In 1990, the Washington State Legislature passed the Growth Management Act (GMA) and subsequently created three independent Growth Management Hearings Boards to resolve land use disputes and to reflect regional diversity. The jurisdictional regions for the three boards are as follows:

Eastern Washington Growth Management Hearings Board (Eastern Board): includes all counties and cities east of the crest of the Cascade Mountains which are required to plan or choose to plan under the Act.

Western Washington Growth Management Hearings Board (Western Board): includes all counties and cities west of the crest of the Cascade Mountains which are required to plan or choose to plan under the Act, but are not within the Central Puget Sound Board’s jurisdictional boundaries.

Central Puget Sound Growth Management Hearings Board (Central Puget Sound Board): includes King, Snohomish, Pierce and Kitsap Counties and the cities within those counties.