Inslee calls on legislators to approve additional $815 million housing investment

SEATTLE — On Wednesday, Gov. Jay Inslee urged legislators to approve an $815 million supplemental budget investment into affordable housing and combating homelessness.

“We cannot tinker around with this issue. We need real meat on the bones,” said Inslee outside an affordable housing complex set to open in north Seattle in 2022.

Legislators have already approved roughly $2 billion that funds housing and homelessness programs from 2021-2023 across the state.

Now, Inslee is urging legislators to approve this additional $815 million investment when the 2022 legislative session opens Jan. 10.

“We need the full spectrum of approaches as people transition off the street into permanent housing,” said Inslee, alongside Seattle Mayor-Elect Bruce Harrell, Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards, and King County Executive Dow Constantine.

The supplemental budget investment would go towards clearing illegal encampments along public roads and covering the utility bills of those on the brink of homelessness.

The majority - nearly $500 million - would go toward securing more permanent housing and shelter facilities.

Inslee said the $815 million would come from the state’s general fund and not require a new revenue source.

Inslee expects a fight from legislators, especially around building denser housing in urban areas of King County and Pierce County.

He believes the $815 million will meet the appetite of legislators while sufficiently making an immediate dent in the housing crisis.

The Governor’s Office says homelessness grew 2% in the state from January 2020 to January 2021, according to a data-sharing partnership between the Department of Commerce and the Department of Social and Health Services.

Inslee recognized other agencies might cite a different numerical figure on the current state as quantifying homelessness has been especially challenging during the pandemic.

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