Another unfunded mandate would raise electric bills
Legislative Update, Week of January 19, 2026
HB 2373 was brought to the attention of the WREN by Nancy Churchill, a resident of Ferry County who publishes a great tracking tool for bills affecting rural communities across Washington. Nancy is a part of the WREN network. She runs a website called Influencing Olympia Effectively (https://influencingolympia.com/) teaching skills for citizens to get involved and publishes regular legislative reports on Substack (https://nancydchurchill.substack.com/). You can also subscribe for her email alerts highlighting bills of concern, with her personal recommendations for Pro or Con positions. Whether you agree with her or not, Nancy encourages you to make your voice heard in Olympia.
HB 2373 would require all electric utilities to provide monthly bill assistance as part of their obligation to offer energy assistance to low-income households. It does not provide any funding for this assistance, which means the burden falls on the rest of the ratepayers. This is a problem for rural PUDs, which serve smaller populations with a high percentage of lower income households. Each household not receiving assistance is left with significantly higher energy costs.
WREN TESTIMONY:
For the record, Sue Lani Madsen, President of the Washington Rural Environmental Network, the WREN is dedicated to amplifying rural voices in the public hearing process, signed in OPPOSED on HB 2373 because of the disproportionate impact on home energy bills in rural counties. This is a classic case of unfunded mandates establishing Must Do activities and mandated programs without providing relief by either streamlining red tape driving operating costs or by funding programs. My written testimony includes a study by Ferry County PUD on the impact. Households in King County are projected to pay only an additional $61 annually while households in Ferry County will pay $742, Pacific County $665 and San Juan County $585.
HB 2373 highlights a persistent legislative flaw. Large counties and companies have a greater ability to absorb unfunded mandates, at least for a time. Small counties and small businesses are the canaries in the legislative coal mine. Legislation fails to deliver environmental justice when it ignores disproportionate impacts on rural counties.
My testimony was carefully timed to fit into the 60 second limit, but I couldn’t help but push the envelope and squeeze in one more parting shot after listening to public testimony on HB 2416 while waiting for HB 2373 to have its turn. HB 2416 concerned carving out a unique solution for a problem created for the City and County of Spokane by the Climate Commitment Act. Spokane built a Waste to Energy plant in 1991 with a $60 million grant from the state plus $450 million in public bonds as the best way to close multiple landfills impacting their sole source aquifer. Many from Spokane were organized to testify in favor. Those testifying against the solution didn’t like making an exception and want to close the plant even if it means seeing all of Spokane County’s waste trucked to Adams County, and Spokane County utility bills for trash going up by 20%.
On the TVW recording you will hear my personal irritated addenda to the WREN’s formal testimony pointing out there hadn’t been anyone there from Lincoln County celebrating a parade of diesel trucks carrying Spokane’s trash, or from Adams County happy to receive it.
For the full video recording of the January 20, 2026 meeting of the House Energy and Environment Committee, check out TVW here (HB 2373 hearing starts at 58:02):
https://tvw.org/video/house-environment-energy-2026011383/?eventID=2026011383
A link to the study referenced in formal WREN testimony on the cost to ratepayers if HB 2373 were to become law can be found at https://nancydchurchill.substack.com/p/when-the-state-orders-discounts-and
Ferry County PUD Commissioner Dan Fagerlie, who prepared the study projecting an annual cost to households in Ferry County of over $700, testified along with representatives for several other rural PUDs. Check out his chart to see how ratepayers in your local PUD may be affected.
Postscript: Please send recommendations of individuals and organizations in your rural county who are tracking legislative and agency actions, whether specific to your unique community or affecting similar communities across Washington. The WREN is ready to amplify your voices!
