Lawmakers in Olympia hit one of their biggest deadlines last week.

By March 8, most bills must have passed out of the House and into the Senate, or vice-versa, if they are to become law this year. Bills related to the budget are the major exception, and they can be passed later in the session if lawmakers believe they’re crucial to passing the state’s budget.

Otherwise, bills that didn’t make it out this year will stay in their committees next year, giving lawmakers a head-start if they wish to pursue them again.

The Legislature is scheduled to wrap up most matters by April 12. They have until April 23 to pass the budget.

The greater Federal Way area is in the 30th Legislative District and is represented by Sen. Claire Wilson and Reps. Jamila Taylor and Kristine Reeves, each of whom won election or re-election last November. They will speak at an in-person town hall 10 a.m. to noon March 18 at the Pacific Community and Events Center, 100 3rd Ave. SE, Pacific. Visit www.tinyurl.com/30thld to submit questions ahead of time.

Here are some of the bills that local legislators have — and haven’t — managed to get through the Legislature so far.

Successfully voted through the House or Senate:

Taylor’s HB 1474, creating a program to address the history of racist real estate covenants in Washington.

Taylor’s HB 1102, increasing the pay for retired judges who sit in as temporary judges to match that of practicing attorneys.

Reeves’ HB 1370, which would pay awards to whistleblowers who report state or federal securities laws violations, and establish protection for whistleblowers from employer retaliation.

Reeves’ HB 1552, creating a commission to study the feasibility and challenges of urban agriculture to help communities grow their own food and expose more youth to agriculture.

Wilson’s SB 5114, which directs the Office of Crime Victims Advocacy to provide funding to support adults forced or coerced into sex trafficking, such as for housing, substance use disorder treatment, job training and legal advocacy.

Wilson’s SB 5127, exempting the personal information of children who have been enrolled in a school district from disclosure through the state Public Records Act. The bill earned pushback from news media advocates over concerns that it would keep parents in the dark about how schools handle student discipline.

These bills didn’t make it out of the House or Senate by the March 8 deadline:

Reeves’ HB 1648, the Taylor Swift-inspired effort to prohibit the sale of ill-gotten concert tickets and creating a license system for some ticket sellers. Legislators may “shake it off” and try again next year.

Reeves’ HB 1297, creating a Geoduck Task Force to investigate opportunities to improve geoduck harvesting, particularly for Indian tribes.

Reeves’ HB 1627, requiring some “vloggers” (video bloggers) to compensate their minor children for appearing in videos and giving those children the chance to request videos featuring them to be deleted once they are an adult.

Wilson’s SB 5135, which would have restricted the use of solitary confinement in prisons and jails.

Wilson’s SB 5559, which would have phased out “isolation rooms” in schools and regulated the use of restraining and isolating techniques on students in general.

Wilson’s SB 5223, which would have made it a crime for someone who causes a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct to be photographed, if the minor is unconscious or unaware they are being photographed or recorded.

Other topics we’re watching in the Legislature

Housing and zoning: The much-debated middle housing bill HB 1110, co-sponsored by Taylor, has made it into the Senate. Both local House members supported it. The bill would require cities under the Growth Management Act (including Federal Way) to allow duplexes or fourplexes in nearly all of their neighborhoods. The original bill earned pushback, including from several Federal Way City Council members, who took issue with the idea that cities and their elected councils would lose control over the zoning of their own neighborhoods.

Police pursuits: The Senate’s effort to tweak the rules on vehicular police pursuits, SB 5352, has passed. The current law allows a pursuit only when a cop has probable cause to believe someone in the car has committed a violent, sex, or escape offense, or has reasonable suspicion (a lower standard) for DUI. This bill would set the standard to allow chases under reasonable suspicion of violent, sex, vehicular assault, escape, DUI and domestic violence offenses. Vehicle theft still wouldn’t be included as a crime officers could pursue over. Wilson voted against the Senate bill as passed.

Assault weapons: Democrats passed HB 1240 out of the House on a party-line vote. It would ban the manufacturing, distribution and sale of “assault weapons,” a category including AR-15 style rifles and certain other semi-automatic rifles, though possessing or inheriting those firearms would remain legal. Reps. Reeves and Taylor voted to pass the bill.

Drug possession: The Blake decision in 2021 invalidated Washington’s laws on simple drug possession, so the Legislature must remake the statute. SB 5536, the Wilson-sponsored effort that passed the Senate, would make knowing possession of a prohibited substance a gross misdemeanor and encourage law enforcement to avoid booking and prosecuting users. It would also create a state pretrial diversion program that could dismiss charges if a suspect agrees to engage in a drug use treatment program. Mayor Jim Ferrell had earlier testified in support of the bill. Wilson ultimately voted against the amended version that passed.

School meals: They may become free for many more students. HB 1238 passed the House with the support and co-sponsorship of Taylor and Reeves. It would require school districts that have a large minority of students on free or reduced lunch programs to provide taxpayer-funded breakfast and lunch without charge to any requesting students. Schools would be reimbursed through the state Office of the Superintendent.

Magic mushrooms: SB 5263, a bill co-sponsored and supported by Wilson, exploring the therapeutic use of psilocybin, has passed the Senate. The compound is naturally created by many mushrooms, and can cause users to have profound personal and spiritual experiences. As a mind-altering drug, it also carries inherent risks. The original bill would have allowed those over 21 to buy psilocybin products and use them under careful supervision. But amendments took the bite out of the bill; it now would instead create an advisory board, task force and work group to work on a psilocybin plan.

Mobile homes: SB 5198, a bill raising regulations on mobile home communities co-sponsored by Wilson, did pass the Senate with her vote. If passed by the Legislature as a whole, it would require a two-year notice when landlords close or convert mobile or manufactured home communities, with some exceptions, such as for landlords who provide relocation assistance to their tenants. Landlords would also have to provide a notice of opportunity to compete to purchase when selling or leasing a mobile home community.

Property taxes: Failing to make it out of the House is the Reeves-cosponsored HB 1670, which would have boosted the annual property tax increase cap to 3%. Voters set the annual tax increase cap to 1% in 2001.

Drunk driving: SB 5002, a bill that would have reduced the maximum blood alcohol concentration for drivers from 0.08% to 0.05%, failed to leave the Senate. Sen. Claire Wilson had co-sponsored it.

Homelessness: SB 5202, co-sponsored by Wilson, would have authorized up to $4 billion in bonds to be issued to finance programs fighting housing insecurity, with a referendum by voters included on the next general election ballot. The effort failed to pass the Senate.

Abortion: SJR 8202, the Wilson co-sponsored attempt in the Senate to add an amendment to the state constitution guaranteeing access to abortion, failed. The resolution never made it to the Senate floor for a vote.