Interior Design Bill Heard in Committee

Today, the debate over interior design licensing came before the Senate Labor Commerce Research & Development Committee. SB 6707 creates an expansive practice act.

The AIA/WA is opposed to the bill for many reasons. The primary problem is the bill is a practice act. It also attempts to define architecture as designing the “building shell” (which is defined in the bill) and interior design as everything inside the shell. Also, it includes sealing privileges for interior designers and requires building officials to accept their sealed drawings. There are many other problems with the substance of the bill.

Timothy Buckley, AIA, AIA/WA President, testified against the bill at the hearing. The room was packed with interior designers, remodelers, retailers, contractors and architects who are opposed to the bill. The proponents also had a good sized group there to support the bill.

From the testimony and the turn out, it was clear that the interior design providers are deeply divided over the proposal.

Even with the many concerns with the current bill, the AIA/WA remains open to dialogue with the interior designers.