Community Government

Here’s how some of those bills in Olympia will affect life in Gig Harbor

This 2026 legislative session, which ran January through March, saw hundreds of bills hit the floors of the state House and Senate. Many of those bills died, some lived, and a few, like the Millionaires’ Tax, made headlines — all in the space of a few short months.

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But this doesn’t mean that the marathon-like intensity of the session made it into everyday life. If you’re anything like this journalist, you often wonder, “What the heck is happening in Olympia?”

We sat down with Gig Harbor Mayor Mary Barber and City Administrator Katrina Knutson to unpack some of the bills that the city supported and talk about how those will show up in Gig Harborites’ futures.

This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

Gig Harbor Now

I wanted to ask about the legislative session, because I think that it’s pretty opaque for a lot of people. And I think that there are a lot of misconceptions about some of the bills that passed, and then just complete misunderstandings about other bills that passed, and so forth.

One of the bills I noticed that the city supported (and that passed) increases the kinds of condos that can be subject to express (quality and coverage warranties). Another increases small works roster contract limits. And I want to know sort of how those two bills would work together to contribute towards more kinds of housing throughout the city and how residents could then experience the implementations of those bills in the city. What would they physically see or anything like that?

Katrina Knutson

Thank you for that question. I don’t necessarily see the two necessarily relate. However, both increase flexibility in different ways.

So the condo bill — we have seen a drastic decrease in the amount of condos created across our state. A lot of that has to do with certain regulations and risk for the developers that are creating them. That bill will assist in hopefully additional homeowner opportunities rather than building multifamily projects that are then apartments for rent.

Gig Harbor City Administrator Katrina Knutson Tiffany Burke Photography

It could increase multifamily homeowner opportunities. We fully understand that multifamily projects, multifamily homes are much more affordable than standalone single family homes. That (bill) met our legislative agenda, because it increases opportunity for homeownership and more affordable housing.

In terms of the raising of the threshold (for small works roster contract limits), as we know, costs have continued to increase at a pretty substantial rate. Looking at the cost of projects and then the administrative work that it takes to go on through a process, increasing the threshold provides cities with the opportunity to go through less administrative process in order to get our work done. We really feel that that was an important piece that was passed that can help us get our work done more efficiently. 

GHN

Katrina, at the Feb. 12 study session, you mentioned that the city spends roughly $150,000 to $175,000 on indigent defense, which is not a negligible amount for a city this size. And one of the bills that died, if I’m not mistaken, would have reinstated the Indigent Defense Task Force via the Millionaires Tax, which did pass. The dead bill would have allotted 7% of the tax collected to cities’ indigent defense funds, which would have created a pool, at the time of the Feb. 12 meeting, of about $20 million for cities to pull from starting in 2029.

I don’t think many Gig Harborites realize that we even have an indigent defense fund, let alone that we spend quite a lot on it. I was wondering why it’s important and what the passage of the bill meant for the city. And do you think that bill might come back?

Knutson

This is a really great question and one that was a key discussion at the Association of Washington City’s (AWC) Legislative Committee last week. I am one of very few city administrators that were appointed to that with 30 elected officials.

This is something that is impacting cities and counties very significantly. In order to maintain constitutional rights, the city must provide indigent defense for people who cannot afford to have their own legal counsel.

That is the responsibility of the city to provide that. I think many people think maybe the state pays for that for us — and that is not the case. Over the years, as wages have increased, available attorneys (for indigent defense) have decreased. The costs for those (attorneys) have already gone up.

There was a recent state Supreme Court ruling that really limited (indigent defense attorneys’) caseloads. That is being implemented over the next couple of years, and will significantly reduce the amount of cases that each indigent defense attorney is allowed to take on to their docket. That has the potential to double — if not increase over doubling — our particular city’s costs associated with indigent defense.

So, as the governor and the Legislature are looking at ways to solve the state’s budget problems with this new revenue option there (the Millionaires’ Tax), it was originally included. Twenty million dollars of that money was going to be set aside for cities and counties to pay for the additional cost of needing additional indigent defense attorneys. The cities collectively lobbied hard for that money. Ultimately it was removed from the Millionaires’ Tax bill that was passed, so we are no further along than we were.

I do anticipate that this is going to be a large item that is brought up by individual cities. I cannot yet speak for AWC’s priorities, but I can say that it was shared as a concern by the entire room of officials that were together last week.

…

Since we’re on the subject of the Millionaires’ Tax — we’ve talked about funding to cities from the state and a number of other revenue streams. Part of the trade-off that Olympia, when they passed the (Millionaires’ Tax) bill … was decreasing sales tax on certain products, such as personal care products, diapers, things like that.

So, within this bill that passed, not only did the city of Gig Harbor and other cities not receive funding from this Millionaires’ Tax (for indigent defense), but our sales tax that we receive locally will actually reduce, because of things that are now exempt from tax.

