Washington state lawmakers are again considering legislation that would limit many tenants' rent increases to no more than 7% per year.

Why it matters: The U.S. Census Bureau estimated that nearly 280,000 people in Washington state — about 15% of the state's renters — saw their monthly rent rise by $250 or more in the past 12 months, per a survey taken last August and September.

• An October report from the Washington Center for Real Estate Research said that nearly half of Washington's renter households spend more than 30% of their income on housing, making them highly cost-burdened.

The fine print: House Bill 1217 would ban landlords from raising an existing tenant's rent by more than 7% over a 12-month period.

• Landlords could raise rent by a larger percentage when one tenant moves out and another moves in, a feature that the bill's supporters say distinguishes it from rent control.
• Newly constructed dwellings — those built in the past 10 years — would be exempt from the annual rent cap, as would public affordable housing developments and some owner-occupied units.

What they're saying: "We need common sense guardrails that are in place to make sure that landlords don't price gouge, and Washingtonians don't get hurt," state Rep. Emily Alvarado (D-Seattle), the lead sponsor of the bill, said during a public hearing earlier this week.

• Alvarado said waiting for more housing units to come online to help curb rent increases doesn't provide the protection that tenants across Washington need now.

The other side: Groups including the Association of Washington Business and the Washington Realtors testified against the bill, predicting it would discourage investment in new housing and potentially worsen the state's housing shortage.

• "We need supply," said Morgan Irwin, a former GOP state lawmaker who is now a lobbyist for the Association of Washington Business.
• "We think this bill won't do that — we think it will have the opposite effect."

Editor's note. This story was corrected to reflect that landlords (not lawmakers) are the targets of the state bill on rent hikes.

What's next

A new 3x3 basketball league that could revolutionize women's basketball launches today.

Why it matters: Co-founded by former Seattle Storm star Breanna Stewart, Unrivaled is another barometer for the explosive growth of women's sports.

• WNBA players have long played overseas in the off-season to supplement their meager league salaries, but Unrivaled says it has the highest average salary in women's sports history at $222,222 — higher than the WNBA's regular max contract of $214,466 for 2025.

Zoom in: Two of the Storm's top players are playing for Unrivaled this season: Jewell Loyd (Mist) and Skylar Diggins-Smith (Lunar Owls).

The intrigue: From Sabrina Ionescu to Angel Reese and Brittney Griner, almost every big name in women's basketball is playing in the new league.

• Caitlin Clark, arguably the sport's biggest star, is absent, but success without her could prove the league's viability.

How it works: The league is introducing a new style of 3x3 basketball played on a compressed full-court (roughly 70 feet by 50 feet).

The bottom line: A successful inaugural season of high TV ratings and online engagement could permanently change the financial structure of women's basketball.

• The season kicks off Friday at 4pm PT (Mist vs. Lunar Owls) on TNT.

Tell a fan

💸 Pier 70, the Seattle waterfront building made famous by MTV's "The Real World," has sold for $11 million. It will house an investment fund for artificial intelligence startups, among other tenants. (Seattle Times)

⚽️ Organizers of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Seattle are helping set up nine fan zones elsewhere in the state — including in Bellingham, Bremerton, Vancouver and Spokane — so more fans can join in the fun. (KING 5)

🍔 Seattle's first Burgermaster, a University District staple since 1952, will close in February, but its legacy lives on at other area locations. (FOX 13)

Seattle's annual Martin Luther King Jr. rally and march returns to Garfield High School on Monday, honoring King's legacy.

What they're saying: "This is one of the years where we're standing on Dr. King's quote: 'Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that,'" organizer Shaude' Moore told the Seattle Times.

If you go: The rally starts at 11am Monday, with the march at 12:30pm.

• Stop by: Garfield High School, 400 23rd Ave.

It's a stellar weekend for stargazing in Seattle, with four bright planets lined up in dazzling display and mostly clear skies in the forecast.

Driving the news: Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, and Venus will be visible after dark throughout January in what NASA calls a "planet parade."

• While planets always follow the same general path in the sky, seeing four or five bright ones together is a rare treat, per NASA.
• Venus and Saturn will be just 2.2 degrees apart — known as a conjunction — tonight and tomorrow, according to EarthSky.
• Uranus and Neptune are also part of the lineup, but require binoculars or a telescope to spot.

Newborn orca calf J62 was spotted swimming alongside family members near British Columbia in photos released yesterday by the Center for Whale Research.

Why it matters: The apparent health of J62, born in late December, is especially meaningful for the southern resident killer whale population following the death of another newborn, whose mother, Tahlequah, carried its carcass for more than 11 days.

Zoom in: The J Pod was photographed Jan. 10 near British Columbia, with J62 swimming closely alongside J41, believed to be its mother.

Share this story