KENNEWICK, Wash. – Washington State lawmakers have been busy preparing and pre-filing proposed bills for the upcoming legislative session.
If approved, a bill sponsored by Senator Matt Boehnke, R-Kennewick, would give the Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council (EFSEC) authority over the governor to locate energy projects such as the Horse Heaven Hills Wind Farm project near Benton City.
Senator Boenke said in a release that the process to approve the revised site certification agreement for the Horse Heaven project did not properly account for local concerns.
“Senate Bill 5015 is drawn from the lessons learned from recent projects where the governor has sought to influence council decisions,” Senator Boehnke said. “The bill would confirm that the council is actually in a better position than the governor to make the final decision because the council has done the hard work of reviewing the projects and hearing from all sides.”
Senator Boehnke plans to introduce the bill to the Senate ENET committee when lawmakers convene for the legislative session Monday, January 13.
