egregiously inequitable tax code.
Limiting Rent Increases after Governor’s Eviction Moratorium Expires: Sponsored by Senator Das, this bill would have helped renters avoid getting priced out of their homes after the COVID-19 pandemic created circumstances where many people were struggling to make ends meet. The eviction moratorium provided a first step, and this bill would have strengthened those protections to keep more people housed.
Prohibiting discrimination against prospective tenants for unpaid rent or eviction during the COVID-19 pandemic: Sponsored by Rep. Morgan, this bill would have protected renters who were unable to pay rent during COVID-19 if they moved to a new home in the future.