State and local homelessness & housing issues

Annual Membership Meeting – May 21, 2026

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2026 Annual Membership MeetingThursday, May 21, 8:30-11 a.m. 9:15 – 9:30 a.m. Welcome and Introductions 9:30 – 10 a.m. The Power of Being in Coalition Together 10 – 10:40 a.m. Who Can Call King County Home? A conversation about the housing affordability crisis with: 10:40 – 10:50 Coalition Board of Directors Candidate Slate 10:50 – 11 a.m. Member Announcements Speak Up Against HUD’s Attempt to Dismantle the Equal Access Rule COMING IN AUGUST: Helping Homeless Students: McKinney-Vento 101 A training for public school, housing, and human services staff working with students experiencing homelessness in area public schools. SAVE THE DATE: Truth to (Staying) Power Thurs, Sept 17, The Royal Room – Tickets on sale in June Support the Coalition and celebrate a milestone of staying power for our Executive Director, Alison Eisinger (20 years!). PAST COALITION MEETINGS & TRAININGS: bit.ly/SKCCHYouTube INTERESTED IN MEMBERSHIP? Individual, Allied, or Organizational Email membership[at]homelessinfo[.]org or call 206-204-8350 for more information. Join our next Membership meeting Thursday, June 18, 9-10:30 a.m., Zoom Register here.

2026 Legislative Wrap Up – April 16, 2026

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At our 2026 Legislative Wrap Up, we welcomed Washington state lawmakers and advocates who are champions for homes, homeless services, and progressive revenue. We were joined by Representative April Berg (LD-44), Representative Strom Peterson (LD-21) and Senator Alvarado (LD-34), as well as Emma Scalzo from the Balance Our Tax Code (BOTC) coalition, Emily Vynanek from the Washington Budget & Policy Center, and Lianna Kressin from the Statewide Poverty Action Network (SPAN) to unpack the 2026 Washington State legislative session and celebrate our wins together! If this wealth of information is something you want to share with others or access again, please subscribe to the Coalition’s YouTube channel, where our membership meetings and trainings are collected. What the Millionaires Tax means for our communities Jump to 09:42 in the recording to hear Rep. April Berg speak on this new legislation. The Coalition joined the Balance our Tax Code (BOTC) coalition and the Statewide Poverty Action Network (SPAN) in supporting the Millionaires Tax (Senate Bill 6346). Representative Berg was a huge champion of this much-needed update to our tax code, which will add a 9.9 percent tax on household incomes above $1 million. When it goes into effect in 2029, the Millionaires Tax will help fund a significant expansion of the Working Families Tax Credit (WFTC), which puts more money into the pockets of people living on low incomes. It will make other important changes too, like making school breakfast and lunch free for all K-12 students in Washington’s public schools and eliminating sales tax on certain hygiene products and over-the-counter medicine. House Bill 2266 passes for Housing Fairness Jump to 18:34 in the recording to hear from Rep. Strom Peterson and others about House Bill 2266 and what it means for our communities. The Coalition and our community of advocates across …

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General Membership Meeting – February 19, 2026

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During our February 2026 meeting, we were joined by Senator Patty Murray’s staff to hear about federal funding for housing and homelessness services in 2026, learned about a new legal aid hotline for long-term-care residents from the Washington Office of Civil Legal Aid, got a crash course on progressive revenue and the Washington tax code from Balance Our Tax Cod and the WA Budget & Policy Center, and heard a mid-session update on the 2026 legislative session from the Coalition’s Community Policy Manager Hali Willis. If this wealth of information is something you want to share with others or access again, please subscribe to the Coalition’s YouTube channel, where our membership meetings and trainings are collected. Federal funding for housing & homelessness services The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2026, passed in early February, authorized federal funding for homelessness and housing programs in 2026 and set up crucial guardrails for the Continuum of Care (CoC) program, which supports 4,400 homes in King County alone. Senator Patty Murray and her team did considerable work on these federal funding bills to ensure they protect programs that work. We thank them for their good work and are reminded that advocacy works! We must continue contacting our lawmakers, sharing how policy decisions impact us, and activating people in our networks to speak up, too. Read more about 2026 Fiscal Year HUD funding and protections for the CoC program here. New legal aid hotline for long-term-care residents In January 2026, the Washington Office of Civil Legal Aid (OCLA) opened an intake hotline to provide legal counsel for people living in long-term-care facilities. If somebody is facing discharge or has been discharged from a community-based long-term care facility, this hotline can provide them legal information, advice, and representation. The statewide intake line, run by Disability Rights WA, …

