Rollback of mortgage lender tax break eyed to help replenish WA wildfire account

Legislation to eliminate a Washington state tax break for large mortgage lenders and use the revenue to partially backfill wildfire prevention programs is making progress in Olympia.

House Democrats passed the bill last Friday, sending it to the Senate. If funding isn’t restored, the Department of Natural Resources says it will cut agency staff and grants for communities dealing with wildfire risks.

Last year, the Legislature cut the wildfire funding in half to help offset a state budget deficit, effectively breaking a 2021 commitment to provide $500 million over eight years. The state had largely kept up with that funding target until last year. The department received $115 million in the last two-year budget and $130 in the one before that.

“It will have an impact on the upcoming fire season, and even more so in 2027 if we don’t get additional funding,” said Pat Sullivan, director of governmental and external affairs for the Department of Natural Resources.

https://washingtonstatestandard.com/2026/02/19/rollback-of-mortgage-lender-tax-break-eyed-to-help-replenish-wa-wildfire-account/