2025 DC Booklet by greaterspokaneinc

2025 FEDERAL

PRESENTED BY

EXECUTIVE SPONSOR

SUPPORTING SPONSOR

AIRLINE PARTNER

WSU Health Sciences

Alaska Airlines

ABOUT GREATER SPOKANE INC.

MISSION

We lead transformative business and community initiatives to build a robust regional economy.

VISION

A vibrant Spokane region where businesses and communities thrive.

VALUES

Collaboration. We are inclusive and welcome diverse perspectives that reflect the aspirations of our community.

Innovation. We are resourceful and creative and strive for intentional progress in all that we do.

Respect. We foster mutually respectful relationships between members, our partners, and the community.

WHAT WE DO

As the Spokane area’s business development organization, GSI brings regional partners together to advocate for our community’s priorities with a strong, unified voice. Together, we have a greater voice for the future of our region.

GREATER SPOKANE INC. D.C. FLY-IN TEAM

ALISHA BENSON

CEO C: (509) 999-9202 abenson@greaterspokane.org

RAECHEL ALLEN

Events & Engagement Manager C: (509) 321-3643 rallen@greaterspokane.org

Federal Lobbyist, K&L Gates C: (202) 302-5936 tim.peckinpaugh@klgates.com

Principal, Sapphire Group C: (509) 599-0404 amya@sapphiregroupinc.com

GREATER VOICE

Together, we have a greater voice for the future of our region.

WORKFORCE

• Support federal fixes, such as implementation of the Military Spouse Licensing Relief Act, that eases state restrictions in licensure for military spouses.

• Fund Career and Technical Education and apprenticeship programs to develop work- based learning opportunities.

• Support new and innovative ways to recruit and retain skilled workers, especially in the transportation, information technology, construction, healthcare, and advanced manufacturing sectors.

• Reauthorize and expand the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WOIA) to strengthen our public workforce system to target youth and those facing significant barriers to sustainable employment.

• Expand local government’s access to public safety workforce solutions through the Department of Justice Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) grant program.

PUBLIC SAFETY

• Combat organized retail crime (ORC) through legislative and executive action, such as the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act, which would involve Department of Justice resources, stiffen penalties for criminal entities, include ORC in federal money laundering statutes, and make property obtained through ORC subject to criminal forfeiture.

• The HALT Act, passed in the House, combats fentanyl trafficking by rescheduling it under the Controlled Substances Act and ensuring penalties for criminal possession align with those of other narcotics that similarly impact our communities.

AGRIBUSINESS

• Ensure the 2025 Farm Bill promotes Washington’s agricultural priorities including expanded access to international markets.

• Reform the agricultural worker program, such as the H-2A program, to ensure an adequate workforce for farms and protection for workers.

• Continue support for robust agricultural research that benefits stakeholders across the nation including USDA’s ARS program at Washington State University.

TRANSPORTATION & INFRASTRUCTURE

• Ensure implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act as well as Congressionally Directed Spending appropriations that reflect community priorities in the Spokane region.

• Strengthen freight mobility by investing in and supporting the movement of goods along all modes of transportat ion, including highways, railways, airways, and waterways.

• Reform and streamline the federal permitting process for infrastructure and energy projects to balance environmental protections while accelerating project reviews and making the process cost-effective.

• Support the funding requests by Spokane Airports for its Phase 3 terminal renovation and expansion project.

• Implement the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 to align with Spokane International Airport priorities.

HEALTH CARE & LIFE SCIENCE

• Reform the graduate medical education (GME) program to increase GME slots for communities like Spokane. Expand available funding for residency programs in the critical areas of primary care, family medicine, and mental health.

• Protect policies and programs that expand innovation clusters in the Northwest, including the Evergreen Biosciences Cluster in Washington, Idaho, and Montana.

• Continue funding for health and life sciences research including the National Institute for Health and the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs.

• Invest in undergraduate and graduate research to allow all students, especially those from underrepresented communities, to engage in meaningful applied research.

• Extend and stabilize funding for the Community Health Center Fund, the Teaching Health Centers Program, and the National Health Service Corps.

• Prioritize investments in mental and behavioral health as well as substance abuse services, particularly for underserved and rural populations.

• Further expand access to telehealth, including increasing reimbursement for providing telehealth services.

• A healthy workforce grows economies. GSI supports protecting federal funding for Medicare, Medicaid, CHIP, and the Health Insurance Marketplace to ensure a healthy workforce, reduce absenteeism, and sustain critical health care jobs and training programs which other sectors of our economy rely on.

• Lift the Institutions for Mental Disease (IMD) Exclusion for substance use disorder which prevents Medicaid patients from accessing substance use disorder and other mental health care at mental health facilities. The IMD exclusion is a primary factor in the overuse of emergency department visits for mental health and substance use disorder.

TRADE & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

• As the CHIPS+ Science Act is implemented, seek additional opportunities to compete for federal economic incentives.

• Protect the American Aerospace Materials Manufacturing Tech Hub lead by Gonzaga as it moves into phase two of the Regional Tech Hub grant process.

• Expand investments in Opportunity Zones, which encourage economic activity and job creation in low-income/high unemployment areas.

• Repeal the amortization of research and experimentation expenditures under Tax Cuts and Jobs Act through budget reconciliation.

• Push for expansion of research, development, and manufacturing investments domestically to strengthen supply chains.

• Renew Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) laws to open markets, expand U.S. exports, and support domestic job growth.

