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Oregon and Washington Passed Rent Caps, Paid Leave Expansions, and Gun Safety Laws While Congress Cut Benefits

Resist Now 4 min read
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Two states proved it can be done

While Congress passed the One Big Beautiful Bill and cut $863 billion from Medicaid, Oregon and Washington moved in the opposite direction. In their 2025 legislative sessions, both states expanded worker protections and stabilized rents.

This is what governing for working people looks like when the legislature decides to do it.

Washington rent stabilization

Governor Bob Ferguson signed House Bill 1217 on May 7, 2025, making Washington the third state to institute statewide rent stabilization, after California and Oregon. Annual residential rent increases are now capped at 7% plus CPI or 10%, whichever is lower. For manufactured homeowners, the cap is 5%.

This does not freeze rents. Landlords can still raise rents annually. But it stops the 30-50% single-year increases that were displacing tenants across Seattle, Tacoma, and Spokane. Oregon passed similar protections in 2019, capping increases at 7% plus CPI statewide.

Policy wins at a glance

Policy areaOregon (2025)Washington (2025)
Rent stabilizationAlready in effect (2019 law, 7% + CPI cap)HB 1217: 7% + CPI or 10% cap, signed May 2025
Gun safetySB 243: banned bump stocks and rapid-fire devicesGun safety legislation passed in 105-day session
Paid leave1% contribution rate maintained for 2025-2026Expanded coverage: employers with 25+ employees must guarantee job protection
Unemployment for strikersRepealed prohibition on UI benefits for striking workersSB 5041: unemployment insurance for striking workers
Minimum wageIndexed to inflationIncreased for 2026

Gun safety without federal help

Oregon Governor Tina Kotek signed SB 243 into law on September 26, 2025, banning rapid-fire activators including bump stocks. The law also allows local governments to prohibit concealed carry in public buildings. Possession of a rapid-fire device is now a Class A misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail.

Washington passed its own gun safety package during its 105-day session, alongside 421 total bills covering housing and clean transportation.

Congress has not passed gun safety legislation since 2022’s Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. States are doing it without them.

Worker power expanded

Both states extended unemployment insurance to striking workers. Oregon repealed its prohibition on UI benefits for public and private sector strikers. Washington passed SB 5041, granting the same protection.

This matters because strikes are the single most effective tool workers have for raising wages. When workers risk losing income entirely during a strike, employers have disproportionate leverage. These laws level the field.

Washington also lowered the paid leave eligibility threshold. Starting January 2026, employees who have worked six months qualify for job-protected leave, down from the previous requirement. Employers with as few as 25 employees must guarantee job protection for workers returning from approved leave. The minimum weekly threshold dropped from eight hours to four.

“421 bills in 105 days. Rent caps, gun safety, worker protections. This is what a legislative session looks like when the majority governs.”

That’s from Washington State Representative Darya Farivar’s session recap.

The counterpoint to red state coverage

Most of our coverage tracks what’s being taken away: Medicaid cuts, SNAP restrictions, voter purges, oversight gutted. This brief exists because the story is incomplete without showing what’s possible.

Oregon and Washington are not perfect. Housing costs remain high. But the direction of policy is toward more protection and more power for workers and renters. That direction is a choice, and other states can make it.

What you can do

  1. Push your state legislators to introduce similar bills. Rent stabilization and paid leave protections both have model legislation. Contact your state representatives via Resist Bot.

  2. Share these wins. The narrative that “nothing works” benefits the people cutting programs. Counter it with evidence.

  3. Support state-level organizing. National politics gets the attention. State legislatures make the laws that govern your daily life. Find your state’s progressive caucus and get involved.

  4. Track your state’s legislative session. Sites like LegiScan let you follow bills in real time. Know what’s moving before it passes.

Sources

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