(Photo by Stephen Zenner/Getty Images)
Washington is on track to have more eviction filings this year than any other year on record.
Nine counties, including King and Spokane, hit new high marks, and seven others are on their way.
“The state is in an eviction crisis at this point,” said Tim Thomas, research director at the University of California Berkeley’s Urban Displacement Project.
Washington’s policies, like its right to counsel program, have helped keep some of those people from becoming homeless, Thomas told the Senate Housing Committee on Friday. But he said without more action and funding, evictions will rise further.
Some lawmakers are voicing similar concerns.
“The increase in eviction filings is startling and alarming,” Housing Committee Chair Patty Kuderer, D-Bellevue, said. “There will be a tsunami of homelessness if we don’t handle this correctly.”
Kuderer is moving on from her role in the state Senate next month after she was elected in November to be Washington’s next insurance commissioner.