Legislative & Planning Assistant (Environmental Planner 1)

State of Washington•Thurston County – Lacey, WA

21h•Hybrid

About The Position

The Department of Ecology is hiring a Legislative & Planning Assistant (Environmental Planner 1) within the Solid Waste Management (SWM) program. This non-permanent position is scheduled to end in June 2027. The position is eligible for telework and flexible schedule options, with a requirement of a minimum of two to three days per week in the office. The salary listed includes a scheduled 2% general salary increase effective July 1, 2026. The role involves coordinating, analyzing, and assessing legislative initiatives impacting the SWM program, as well as organizing and facilitating input and information sharing on the program's work. This is an opportunity to gain experience in waste reduction, recycling, organics, and extended producer responsibility.

Requirements

Six (6) years of experience and/or education in land use, urban, regional, environmental, or natural resource planning, and/or program development, landscape architecture, geography, land use or environmental law, public administration with an environmental emphasis, or closely related experience.
Documented ability to communicate clearly and professionally in writing and verbally to ensure accurate, timely, and accessible information sharing across program, agency, and legislative partners.
Ability to take ownership of work products and verify accuracy, consistency, and completeness to produce high-quality legislative and planning materials with minimal oversight.
Proven ability to interpret, track, and summarize legislation and coordinate associated workflows to support informed program decision-making during the Legislative Session.
Education involving a major study in land use, urban, regional, environmental, or natural resource planning, landscape architecture, geography, land use or environmental law, public administration with an environmental emphasis, or closely related field.

Nice To Haves

Knowledge of Washington State Legislative Process
Knowledge of Environmental laws and/or solid waste management laws
Knowledge of Governmental administrative structure at local and State levels
Knowledge of Proper grammatical construction, sentence, and paragraph development
Knowledge of Providing customer support and writing support documents

Responsibilities

Support the SWM program’s legislative work.
Track, review, and edit bill analyses in our shared document space and the agency’s legislative tracking platform.
Schedule and prepare materials for meetings, hearings, and work sessions.
Draft, review, and edit written communications.
Take notes on work group meetings, hearings, and work sessions.
Assist with developing, tracking, and submitting legislative reports.
Conduct legislative research, analyze and summarize legislation.
Assist with a variety of program planning duties, including tracking, designing, and facilitating input processes, and preparing documents for the program and the agency.