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Near the end of each year, the Walla Walla City Council adopts its state and federal legislative priorities for the upcoming year. These are lists of issues and policies that our local leaders would like state and federal lawmakers to consider or take action on when they meet over the next year. The priorities support Walla Walla’s strategic plan, which focuses on our community’s livability, economic health and safety, and on the City’s performance as an organization.
State Priorities
Walla Walla officials make one or two visits to Olympia each year to discuss the state legislative priorities with our local representatives and ask for their support. City leaders also provide testimony via Zoom during state legislative hearings. In addition, Walla Walla has a lobbyist who advocates for our City’s legislative priorities, and who keeps Walla Walla’s officials informed on what’s happening in the state legislative session.
An example of a recent state legislative priority that was successful is the state match for the federal grant awarded for U.S. 12 Phase 8.
Now that you know what legislative priorities are and how they work to benefit our city and region, what are Walla Walla’s state priorities for this year?
2026 State Priorities
- Capital budget request for the Library Renovation Project.
- Fully funding U.S. Highway 12 corridor improvements (Phase 8, Clinton interchange, and Wilbur Avenue).
- Funding for the state’s Department of Natural Resources wildland fire fighting capacity and fire prevention in Eastern Washington, specifically in the Mill Creek watershed.
- Changing state code to allow cities who opted into planning under the Growth Management Act back in the early 1990s to implement REET 2 at the City Council level similar to cities who were mandated to plan.
- Dedicated revenue resources to cities for affordable housing, and flexibility for cities to address housing insecurity.
- Flexibility and opportunities for strengthening rural healthcare.
- Support for the 2026 Association of Washington Cities City Legislative Priorities, which include improving the housing supply; increasing state support and funding for indigent defense; funding for local transportation systems, and more.
Federal Priorities
The City partners with the Port of Walla Walla and Walla Walla County on federal legislative priorities. Each year, a group of representatives from these local agencies travels to Washington, D.C. They meet with lawmakers representing Washington state, and with various federal agencies, to push for programs and policies that would benefit our entire county.
A few examples of recent federal legislative priorities that have been successful are:
- Receiving $6 million in direct congressional spending for the Highway 12/Clinton Street intersection to bring design and environmental work for a proposed interchange.
- Rehabilitation and levy expansion work on the Mill Creek Flood Control Channel by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The project is slated to be constructed during the fish window of 2027-2028.
What are the things that local leaders would like our federal representatives to support on our behalf?
2026 Federal Priorities
- Fully funding U.S. 12 corridor improvements (Phase 8, Clinton interchange, and Wilbur Avenue).
- Maintaining Housing and Urban Development funding for local jurisdictions.
- Funding for the U.S. Forest Service to improve wildland fire fighting capacity and fire prevention through fuel reduction in the Mill Creek watershed.
- Legislation to assist communities in combating the devastating effect of the opioid epidemic on residents.
- Support for the Association of Washington Cities 2026 Federal Legislative Priorities, which address issues such as investment in local infrastructure, safe and healthy communities, transportation, housing and shelter, early learning and childcare, the stability of the federal government, and more.
A group of representatives from Walla Walla at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.
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