Washington’s lax vesting law allows expansion of urban growth areas (UGA) into farmland and natural habitat. If a decision is made that the expansion was illegal under the Growth Management Act, under the current vesting law any new construction permits issued in the expanded UGA are valid EVEN IF THE UGA EXPANSION IS LATER RULED ILLEGAL. There is no remedy for the community.
Regardless of current zoning, if someone has ‘vested rights’ in a land use they can do whatever was permitted when the rights vested. Jurisdictions can make the qualification to ‘vest’ minimal. This means if a community believes land use should or should not change, the owner of the vested right determines what the land use will really be.
Since 2008 bills have been introduced to stop this unbalanced practice. This is the first time there has been enough attention and commitment to get the legislature to change its mind on this issue. It is time to protect community interests. We don’t want to see more sub-divisions in farm and forest lands, critical habitats and waterfronts while we have so many vacant lots and buildings in our cities. SB 5042 would close the loophole by changing the date for specific actions, such as UGA expansion or de-designating farmland, until after the appeal period has expired or a judgement by the Growth Management Hearing Board has been passed. It means that developments don’t get to take ‘cuts’ in front of communities. The League of Women Voters of Washington has been a early advocate for the Growth Management Act, did a report on Vesting in 2017. This bill is essential to move toward full implementation of the Act.