Legislative Agenda
2025 Legislative Agenda
The 2025 Washington state Legislative Session runs from January 13–April 27, 2025. In the face of the state’s projected budget deficit, Treehouse’s legislative agenda focuses on maintaining the advancements and service quality to youth in foster care statewide. To stay up–to–date on our priorities this session and easy ways you can help, sign up for the Advocacy Action Center.
Lead Priority
Increase State Investment into Services for Students in Foster Care to Achieve Better Educational Outcomes
As legal guardians, the state has an obligation to ensure students in foster care make educational progress; Treehouse has partnered with DCFY and OSPI in this endeavor. The Educational Advocacy contract has not been updated since 2006. Graduation Success has followed a public-private funding model since its inception. While Treehouse will continue to seek additional private funding, increased state support is essential to ensure these programs remain available to students in foster care statewide.
We are requesting additional investments of $3,781,000 for Educational Advocacy and $3,326,695 for Graduation Success over the biennium.
Support Priorities
SB 5082: Creating a housing assistance program for young people enrolled in Extended Foster Care (EFC) Lead Organization: Mockingbird Society
Young people in the Extended Foster Care program (EFC)—state dependent youth—are homeless. The state has a moral and constitutional obligation to ensure that all young people in its care and custody are, at minimum, housed. This legislation creates a state-funded housing voucher program modeled after the federal Foster Youth to Independence (FYI) program. It is designed specifically for youth in Extended Foster Care (EFC) who are experiencing homelessness. Currently, federal restrictions prevent young adults from accessing both EFC supports and FYI housing vouchers simultaneously. By establishing a state-funded alternative, Washington will fulfill its obligation to ensure housing stability for young people in state care.
Independent Living (IL) Program Lead Organization: Washington Association for Children & Families (WACF)
In Washington State, youth exiting the foster care system are at higher risk for various adverse outcomes, including homelessness, financial and employment instability, ongoing systems involvement, and recidivism. WACF aims to support and stabilize the provider community to ensure positive and stable outcomes for all youth exiting the foster care system.
WACF strongly encourages the legislature to fund ILS for $1.5 million (biennium). Failing to do so limits the ability of community-based agencies to provide these critical services.
WSAC PassportLead Organization: Washington Student Achievement Council
The Passport to Careers program helps former foster youth and unaccompanied homeless youth prepare for and succeed in college, apprenticeships, or pre-apprenticeship programs. Participating students receive a scholarship of up to $2,800 in the 2024-25 academic year as well as support services from campus staff.
This proposal would make Passport to Careers an entitlement program by forecasting future caseloads and fully funding scholarships of up to $5,000/year for eligible former foster youth and unaccompanied homeless youth. Additionally, Passport-eligible youth would automatically qualify for maximum WA Grant awards (full public tuition and fees) as early as 13 years old.
