What's so special about WA's upcoming special session?

The 2023 regular legislative session may be over, but lawmakers will be heading back to Olympia soon for a special session.

Gov. Jay Inslee is calling them back to work on May 16, so they can come up with a new statewide drug possession law. The law as it stands right now is a stopgap measure that will expire July 1.

Inslee told Soundside host Libby Denkmann he's hopeful the Legislature can come to a bipartisan agreement during the special session.

"I do want the Legislature to move now because we don't want cities to have to be going off in a hundred different directions on this very important policy," he said. "I think there's good reason to believe they will get this done."

In fact, dozens of cities are considering new bans on possession or public use of illegal drugs. A key question — for cities and towns as well as state lawmakers — is whether such offenses should be a misdemeanor or a gross misdemeanor. Misdemeanors can mean up to a $1,000 fine and 90 days in jail. Gross misdemeanors can receive up to 364 days in jail and a $5,000 fine.

They're weighing the need for more treatment and overdose-prevention services, too, further complicating the effort to strike a deal that members of both parties can get behind.

"Basically, what I've been saying now for a couple of months is what I believe the vast majority of Washingtonians believe," Inslee said. "We need to make sure people get treatment for drug addiction and have it available to them but have some sanction if they refuse to participate in that."

The governor is confident lawmakers will find a compromise along those lines.

So, how will the special session work?

Starting May 16, lawmakers will have 30 days to make a deal and get a bill passed.

The entire special session is dedicated to one issue — a statewide drug possession law — unlike during the regular session when many issues are up for debate.

KUOW's Olympia correspondent Jeanie Lindsay said that could make it easier to find a deal that enough people can agree to pass. After all, lawmakers will be spending all of their time and energy on the same problem.

But it might not be quite that simple.

"Republicans are a little more cautious, especially because there was a lot of finger-pointing after the drug possession bill failed in the House during the regular session on the final night," Lindsay explained.

House Republicans also picked a new leadership team just as the regular session ended, meaning there will be some new people leading the debate.

When was the last time Washington held a special session?

Washington has had several special sessions in the past decade, including three in 2017, which was the last time state lawmakers gathered for a special session.

But 2017 was a different situation entirely, Lindsay said. The 2017 special sessions were focused on the state budget, whereas this year's special session will be dedicated to a single policy.