Sunday, April 27 was sine die for Washington State’s 2025 legislative session. The Legislature alternates between long sessions, lasting 105 days in odd-numbered years, and short sessions, lasting 60 days in even-numbered years. This year was a long session during which the Legislature passed, and the Governor signed, 422 of the 1,905 bills that were introduced, and a biennial (two-year) budget was approved for the state.

Legislators began the session in January facing a $10-$12 billion operating budget deficit projection over a the coming four years. The shortfall impacted session dynamics, with legislators hesitant to pass bills with too large a fiscal note.

This was also the first legislative session with Governor Bob Ferguson at the helm. While former Governor Jay Inslee was hailed as a climate champion during his 12-year tenure, Governor Ferguson’s priorities for the session centered around education, public safety, housing, and affordability.

Despite these dynamics, lawmakers took up many bills related to climate and the clean energy transition. Keep reading for an overview of key pieces of legislation that made it over the finish line and those that did not:

What Passed

• HB 1018 – Amends existing law to add nuclear fusion facilities as eligible for site certification. The bill also requires fusion energy facilities to obtain necessary radiation control licenses, distinguishes nuclear fission facilities, and requires collaboration between relevant agencies, local governments, and Tribal governments in the siting review process for such facilities.
• HB 1183 – Amends the existing building code to enhance affordable and sustainable building construction in jurisdictions that plan under Washington’s Growth Management Act. New provisions support the installation of solar panels and the construction of passive houses, mass timber and modular housing, and affordable housing, among other sustainable building options.
• HB 1253 – Expands the ability of public entities and electric companies to enter into joint use agreements to own, build, and operate transmission systems and electric generating facilities, which may include joint venture and limited liability company agreements. Provisions add renewable energy facilities and energy storage facilities to the list of types of generating plants and facilities that can be included in such agreements. The bill also removes the authorizations for entities to enter into joint agreements related to coal-fired electricity.
• HB 1329 – Amends the Clean Energy Transformation Act, which the Legislature passed in 2019, to clarify definitions and compliance requirements for utilities regarding coal-fired resources and wholesale power purchases. Provisions allow for the purchase of unspecified electricity that is included in a limited duration wholesale power purchase contract of up to six months and exempts electricity purchases from the Bonneville Power Administration that are under a long-term power purchase agreement from certain compliance requirements.
• HB 1409 – Updates Washington’s Clean Fuel Standard with stricter requirements for reducing the carbon intensity of on-road transportation fuels. It mandates that the Department of Ecology must adopt rules requiring a 45%-55% decrease in fuel emissions from 2017 levels by January 1, 2038. The bill also amends the schedule for annual carbon intensity reductions to require additional reductions by January 1 of 2026 (5%), 2027 (4%), and 2028-2038 (3-4% per year, as determined by the Ecology) and introduces compliance measures and penalties for regulated parties and credit generators.
• HB 1491 – Amends existing laws to promote transit-oriented housing development (TOD) by aligning land use policies with mass transit investments; providing technical assistance to cities for planning; prohibiting regulations that prevent new residential and mixed-use development of a certain density from being built in proximity to transit stations; mandating a certain affordability requirements for buildings constructed in a transit station area; requiring multifamily property tax exemptions for multifamily housing within a station area that meets TOD affordability requirements; and putting limits on minimum residential parking requirements.
• HB 1514 – Encourages the deployment of low-carbon thermal energy networks by updating existing code to include definitions and regulations for thermal energy companies and networks. ‍
• HB 1522 – Requires investor-owned electric utilities to file wildfire mitigation plans with the Utility and Transportation Commission (UTC) to enhance the safety and reliability of electric power transmission and distribution. The bill includes requirements for the UTC’s review of such plans and stipulates that utilities must update their plans every three years.
• HB 1543 – Increases compliance pathways for Washington’s Clean Buildings Performance Standard by introducing alternative metrics related to energy use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that may be used to evaluate compliance. The legislation also introduces several exemptions and extensions for certain building types and situations, requires certain gas and electric utilities to provide consumption data to the Environmental Protection Agency or building owners for Tier 2 buildings, and prevents penalties accrued from noncompliance from being passed along to tenants.
• HB 1912 – Amends the Climate Commitment Act (CCA) to exempt diesel, propane, and biodiesel used for agricultural purposes by a farm fuel user or used to transport agricultural products on public highways from CCA compliance obligations until January 1, 2030.
• SB 5036 – Requires the Departments of Ecology and Commerce to move towards annual emissions accounting. The departments must post and maintain on Ecology's website, and report to the Governor and the Legislature, total GHG emissions across Washington’s sectors for the most recent two years for which data are available. The report must be completed by December 31st of each even-numbered year through 2030 and must be completed by December 31st of each year beginning in 2031. ‍
• SB 5175 – Establishes a photovoltaic (PV) module stewardship and takeback program to ensure responsible recycling of PVs in the state. The bill requires manufacturers to finance and manage the takeback and recycling systems; outlines responsibilities of various actors; emphasizes the need for equity in access to recycling programs; and mandates the creation of a PV module advisory committee by the Department of Ecology.
• SB 5317 – Seeks to streamline processes for local governments involved in energy facility projects. The bill exempts local governments from appeals on the basis that an action is inconsistent with a code preempted by Energy Facility Siting Evaluation Council (EFSEC) when that action is taken under agreement with EFSEC to provide technical assistance, advice, or review of an application or plan related to the operation or construction of an EFSEC-approved energy facility.
• SB 5445 – Encourages development of distributed energy resources, focusing specifically on promoting local, small-scale renewable energy generation projects, storage, and microgrids. The bill also includes provisions to support agrivoltaic practices.
• SB 5528 – Requires that the installation of electric vehicle (EV) supply equipment on all public works be performed by electricians who have been certified by the Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Training Program or a similar nationally recognized training program to ensure safety, effectiveness, and consistency in EV installation standards.

