(The Center Square) – House Democrats advanced two proposals Monday that local officials fear could undo all the work Spokane has done downtown over the past several months to tackle public camping.
HB 2489 would prohibit cities from enforcing camping bans unless they can afford to house every homeless person with their pets and belongings in the immediate area.
HB 2266 would require cities to permit homeless shelters anywhere outside industrial zones that allow residential housing and hotels. It would also remove auditing from the list of conditions that cities may require service providers to meet to receive public tax dollars, while adding reporting and monitoring.
The Housing Committee advanced House Bill 2489 by a 9-8 vote, and House Bill 2266 by a 10-7 vote. Both proposals will now head to the House Rules Committee for consideration before advancing to the floor for another vote.
“Being homeless is not a crime,” Rep. Mia Gregerson, D-Seattle, who proposed HB 2489, said Monday.
Supporters of HB 2489 and HB 2266 argue that Washington state must address housing insecurity to stop homelessness from increasing, while critics of the proposal say that housing won’t stop addiction.
Neither bill provides funding to expand shelter services; they only impose a mandate on cities.
Local officials from across the state signed in to voice opposition during a public hearing last month.
“We should be putting all of our money into treatment and facilities,” Rep. Andrew Barkis, R-Olympia, told The Center Square after voting in opposition. “If we truly are compassionate, then we should be doing everything we possibly can to help people get off their addictions, get the treatment they need.”
Spokane business owners are worried about how the proposals could impact downtown after spending the last two years finding a compromise with the city council on a new camping ban.
Council President Betsy Wilkerson and Councilmember Michael Cathcart sent a letter opposing HB 2489 last week.
“Spokane has an incredible safety net of social services,” according to their letter. “The inability to effectively implement changes to City’s camping, obstruction and other laws relating to public property and rights-of-way in response to an ever-evolving addiction and homelessness landscape poses a significant threat to public peace, health, and safety of the residents and visitors in our community.”
They said the proposal hinders their ability to effectively govern as elected officials. However, both of the city’s state representatives are signed on in support of HB 2489 and HB 2266.
Rep. Natasha Hill, D-Spokane, serves as co-chair of the Housing Committee and voted to advance both on Monday.
Wendy Fishburne, vice president of the East Spokane Business Association, has sent several emails to Hill and Rep. Timm Ormsby, D-Spokane, who is also sponsoring the bills, hoping to sway their minds.
“I understand the compassionate impulse toward ‘helping the Unhoused’,” Fishburne wrote to the Housing Committee last week. “Unfortunately, we’ve been doing compassion wrong, leaving hundreds and hundreds of people dead in the wake of the unintended consequences of our good intentions.”
Police Chief Kevin Hall told the Spokane City Council on Monday that officers issued 728 citations from Oct. 28 to Jan. 29, and that 265 people accepted services. The last camping ban allowed individuals to walk away, even if they refused housing or treatment; Hall said no one accepted services under that.
The chief also shared statistics showing that all person and property crimes dropped 14.4% from 2024 to 2025, though not all of that is attributable to the camping ban. Polling from last year showed voters felt increasingly unsafe spending time downtown. Hall’s update offered hope to local business owners.
“We continue to emphasize that this is a tool of compassion, not a punishment. This shouldn’t be used punitively,” Hall explained on Monday. “We are trying to leverage people into housing and treatment.”
