AN ACT Relating to encouraging permanent supportive housing, transitional housing, indoor emergency housing, and indoor emergency shelters; amending RCW 35.21.683, 35A.21.430, and 36.130.020; reenacting and amending RCW 35.21.990 and 35A.21.440; adding a new section to chapter 36.70A RCW; and creating a new section.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that Washington state faces an acute shortage of housing affordable to households at all income levels, resulting in housing insecurity and a growing number of people experiencing homelessness. The legislature further finds that local regulatory barriers, inconsistent siting standards, and discretionary review processes have constrained the timely development of permanent supportive housing, transitional housing, indoor emergency housing, and indoor emergency shelters. It is the intent of the legislature to increase housing supply and advance fair housing by requiring these housing types to be permitted in urban areas on the same terms as other residential uses, subject only to objective and nondiscriminatory development standards necessary to protect public health and safety. By streamlining permitting processes and ensuring consistent treatment across jurisdictions, the legislature intends to avoid unnecessary cost increases associated with delays and to facilitate the prompt delivery of safe, dignified, and stable housing and to support statewide efforts to address homelessness and the housing crisis.

(1) A county or city planning under RCW 36.70A.040 must allow transitional housing, permanent supportive housing, indoor emergency shelters, and indoor emergency housing in any zones within an urban growth area that are not zoned for industrial use.

(2) A county or city may not require through development regulations, ordinances, or legal agreements any standards, conditions, or requirements for transitional housing, permanent supportive housing, indoor emergency housing, and indoor emergency shelters that are more restrictive than those required for other types of residential development within the same zone, but may apply any objective development regulations that are required for residential development including, but not limited to, setback, lot coverage, stormwater, clearing, and tree canopy and retention requirements.

(3) A county or city shall only apply the same development permit and environmental review processes to transitional housing, permanent supportive housing, indoor emergency shelters, and indoor emergency housing that apply to other residential development within the same zone, unless otherwise required by state law including, but not limited to, shoreline regulations under chapter 90.58 RCW, building codes under chapter 19.27 RCW, energy codes under chapter 19.27A RCW, or electrical codes under chapter 19.28 RCW.

(1) A city ((shall not prohibit))must allow transitional housing ((or)), permanent supportive housing ((in any zones in which residential dwelling units or hotels are allowed. Effective September 30, 2021, a city shall not prohibit)), indoor emergency shelters, and indoor emergency housing in any zones ((in which hotels are allowed, except in such cities that have adopted an ordinance authorizing indoor emergency shelters and indoor emergency housing in a majority of zones within a one-mile proximity to transit. Reasonable occupancy, spacing, and intensity of use requirements may be imposed by ordinance on permanent supportive housing, transitional housing, indoor emergency housing, and indoor emergency shelters to protect public health and safety. Any such requirements on occupancy, spacing, and intensity of use may not prevent the siting of a sufficient number of permanent supportive housing, transitional housing, indoor emergency housing, or indoor emergency shelters necessary to accommodate each city's projected need for such housing and shelter under RCW 36.70A.070(2)(a)(ii)))that are not zoned for industrial use.

(2) A city may not require through development regulations, ordinances, or legal agreements any development or operating standards, conditions, or requirements for transitional housing, permanent supportive housing, indoor emergency housing, and indoor emergency shelters that are more restrictive than those required for other types of residential development within the same zone, but may apply any objective development regulations that are required for residential development including, but not limited to, setback, lot coverage, stormwater, clearing, and tree canopy and retention requirements.

(4) If applying design review for transitional housing, permanent supportive housing, indoor emergency shelters, and indoor emergency housing, only administrative design review may be required. For the purposes of this subsection, "administrative design review" means a development permit process whereby an application is reviewed, approved, or denied by the planning director or the planning director's designee based solely on objective design and development standards without a public predecision hearing, unless such review is otherwise required by state or federal law, or the structure is a designated landmark or historic district established under a local preservation ordinance. A city may utilize public meetings, hearings, or voluntary review boards to consider, recommend, or approve requests for variances from locally established design review standards.

A code city ((shall not prohibit))must allow transitional housing ((or)), permanent supportive housing ((in any zones in which residential dwelling units or hotels are allowed. Effective September 30, 2021, a code city shall not prohibit)), indoor emergency shelters, and indoor emergency housing in any zones ((in which hotels are allowed, except in such cities that have adopted an ordinance authorizing indoor emergency shelters and indoor emergency housing in a majority of zones within a one-mile proximity to transit. Reasonable occupancy, spacing, and intensity of use requirements may be imposed by ordinance on permanent supportive housing, transitional housing, indoor emergency housing, and indoor emergency shelters to protect public health and safety. Any such requirements on occupancy, spacing, and intensity of use may not prevent the siting of a sufficient number of permanent supportive housing, transitional housing, indoor emergency housing, or indoor emergency shelters necessary to accommodate each code city's projected need for such housing and shelter under RCW 36.70A.070(2)(a)(ii)))that are not zoned for industrial use.

(2) A code city may not require through development regulations, ordinances, or legal agreements any development or operating standards, conditions, or requirements for transitional housing, permanent supportive housing, indoor emergency housing, and indoor emergency shelters that are more restrictive than those required for other types of residential development within the same zone, but may apply any objective development regulations that are required for residential development including, but not limited to, setback, lot coverage, stormwater, clearing, and tree canopy and retention requirements.