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General Membership Meeting – January 15, 2026

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During our first meeting of 2026, we spent some time with new Seattle City Councilmember from District 2, Eddie Lin. We were also joined by King County Public Health’s Overdose Prevention and Response Training Team to learn about the resources they offer people, organizations, and programs. The Seattle Housing Authority and the King County Housing Authority updated us on the termination of federal funding for the Emergency Housing Voucher program, and we took some time to discuss the state legislative session (Jan 12 – March 12, 2026) and reviewed our priority bills. If this wealth of information is something you want to share with others or access again, please subscribe to the Coalition’s YouTube channel, where our membership meetings and trainings are collected. Seattle City Councilmember Eddie Lin, D2 Eddie Lin was elected to Seattle City Council in November of 2025. He represents District 2 (South Seattle, Yesler Terrace to Rainier Beach). Jump to 00:06:03 in the recording to hear from CM Lin. Before joining City Council, CM Lin worked in the City Attorney’s office for eight years. For six of those years, he supported the Seattle Office of Housing. His professional expertise is in housing finance and city government, and he’s hopeful to learn more about direct service from experts in that field. CM Lin is the current chair of Seattle City Council’s Land Use Committee and the co-chair of the Housing Committee. In terms of housing and homelessness, CM Lin is focused on the following priorities: You can contact CM Lin at eddie.lin[at]seattle[.]gov or you can reach out to CM Lin’s Chief of Staff, Stephanie Velasco, at Stephanie.Velasco2[at]seattle[.]gov. For scheduling a meeting with CM Lin, please email Garrett.PlescowMoore[at]seattle[.]gov. King County Public Health’s Overdose Prevention and Response Training King County Public Health’s Overdose Prevention and Response Training Team consists …

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The Coalition Current: December 2025

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Kids helping kids succeed Crystal has eight-year-old triplets. “Which is an adventure.” Crystal’s family—her three triplets, Noah and Carter and Simone, and her husband, Dominic—volunteered for Project Cool for the first time this year. Crystal knew about the Coalition thanks to her work. She’s an Endowed Associate Professor at the UW’s Evans School of Public Policy & Governance. Now that their children are old enough, Crystal and her husband were looking for kid-friendly volunteer opportunities to get their whole family engaged with their community. They adopted a street about a year ago and do neighborhood cleanups every month or so. She heard about Project Cool from a friend who has been trying to find ways for people to engage and educate themselves, “and do what we can” in this time of federal upheavals, Crystal explained. Project Cool was a great opportunity for their family, Crystal said. She talked to her kids about who gets the backpacks and why they need them. She explained that they were going to be helping other kids. “Kids that are like them.” Homelessness has come up with her children before, Crystal said. “Just being out in the world,” she said, “we all see that a lot.” When people were living in tents next to the triplets’ preschool, Crystal and Dominic would talk to them about what theysaw on their walk to school. One of the kids thought the people were camping. Crystal and her husband explained: “It’s not what it’s like when we go camping.” For Crystal and her husband, Project Cool was a chance to say to their children: “This is a small thing that we can do to help in our community because we can’t help everyone. We can’t fix this problem on our own, but this is a way that we can …

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2026 Legislative Preview – December 11, 2025

