Ybarra bill designed to make it easier to fulfill demands for electricity, transmission

OLYMPIA — A bill co-sponsored by 13th District Rep. Alex Ybarra, R-Quincy, will make it easier for public entities to enter into agreements with private or other public partners to develop energy generation and transmission facilities. Ybarra and Rep. Beth Doglio, D-Olympia, sponsored House Bill 1253, which passed the Washington House 94-1 and the Senate 49-0. Governor Bob Ferguson signed the bill into law on May 15 with an effective date of July 27, 2025. Ybarra said the new law is designed to address some of the challenges as state officials attempt to shift energy use to new sources. “We’re working both sides of the aisle to make this happen,” Ybarra said. “This isn’t a political thing for me, or an engineering thing. The physics book says, three laws of physics and this is how energy works. It’s not politics, it’s just physics and energy.”