State Sen. Jesse Solomon told the Mountlake Terrace City Council on Dec. 11 that recent caseload standard changes and new public-defense requirements are producing large, uncertain cost impacts for local governments and urged a wider search for staffing and policy options.

"I don't know that times 3 is the right amount," Solomon said, describing testimony that suggested tripling current public‑defender staffing levels. He questioned how the caseload numbers had been recalculated — for example, from about 150 felonies to 50 and from 400 misdemeanors to 120 — and asked whether parts of the discovery workload could be handled by paralegals rather than attorneys to reduce costs.

Solomon also flagged broader fiscal uncertainty: "I asked them how much it cost. They didn't know," and cited a conservative statewide estimate he heard that the Association of Washington Cities placed around $80,000,000. He said local jurisdictions are being asked to fund program changes they did not control.

Why it matters: Mountlake Terrace and many neighboring cities are already seeing higher legal-services costs. Solomon and council members said the effect on city budgets — and on the capacity of local contractors to respond to RFPs — may limit options unless the state, providers and local governments find new approaches.

Solomon previewed several bills he is developing or studying. He said he will revive work on "clear and objective" development regulations and is considering a model-code approach that would give cities the option to adopt state‑published model language to reduce litigation risk. Solomon also described work on childcare siting and frontage‑improvement requirements, including coordination with the Department of Children, Youth and Families to identify where local regulations duplicate state certification and where local rules are needed.

Council response and next steps: Council members asked practical questions about procurement (many jurisdictions receive only a single RFP response), opportunities to negotiate contract terms, and longer-term workforce strategies such as loan-forgiveness incentives for public‑service careers. Solomon suggested examining upstream strategies to improve the supply of public‑service attorneys and noted the demographic and market pressures reducing applicants for law‑school slots.

There was no formal council action on the legislative items; council members thanked Solomon and said they would continue to coordinate on their legislative and capital requests.