HB 1847 Washington House · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Prioritizing the development of distributed alternative energy resources in targeted circumstances.

HB 1847 prioritizes smaller renewable energy projects on existing developed lands and infrastructure to support Washington's clean energy goals while protecting agricultural and natural resources. It specifically incentivizes solar and wind installations on locations like capped landfills, roadsides, irrigation canals, parking lots, and agricultural lands through "agrivoltaic" systems that maintain farming viability. The bill defines eligible projects and requires state agencies to facilitate development on designated sites, including ensuring solar arrays don't permanently convert farmland or degrade soil productivity. Key provisions include strict rules for agrivoltaic facilities to continue producing crops or ecosystem services and prioritizing energy storage on existing infrastructure. This bill directly affects developers, landowners, and agricultural operations seeking to integrate renewable energy without disrupting current land uses.

Issues: ✓ Energy ✓ Environment

Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Jan 12, 2026 Last action Jan 12, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Substitute Bill → Second Substitute Bill · 5 edits

MODERATE

This bill was moved from the Environment & Energy committee to the Finance committee and read for the first time later, indicating a shift in legislative focus toward tax and revenue implications. The core policy change redefines 'agrivoltaic facilities' to require simultaneous production of solar energy and agricultural products, removing the previous option for facilities that only provide ecological value. Additionally, the definition of 'open space land' was updated to remove the specific exclusion for wetlands, and tax reclassification rules were adjusted to clarify that adding solar panels to farmland does not trigger additional taxes.

Scope change

The bill's scope shifted from a general environmental incentive to a finance-focused measure with stricter eligibility criteria for agricultural tax benefits.

DEFINITION

Changed the definition of 'agrivoltaic facility' to require that solar panels and agriculture operate simultaneously, removing the allowance for facilities designed only for ecological value.

Simplified the definition of 'open space land' by removing complex nested parentheses and clarifying the list of conservation purposes.

Removed the specific requirement that agrivoltaic facilities must not convert land from agricultural uses, as this is now implied by the new definition requiring simultaneous agricultural production.

ELIGIBILITY

Updated the definition of 'open space land' to remove the restriction preventing public access on land classified for wetland conservation.

REQUIREMENT

Clarified that adding solar panels to existing farm and agricultural land does not count as a change in land use classification for tax purposes, provided the land remains agricultural.

Bill → Substitute Bill · 8 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended to streamline its focus on distributed energy projects, removing references to specific utility chapters and simplifying the list of amended statutes. The changes clarify that 'transportation facilities' include railroads alongside airports and expand the definition of agrivoltaic facilities to require them to provide ecological value. Additionally, tax exemptions for these projects are now conditional on the facilities providing habitat, and the definition of open space land for agrivoltaics was adjusted to ensure continued agricultural use.

Scope change

The bill's scope was narrowed by removing amendments to utility planning chapters (19.280, 19.405) and reducing the number of chapters amended, shifting focus primarily to site eligibility, tax treatment, and state agency duties.

SCOPE

Removed amendments to utility planning and implementation chapters (19.280, 19.405) and deleted the requirement for state agencies to submit detailed reports on real property assets by 2026 and 2028.

ELIGIBILITY

Expanded the definition of eligible sites to include all 'transportation facilities' (such as railroads) rather than just airports, and clarified that agrivoltaic facilities must provide ecological value like habitat.

DEFINITION

Updated the definition of 'open space land' to require that agrivoltaic facilities be operated coincident with the provision of ecological value, and modified the definition of 'farm and agricultural land' to require continued productive agricultural use.

Changed the definition of 'farm and agricultural land' regarding container-grown plants, increasing the threshold for pavement coverage from 20% to 25%.

Modified the definition of 'open space land' to exclude land where agrivoltaic facilities are used solely for recreation without ecological value.

REQUIREMENT

Replaced the requirement for state agencies to identify and report on real property assets with a general duty to facilitate the development of distributed energy priorities.

TECHNICAL

Removed the requirement for investor-owned utilities to include distributed energy priorities in their clean energy implementation plans and deleted the associated penalty provisions.

Removed the requirement for utilities to establish annual targets for distributed energy projects starting in 2025.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Jan 12, 2026

Introduced

By resolution, reintroduced and retained in present status.

lower

Feb 27, 2025

Committee

Referred to Appropriations.

lower

Feb 26, 2025

Lower · Passed

Minority; without recommendation.

lower

Feb 26, 2025

Lower · Passed

Executive action taken in the House Committee on Finance at 8:00 AM.

lower

Feb 25, 2025

Lower · Passed

Public hearing in the House Committee on Finance at 8:00 AM.

lower

Feb 20, 2025

Committee

Referred to Finance.

lower

Feb 18, 2025

Lower · Passed

Minority; without recommendation.

lower

Feb 18, 2025

Lower · Passed

Executive action taken in the House Committee on Environment & Energy at 4:00 PM.

lower

Feb 10, 2025

Lower · Passed

Public hearing in the House Committee on Environment & Energy at 1:30 PM.

lower

1 primary · 3 co-sponsors