WATCH: Ferguson’s proposed new housing agency faces GOP criticism over cost, red tape

(The Center Square) – Washington state Rep. Mark Klicker, R-Walla Walla, is voicing frustration and outrage over Gov. Bob Ferguson’s recent announcement that he intends to establish a task force for creating a new, cabinet-level Department of Housing to centralize efforts to combat the state’s severe housing crisis.

Klicker got a bill passed during the 2025 legislative session with bipartisan support that would have funded a study to identify the cost drivers of the housing shortage.

Ferguson vetoed the bill in its entirety.

“It ...