Washington · Through July 15, 2026

RCW 35.108.010: Findings—Intent.

(1) The legislature finds that solving the state's housing crisis requires a multipronged approach. Finding, acquiring, and holding land in the predevelopment phase is a time-consuming opportunity cost for all developers and is particularly acute for developers of affordable housing. The legislature also finds that the state needs more affordable housing, and land banks play a crucial role in the housing ecosystem by finding, acquiring, and holding land until a developer is ready to build on the parcel or parcels.
(2) The legislature further finds that land banks provide a benefit to neighbors and the community by managing abandoned or underutilized properties, preventing blight and crime, and improving public health and safety. The state intends to enable land banks to operate regionally and provide incentives that result in reduced costs to hold property. In turn, land banks can coordinate with developers throughout their region to build mixed-income developments and give more Washingtonians a place to call home.
(3) Therefore, the legislature intends to authorize land banking authorities to:
(a) Operate as public land banks that hold property, tax-exempt, while preparing it for affordable housing and public benefit uses included with or attached to affordable housing;
(b) Prioritize equity, displacement prevention, and use of land acquisition and disposition strategies to expand capacity and address historical racial segregation, redlining, steering, and land prospecting, that has led to disparities in access to education, living wage employment, affordable housing, and transportation, particularly for Black, indigenous, and other communities of color, to ensure that future development remedies rather than reinforces these patterns; and
(c) Provide for governance and decision making that is representative, transparent, and inclusive so that land banking activities reflect the affordable housing needs of the region and help meet locally identified housing and infrastructure benchmarks.

Where this section sits in the code

Title 35
Chapter 35.108

(2) The legislature further finds that land banks provide a benefit to neighbors and the community by managing abandoned or underutilized properties, preventing blight and crime, and improving public health and safety. The state intends to enable land banks to operate regionally and provide incentives that result in reduced costs to hold property. In turn, land banks can coordinate with developers throughout their region to build mixed-income developments and give more Washingtonians a place to call home.

(3) Therefore, the legislature intends to authorize land banking authorities to:

(a) Operate as public land banks that hold property, tax-exempt, while preparing it for affordable housing and public benefit uses included with or attached to affordable housing;

(b) Prioritize equity, displacement prevention, and use of land acquisition and disposition strategies to expand capacity and address historical racial segregation, redlining, steering, and land prospecting, that has led to disparities in access to education, living wage employment, affordable housing, and transportation, particularly for Black, indigenous, and other communities of color, to ensure that future development remedies rather than reinforces these patterns; and

(c) Provide for governance and decision making that is representative, transparent, and inclusive so that land banking activities reflect the affordable housing needs of the region and help meet locally identified housing and infrastructure benchmarks.

Collected 2026-09-06T02:15:08Z. Source file · JSON

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