SKAGIT VALLEY HERALD: Legislators look ahead to 2022 session

Brandon Stone reports in the Skagit Valley Herald:

When state legislators representing Skagit County got together online Friday to tell constituents about their priorities for the 2022 legislative session, talk centered around housing and behavioral health.

They Said It

Rep. Greg Gilday, R-Camano Island, said the state simply doesn’t have the supply of homes it needs to support its residents, let alone the additional 1 million people expected over the next 10 years. “Studies show that we’re about a quarter million housing units short in this state, and it’s only going to get worse if we don’t do something,” he said... “There are some folks left out if we rely only on market-rate housing, and so we need solutions that work for folks at all levels of the income ladder.”

Rep. Dave Paul, D-Oak Harbor, spoke in favor of [a proposal to move money from the operations budget to funding transportation projects.] With gas tax revenue — a primary source of transportation funding — falling off during the COVID-19 pandemic, it makes sense to reallocate funding to go to repairs on crucial roads and bridges, he said.