What Failed

• HB 1188 – Would have required local government and Tribal approval of wind and solar siting recommendations by EFSEC.
• HB 1237 – Would have facilitated predictable and timely application decisions by EFSEC.
• HB 1328 – Would have created a Clean Energy Development Office in the Department of Commerce to accelerate the development of clean energy and transmission.
• HB 1598 – Would have addressed fairer access to community solar.
• HB 1749 – Would have ensured the consideration of climate change, carbon sequestration, environmental health disparities, and treaty-protected and cultural resources in the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA).
• HB 1819 – Would have facilitated increased transmission capacity.
• HB 1960 – Would have created new tax policy and community investments related to renewable energy.
• SB 5208 – Would have established a new clean energy fund program.
• SB 5216 – Would have established green energy community funds to support school districts and nonprofit organizations that service communities where renewable energy projects are located.
• SB 5466 – Would have created the Washington State Electric Transmission Authority to support upgrading and expanding the state’s electricity transmission system.

Data Center Workgroup

While not a piece of legislation, during the 2025 legislative session Governor Ferguson signed Executive Order 25-05, establishing a data center workgroup to evaluate the impact of large-scale energy consumers on the state’s economy, tax revenue, job market, energy use, tribal resources, and environment.

The workgroup will recommend policies and actions the state should take to address those impacts to the Governor by December 1, 2025. Learn more about the workgroup, its meetings, and its members here.

In April, the Clean Energy Transition Institute (CETI) convened a Decarbonization Forum that brought together experts in a panel to explore the impacts of data centers on the Northwest’s electricity grid and clean energy transition.

How to Pay for it All

Governor Ferguson signed three budgets that passed the Legislature for the 2025-2027 biennium. The operating budget came to $77.8 billion and relies in part on new and higher taxes to fund government spending on schools, health and social services, housing, environmental protections, and more.

The budget includes approximately $3 billion in funds generated by the state’s Climate Commitment Act that will go towards decarbonizing the transportation sector; supporting programs that help people access heat pumps and provide energy bill assistance; and addressing transmission expansion, among other climate-related initiatives. Other notable appropriations in the operating budget include:

• $30 million for the Home Electrification and Appliance Rebates (HEAR) Program, with an emphasis on renter access and investments in environmental justice communities.
• $30 million for the Weatherization Plus Health Initiative, which aims to provide low-income, energy-burdened households with more affordable, energy efficient, and healthy homes.
• $5 million for the Community Energy Efficiency Program to support homeowners, local organizations, and businesses with energy efficiency and clean energy retrofits and upgrades.
• $3.5 million for the Building Energy Upgrade Navigator Program, which was established last year with the passage of HB 1391 to provide guidance and support for communities to access energy upgrade programs.

Governor Ferguson also signed a $15.5 billion transportation spending plan and a $3.2 billion transportation revenue package, which relies in part on a new gas tax to help fund needed transportation infrastructure.

For a recap of what climate and clean energy bills passed in other Northwest legislative sessions in 2025, check out our overviews of Idaho and Montana. The Oregon legislative session will conclude at the end of June and a recap of that session will be available soon after. If you want to receive updates from CETI straight to your inbox, subscribe here.