Through the legislative process, cities lobbied hard in order to set up a mitigation fund that would have been a pot of money set aside to give to cities to supplant these funds on a temporary basis, while we adjust our budgets down, because we rely on the sales tax that we regularly receive to service everything that our residents want and need.

We don’t yet have the answer of how much that will be for us annually of reduction, but in the passage of the Millionaires’ Tax, cities did not receive any money — and, in addition, money to cities will decrease. … It’s money that we’ll have to reroute from somewhere else to pay for the additional indigent defense on top of having our sales tax proportion go down, because we can no longer require or rely on the sales tax for personal care, diapers, all of the other items that will no longer be taxed.

GHN

Another bill that didn’t pass was a bill that expanded access to early childhood education and assistance programs for military families. And I know that the city is already, if I’m not mistaken, still considering or in the process of joining South Sound Military and Communities Partnership, since 40% of Gig Harbor’s residents are connected with the military.

I was wondering if there are other ways the city is looking to support access to early childhood education and those assistance programs for military families

Mary Barber

We have joined that South Sound Military Partnership. And we’re actually going to our first meeting later this month. Being married to a vet, as many of us are, I think it’s a really important initiative for us to be part of. Our residents are so involved in and reliant on the military.

I don’t know that we have other initiatives that are planned to really target early childhood learning. If the gathering place-slash-community center comes to fruition, that might be a component of that — but we’re way too early to really be talking about specifics on that.

Mayor Mary Barber

Knutson

We’re really looking forward to learning from the South Sound Military Partnership. … We’re looking to see how we can be part of the solution. I will say we’ve had conversations with our partners at the (Chamber of Commerce), as well as the school district, as well as the YMCA. I would say we’re on the grassroots part right now.

We’re trying to understand what the need is, what need isn’t being met, how it’s impacting our community currently, and then what we can do from a city perspective, which could either be regulatory changes or otherwise to support early childhood education.

I would tie that to childcare as well. What we do know is that there is a childcare shortage, which is why it was on our legislative agenda to support making in-home daycares and childcare easier to permit.

What we’re finding from our residents is — because of the lack of childcare and the significant cost — that one parent in many homes is staying home with kids where they may otherwise want to be in the workforce. And that really should not be the case. If people want to work and contribute in that manner, then we should have adequate childcare in our communities available to support that.

I think those two things go hand in hand, but in particular for our military families who have other challenges that civilian families don’t. It’s of particular importance for the city to see how we can help that.

GHN

Before I move on to the last question, is there anything I didn’t ask about this legislative session or about any of the bills in particular that either of you wants to mention?

Barber

One thing that I would mention — and I can’t think of how to make it sound less trite, but I don’t mean it that way at all — is I want to make sure that the residents know that we have an amazing delegation.

Our two representatives and our state senator are fabulous partners of ours. When we need something, they listen, they make suggestions. We work together with them and also with Shelley (Helder), our lobbyist, to craft things that will benefit the community. I think it’s really important because we’re one of the few areas in the state that have some Republicans, some Democrat representatives, and I think that that is really beneficial to us to have the very delegation we have.

Knutson

It was our first legislative session highlighting our future plans for a Gig Harbor Community Center or gathering space. And that is on our legislative agenda that we’ve discussed with the delegation and are beginning to discuss with the community as well.

We will be seeking state funding. We did not seek state funding this year, but we will be seeking state funding for support of the community center in Gig Harbor in this upcoming legislative section and potentially future legislative sessions.

GHN

Lastly, how can residents get more involved with the legislative process and speak to you or their legislators about the bills or issues they’re interested in for future legislative sessions?

Barber

I think it’s really important that people realize that their elected officials are an email or a phone call away or a meeting away.

There’s a perception that we’re untouchable, but no one I know who’s serving in this area is unapproachable. We’re all very approachable. So, send an email, schedule a meeting! And everyone has a couple of people on staff that can help as well.

(I hope) residents realize that if you send an email here, or if you make a phone call or you go to a meeting, you will find a very approachable individual who wants to help.

Knutson

I don’t know that everyone realizes what the city is in charge of versus what the state is in charge of. Oftentimes, state laws are passed and the cities and counties are the ones that must implement them. 

So for instance, critical areas regulations — a lot of the comprehensive planning and housing related items are directives that are coming down from the state (mandating) that the cities must conduct the work. I really think your question is a good one, because I don’t know that the majority of the population anywhere realizes how much happens in each legislative session and how those bills can impact local communities.

So, I would say it is paramount if people are interested, that they talk with their legislators and look at the state website to follow the bills, because oftentimes, when a state law is passed, we don’t have an option if we’re going to implement it or not. So, for some of those things, it’s important that the residents know to get involved early and at the state level when those broader policy conversations are taking place.

I definitely concur with Mary that our delegation is very responsive. They have coffee chats, they have town halls. Getting involved and reading the bills is tedious, but very important, because that’s the statewide policies being set. By the time they’re done and we’re implementing them, it can be too late to have a voice in the overall policy.