Articles

On June 2, 2015, Division I of the Washington State Court of Appeals is set to hear oral argument in the first state case seeking to limit government’s ability to coerce property from land use applicants since PLF’s landmark victory in Koontz v. St. Johns River Water Mgmt. Dist. (2013). The case, Common Sense Alliance … ...

For nearly a decade, PLF was locked in litigation with Kitsap County over its critical areas ordinance.  Although the ordinance was ultimately upheld, we scored quite a few wins along the way. One of those wins may have turned the tide on a growing trend among local governments of addressing conflicts between homes and newly … ...

Yesterday, PLF attorneys filed an amicus brief in support of Washington’s small family farms in the case, Whidbey Environmental Action Network v. Western Washington Growth Management Hearings Board.  At issue is an Island County ordinance allowing small rural farms to implement the same environmentally friendly practices that large commercia ...

PLF’s constitutional challenge to Washington state’s shoreline buffer scheme is pending before the U.S. Supreme Court.  The case, Kitsap Alliance of Property Owners v. Central Puget Sound Growth Management Hearings Board (KAPO) , began over a half decade ago, when Kitsap County, acting under the mandate of Washington’s Growth Man ...

Author: Daniel Himebaugh The Supreme Court of Washington has granted review of Feil v. Eastern Washington Growth Management Hearings Board to address a lower court decision that allows local government to convert agricultural land into public recreational facilities without demonstrating compliance with the state's Growth Management Act.  ...

Author: Daniel Himebaugh The Washington Policy Center, a Seattle-based think tank, released a study this month showing how tax policy and growth restrictions increase the cost of home construction in Washington.  The study finds that government policies add to the price of a typical single family home by as much as 28 percent, or $67,400, &# ...