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Our December General Membership Meeting was dedicated to previewing the new year’s state legislative session. We were joined by four state lawmakers and two statewide partner organizations to hear what they’re focused on during the short 2026 state legislative session, which starts Monday, January 12 and is slated to run until Thursday, March 12. Our December meeting also featured Easy Advocacy 101, helped us find our state legislative districts, introduced Advocacy BINGO, and included two actions we took together!  If this wealth of information is something you want to share with others or access again, please subscribe to the Coalition’s YouTube channel, where our membership meetings and trainings are collected. Easy Advocacy 101 Jump to 0:05:36 to view this section of our meeting. The first step to being an effective advocate is knowing who represents you in the state legislature. Each constituent has two state representatives and one state senator. Find out what legislative district you vote in and who represents you here: https://app.leg.wa.gov/districtfinder/ During each state legislative session, we will see new bills and bills from previous years. Sometimes it takes years of sustained advocacy for a bill to pass into law! Washington state is facing a significant budget deficit going into session. The state will also need to spend more on public benefits, like SNAP, based on new federal regulations, so new revenue is necessary to sustain current homes, shelter, and services. Progressive revenue will be key! Our 2026 Legislative Priorities (DRAFT EDITION) Each year, the Coalition tracks key bills and budget measures that will help us achieve our legislative priorities. Bills and budget measures change throughout the session, so stay tuned for updates on this page of our website. As of Thursday, December 11, our state legislative priorities for 2026 are: Advocacy just means speaking up! There …

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General Membership Meeting – November 20, 2025

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During our November meeting, we were joined by Poverty Action and Solid Ground to review and discuss upcoming changes to SNAP (starting Dec 1, 2025). We also talked about the recently announced changes to HUD that will impact our region and heard an inspiring presentation from DESC’s new ORCA Center. If this wealth of information is something you want to share with others or access again, please subscribe to the Coalition’s YouTube channel, where our membership meetings and trainings are collected. Dec 2025 Changes to SNAP Thank you to Lianna Kressin from Poverty Action and Patricia Bowen from Solid Ground for presenting on the changes coming to SNAP starting Monday, December 1. Jump to 00:7:49 to see this section of our meeting. HR1 & Federal Context On July 4, 2025, President Trump signed the “Big Beautiful Bill” (HR1) into law. The impacts of this bill will go into effect over the next 5 years. Individuals will have an increased burden of “proof of need” to maintain eligibility for programs and states will be required to pay more to provide the same, or lower, benefits. Changes to SNAP are already taking place but impacts will roll out over time. Even though new work requirements start Dec 1, 2025, there are still many unanswered questions from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Work Requirements New work requirements—expected to be about 20 hours per week—start Monday, December 1, 2025. More than 100,000 people are expected to be impacted by new work requirements with 57,000 Washingtonians losing some of their food assistance. The following groups will have new work requirements: People with “verified” disability status will remain exempt from work requirements. Jump to 00:34:40 to hear more about disability status. Immigrant Eligibility Changes to SNAP eligibility that will impact immigrants started July 4, 2025. …

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Mini General Membership Meeting – October 16, 2025

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During this abbreviated General Membership Meeting, we heard updates from community partners, reviewed important information for the upcoming General Election on Nov 4, learned about the Seattle and King County budget cycles, and shared our budget priorities for this year (and took action together!). We are hosting another Membership Meeting this month in partnership with the Coalition Ending Gender-Based Violence on Thursday, October 30 in person (!) at LANGSTON Seattle from 9-11 a.m. This meeting will cover the intersection of homelessness and gender-based violence to better equip service providers, advocates, and community members to serve people with complex needs. Please join us! There will be refreshments and costumes are encouraged. Register here: bit.ly/Oct30Meeting If this wealth of information is something you want to share with others or access again, please subscribe to the Coalition’s YouTube channel, where our membership meetings and trainings are collected. What’s Happening at the Coalition Our next free, virtual training is on Social Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability Income (SSDI). This training is presented in partnership with the Benefits Law Center. Please join us on Tuesday, October 28 from 9-11 a.m. over Zoom. All registrants receive a copy of the recording and presentation afterwards. Preparing for the November 4 General Election Jump to 00:12:42 to view this section of our meeting. The General Election is less than two weeks away. Ballots were mailed on Wednesday, October 15, so you and your clients should have them by now. If you don’t, call King County Elections at 206-296-VOTE (8683) or print a ballot online here: bit.ly/KCprintballot. There was a recent KOMO news piece about the postal service’s new system and speed for postmarking mail. Because of this change, KC Elections is advising people to return their ballot by mail EARLY (by Monday, October 28) to ensure …

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