WA HB2449

Establishes zero-based budget reviews requiring state agencies to justify program funding from scratch rather than using prior budgets as a baseline, beginning with the 2027-2029 fiscal biennium

Requires the legislature to select 20% of all state programs for review each biennium, creating a 10-year cycle where every program undergoes zero-based review

Mandates agencies submit detailed analyses including statutory basis, performance measures, cost-benefit analysis, administrative overhead estimates, and staffing data for each reviewed program

Excludes entitlement services defined under RCW 43.88C.010 from the program definition for review purposes

Requires House Appropriations and Senate Ways and Means committees to hold at least one public hearing on submitted reviews, with all materials filed on the state's fiscal website managed by the Legislative Evaluation and Accountability Program committee