Sustainable Food Management Grants Rulemaking, Chapter 173-316 WAC

Composting organic resource streams to create agricultural benefits and build soil health and resilience is one of the state's priorities, yet this activity is not reflected in any of the eligible grant activities. Since the state's Compost cost-shar...↓e program has already been cut, the state would benefit from private sector efforts to create funding for compost offtake and agricultural use.

Legislation of this sort was introduced in HB 1497 section 9, page 15. https://lawfilesext.leg.wa.gov/biennium/2025-26/Pdf/Bills/House%20Bills/1497.pdf#page=1&toolbar=0&navpanes=0

This legislation was not passed, but the plausibility is still sound. In fact Hawaii passed a related tax, The Hawaii Green Fee which will create over $100 million per year for natural climate solutions.

We suggest that the rules be expanded to include eligible activities related to advancing the use of compost on (food-producing) working lands. Healthy Soil and compost off-take is foundational to the statewide Sustainable Food System, but the current rules and activities leave this circle incomplete by disregarding agriculture.↓