R.I.P. Condo Conversion Bill

It’s not unusual for a bill to die a quiet death in our Statehouse, or anywhere else. The legislative process is cumbersome (someone say sausage making)? And in Olympia, where there’s a strict timeline for moving through the session, worthy ideas often don’t make the cut.

What’s curious about the condo conversion bill — which would’ve required landlords to give tenants three months’ notice and up to three months’ rent before kicking them out — is that it had all the makings of an idea that was going to make it: strong bipartisan support, the backing of the Seattle City Council and agreement from 14 different housing and community groups. Hell, even the developers liked it. …Or so they said.

There was the thorny issue of whether cities were going to get the chance to cap conversions from apartments to condominiums, but that was stripped out of the bill and turned into an amendment that put strict parameters on any future limits. The developers reportedly helped craft this compromise, but even if there was heartburn over a possible cap, the improved tenant assistance and protections (the guts of the bill) could’ve still moved forward.

But with no floor vote by 5 p.m. last night, the measure was lifeless. A spokesperson for House Speaker Frank Chopp (D-Seattle) blamed the clock: “There were 1,500 bills introduced and only 550 passed. There’s a physical limit to what can be done.”

The bill’s sponsor Rep. Maralyn Chase (D-Shoreline) was flabbergasted. “We adjourned early. The cut off was 5 o’clock. We got out of there at 4 o’clock. There wasn’t a lack of time,” she says. “I was told until the very last day it was coming out [for a floor vote]. All of a sudden it didn’t. I just don’t know what happened.”

Seattle City Council member Tom Rasmussen was similarly flummoxed. "Speaker Chopp has been a good advocate for low-income people, seniors and people with disabilities who are most impacted by the conversions of their apartments,” he says. “I was counting on Speaker Chopp to help and am deeply disappointed that this legislation appears dead for this session.”

Sorry renters. Better luck next year.