Washington creates permanent rental assistance program By Brandon Block, The Olympian Published: May 3, 2021, 8:04am Share: OLYMPIA— The idea of rental assistance — the government stepping in to pay people’s rent to prevent them from losing their home — is not new, but it has taken on a new prominence and urgency in the pandemic, as billions of federal dollars have helped pull tenants out from under mounting debt. Now, Washington state is making that policy permanent. Legislators passed a bill on the penultimate day of the session that creates a dedicated funding source for ongoing rental assistance through a $100 surcharge on recorded documents.