Agriculture in Washington. There are approximately 32,000 farm operations throughout the state of Washington. Farmers and ranchers in Washington produce over 300 different commodities, valued at a total of $14 billion in 2023.

Fiscal Notes. State law directs the Office of Financial Management (OFM) to establish a mechanism for the determination of the fiscal impact of proposed legislation on various entities including:

• state government; and
• counties, cities, towns, or any other units of local government, including school districts.

The resulting fiscal notes are provided only upon request by a member of the state Legislature and typically indicate by fiscal year the total impact on the affected entity for the first two years the legislation would be in effect; contain a cumulative six-year forecast of the legislation's fiscal impact; and must be completed within one week of the request.

Agency-Prepared Economic Impact Statements. Under current law, agencies must prepare sector-specific impact statements when considering or undertaking actions affecting small businesses or environmental justice.

Fiscal Notes for Entities Engaged in Agriculture. OFM must establish a mechanism for the determination of the fiscal impact of proposed legislation which, if enacted into law, would directly or indirectly increase or decrease regulatory costs incurred by entities engaged in agriculture. These fiscal notes must:

• indicate by fiscal year the total impact on the agricultural economy for the first two years the legislation would be in effect and also a cumulative six-year forecast of the fiscal impact;
• be provided only upon request of a member of the state Legislature; and
• be completed within one week of the request unless otherwise authorized.

Where feasible and applicable, the fiscal note must also indicate the fiscal impact on each industry or a representative sampling of the industry broadly.

• Removes requirements for public entities related to decision-making, planning, and the inclusion of agricultural economic impact assessments in reports for legislation and other major actions impacting agriculture. 
• Removes the directive to state agencies to develop a list of significant agency actions and perform an agricultural economic assessment when considering a listed action.
• Adds legislative findings and intent.

The committee recommended a different version of the bill than what was heard.  PRO: Unless the state of Washington makes a concerted effort to do something, agriculture in Washington is going to be done. The most recent USDA data tells us that our state is losing 14 farms a week. This is an alarming number. Some of these losses are natural attrition but at the current rate of loss we will be out of farms in Washington in two and a half generations.

This is important because of isolation. Two-thirds of the U.S. population lives east of the Mississippi and our agriculture is largely pointed that way. Our transport system makes it easier to transport food from South America than across the middle of the U.S. 

Statistics show that we are approaching a sustainability cliff where inputs and labor disappear. Washington pays some of the highest wages for agricultural labor, holds agricultural employers to some of the strictest and most expensive requirements in the county, and does not provide the overtime flexibility of neighboring states. Washington is already fourth in food prices in the nation, and Seattle is number one for cities of its size. 

The Legislature has passed legislation that has had dire impacts on agriculture. This bill would make government responsible for determining the impact of legislation on agriculture.