• Support passage of the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act, which will allow banking institutions to provide services to legitimate cannabis-related businesses, increasing access to investment services and public safety.

• Pass legislation to provide a strong, national data protection and consumer notification standard with effective enforcement provisions which preempt existing and future state regulation to establish a national baseline data privacy standard.

• GSI supports the Revitalizing Downtowns Act to encourage adaptive reuse of vacant commercial buildings and spur housing development in urban cores. This legislation offers federal tax incentives for office-to-residential conversions, helping revitalize downtown corridors, expand housing supply, and strengthen local economies.

• Oppose tariffs as they hurt small businesses by raising costs on essential goods like energy, agriculture, and construction materials. Washington faces billions in added costs from tariffs affecting industries from farming to manufacturing. Past tariffs have already cost U.S. households thousands annually and led to significant job losses, particularly in manufacturing.

BROADBAND

• Support the legislative and executive action which revamps the broadband mapping process so federal agencies and private industry can target enhancements to areas most needed to bridge the digital divide in rural communities.

• Continue efforts to expand and extend funding timelines for federal assistance to build out reliable and high-speed connectivity targeted to underserved communities, schools, health care providers, and rural communities.

HIGHER EDUCATION

• Protect National Institute for Health (NIH) funding for the UW/WSU Center for Research in Emerging Infectious Diseases facility improvements for the expanded study of SARS-CoV2 variants and other emergent viral threats to public health.

• Reauthorize the Higher Education Act and target programs that invest directly in students especially from underserved communities and facing learning challenges, such as Pell Grants, supplemental education opportunity grants, federal work-study programs, TRiO/GEAR UP programs, and STEM education.

• Engage in campus safety and security efforts to assist institutions of higher education in providing students with a safe environment in which to learn.

• Fund the Pell Grant to $13,000 per student to increase access to quality higher education for disadvantaged students.

• Increase NIH investments in youth mental health research to expand college readiness.

CHILD CARE & K-12 EDUCATION

• Expand and fund the Child Care for Working Families Act so low and moderateincome families can have access to affordable child care.

• Protect funding for Head Start and Early Head Start programs, especially for lowincome and underserved communities.

• Increase federal funding and support for K-12 school safety programs and needed capital infrastructure.

• Protect Title 1, IDEA, Impact Aid, school nutrition programs and other federal funding sources that provide critical support to K-12 public schools.

ENERGY

• The Lower Snake River Dams are critical infrastructure that provide immense benefits to the Pacific Northwest. Removing them would have serious consequences for the region’s economy, energy reliability, agricultural production, and transportation network. Keeping these dams in place is essential for maintaining a balanced approach to environmental conservation, economic stability, and energy sustainability.

• Encourage Congress to take an “all of the above” approach to clean, reliable, and affordable energy that recognizes the vital need for increased baseload energy production and the necessity of natural gas for a clean energy transition.

• Invest to modernize the power grid to improve reliability and resiliency with new technologies and additional transmission capacity to reduce delays in the interconnection queue by accelerating permitting of new powerlines.

• Support federal programs, research, resources, and incentives that can continue Spokane’s transition to clean energy and reduce CO2 emissions, including the electrification of transportation (auto and buses); the improved energy efficiency of buildings and infrastructure; and the optimization of smart building technologies, use of sustainable materials, and grid interaction to engineer zero-carbon buildings (such as the South Landing project).

• Wildfires are becoming increasingly severe and frequent across the United States, threatening lives, communities, and natural resources. To address the growing risks, federal policymakers must implement stronger wildfire liability protections to support responsible land management, safeguard utilities, and promote proactive mitigation efforts. Expanding liability protections at the federal level will help balance accountability with the need for sustainable wildfire protection and response strategies.

• Encourage the State Department to finalize details of the agreement in principle on the Columbia River Treaty modernization and for congress to ratify it.

MILITARY AND VETERANS AFFAIRS

• Support modernization and recapitalization of facilities through military construction programs to include aircraft parts warehouse expansion and SERE Water Survival Training Facility.

• Support efforts to develop housing near or on Fairchild Air Force Base, to house crew moving to the area in support of new missions.

• Pass federal legislation like H.R. 815 (McMorris Rodgers) which would fix a critical gap for emergency care in existing VA benefits through the Veterans Community Care program.

• Support federal initiatives that increase food security for our service members and their families.

• Call for an expansion of the Work Opportunity Tax Credit to include military spouses.

• Implement an FSA program for childcare expenses of military families.

CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING REQUESTS

• $5,000,000 - Sullivan Road and Trent Interchange

• $3,000,000 - Barker Road/I-90 Interchange Design & Engineering

• $3,000,000 - NEPDA Shiftwork Childcare Facility

• $3,500,000 - Gonzaga University Center for Materials Research (AAMMC Tech Hub)

• $5,000,000 - Fairchild AFB Entrance Road Improvements

• $4,000,000 - Expanding Services at The Spokane Regional Stabilization Center

• $3,500,000 - City of Spokane Valley Cross Course Field House

• $1,200,000 - Global Neighborhood Refugee Success Program

• $2,500,000 - Ronald McDonald House Infrastructure

• $4,000,000 - Terrain Cultural Hub Phase II

• $2,000,000 - City of Spokane SMART Interventions Pilot Program

COMMUNITY COLLABORATION

The Greater Spokane Inc. 2025 Federal Agenda was developed in collaboration with Spokane regional business, education, and nonprofit/labor leader communities.