(3) A code city shall only apply the same development permit and environmental review processes to transitional housing, permanent supportive housing, indoor emergency shelters, and indoor emergency housing that apply to other residential development within the same zone, unless otherwise required by state law including, but not limited to, shoreline regulations under chapter 90.58 RCW, building codes under chapter 19.27 RCW, energy codes under chapter 19.27A RCW, or electrical codes under chapter 19.28 RCW.

(1) A city, county, or other local governmental entity or agency may not adopt, impose, or enforce requirements on an affordable housing development that are different than the requirements imposed on housing developments generally.

(2) This section does not prohibit any city, county, or other local governmental entity or agency from extending preferential treatment to affordable housing developments intended for including, but not limited to, occupancy by homeless persons, farmworkers, persons with disabilities, senior citizens, or low-income households. Preferential treatment may include, but is not limited to: A reduction or waiver of fees or changes in applicable requirements including, without limitation, architectural requirements, site development requirements, property line requirements, building setback requirements, or vehicle parking requirements; or other treatment that reduces or is likely to reduce the development or operating costs of an affordable housing development.

(3) A city, county, or other local governmental entity or agency may impose and enforce reporting and auditing requirements on affordable housing developments as conditions of loans, grants, financial support, tax benefits, subsidy funds, or sale or lease of public property, or as conditions to eligibility for any affordable housing incentive program under RCW 36.70A.540 or any other program involving bonus density, transfer of development rights, waiver of development regulations or fees, or other development incentives.

(1)(a) Cities must adopt or amend by ordinance, and incorporate into their development regulations, zoning regulations, and other official controls the requirements of subsection (2) of this section for buildings in commercial, mixed-use, or residential zones no later than June 30, 2026.

(b) The requirements of subsection (2) of this section apply and take effect in any city that has not adopted or amended ordinances, regulations, or other official controls as required under this section by the timeline in (a) of this subsection and supersede, preempt, and invalidate any conflicting local development regulations.

(a) Impose a restriction on housing unit density that prevents the addition of housing units at a density up to 50 percent more than what is allowed in the underlying zone if constructed entirely within an existing building envelope in a building located within a zone that permits multifamily housing, provided that generally applicable health and safety standards, including but not limited to building code standards and fire and life safety standards, can be met within the building;

(b) Impose parking requirements on the addition of dwelling units or living units added within an existing building, however, cities may require the retention of existing parking that is required to satisfy existing residential parking requirements under local laws and for nonresidential uses that remain after the new units are added;

(c) ((With the exception of emergency housing and transitional housing uses, impose))Impose permitting requirements on the use of an existing building for residential purposes beyond those requirements generally applicable to all residential development within the building's zone, including requiring a change of use permit;

(d) Impose design standard requirements, including setbacks, lot coverage, and floor area ratio requirements, on the use of an existing building for residential purposes beyond those requirements generally applicable to all residential development within the building's zone, except as provided in RCW 36.70A.810 and 36.70A.812;

(e) Impose exterior design or architectural requirements on the residential use of an existing building beyond those necessary for health and safety of the use of the interior of the building or to preserve character-defining streetscapes, unless the building is a designated landmark or is within a historic district established through a local preservation ordinance;

(f) Prohibit the addition of housing units in any specific part of a building except ground floor commercial or retail that is along a major pedestrian corridor as defined by each city, unless the addition of the units would violate applicable building codes or health and safety standards;

(g) Require unchanged portions of an existing building that have been used for residential or previously permit-approved conditioned space purposes to meet the current energy code solely because of the addition of new dwelling units within the building. When any other existing building is converted to new dwelling units, changed portions of each of those new units must meet the requirements of the current energy code, except if:

(ii) The building owner submits documentation, in a form acceptable to the city, showing the building's residential units' projected energy use intensity is less than or equal to the energy use intensity target in accordance with the clean buildings performance standard in RCW 19.27A.210; or

(h) Deny a building permit application for the addition of housing units within an existing building due to nonconformity regarding parking, height, setbacks, elevator size for gurney transport, or modulation, unless the city official with decision-making authority makes written findings that the nonconformity is causing a significant detriment to the surrounding area; or

(3) Nothing in this section requires a city to approve a building permit application for the addition of housing units constructed entirely within an existing building envelope in a building located within a zone that permits multifamily housing in cases in which the building cannot satisfy life safety standards.

(1)(a) Code cities must adopt or amend by ordinance, and incorporate into their development regulations, zoning regulations, and other official controls the requirements of subsection (2) of this section for buildings in commercial, mixed-use, or residential zones no later than June 30, 2026.

(b) The requirements of subsection (2) of this section apply and take effect in any code city that has not adopted or amended ordinances, regulations, or other official controls as required under this section by the timeline in (a) of this subsection and supersede, preempt, and invalidate any conflicting local development regulations.

(f) Prohibit the addition of housing units in any specific part of a building except ground floor commercial or retail that is along a major pedestrian corridor as defined by the code city, unless the addition of the units would violate applicable building codes or health and safety standards;

(ii) The building owner submits documentation, in a form acceptable to the code city, showing the building's residential units' projected energy use intensity is less than or equal to the energy use intensity target in accordance with the clean buildings performance standard in RCW 19.27A.210; or

(h) Deny a building permit application for the addition of housing units within an existing building due to nonconformity regarding parking, height, setbacks, elevator size for gurney transport, or modulation, unless the code city official with decision-making authority makes written findings that the nonconformity is causing a significant detriment to the surrounding area; or

(3) Nothing in this section requires a code city to approve a building permit application for the addition of housing units constructed entirely within an existing building envelope in a building located within a zone that permits multifamily housing in cases in which the building cannot satisfy life safety standards.