Dear friends and neighbors,

This year the Legislature made significant progress to ensure people are safe and feel safe in their communities. Several new laws will help reduce gun violence, improve our justice system, and strengthen law enforcement training and recruitment.

Improving public safety

  • HB 1163 requires most people who purchase a gun to apply for a permit. Applicants must submit fingerprints and prove they completed a certified firearms safety training program within the last five years or else provide a valid exemption. All applicants undergo a robust background check. This legislation is about saving lives, supporting responsible gun ownership, and building safer communities across Washington. Twelve states have enacted permit-to-purchase laws, and the results are clear: they reduce gun-related deaths, curb gun trafficking, and improve law enforcement officer safety.
  • HB 1620 ensures courts consider certain serious criminal offenses, such as domestic violence or sexual abuse, when making custody decisions so kids are placed in a safe and loving home. It also provides clearer legal definitions for courts to apply, reducing decisions based on individual bias.
  • HB 1052 cleans up language in our hate crimes statute to ensure perpetrators are held accountable if there is evidence to show their crime is motivated “in whole or in part” because of their bias.
  • SB 5356 requires Title IX investigators at colleges and universities to receive training from the Criminal Justice Training Commission on investigating sexual assault and gender-based violence. Sexual assault is pervasive on college campuses. 25% of undergraduate women and 13% of all students experience sexual assault or rape during their postsecondary education. With survivors facing higher dropout rates than other students, robust training for Title IX investigators helps ensure survivors receive the support they need to keep them in school.
  • HB 2015 sets aside $100 million in state funding over the next two years to create new local law enforcement positions. It also allows cities and counties to impose a 0.1% sales tax, providing sustainable local revenue for public safety and criminal justice services, empowering local leaders to invest in the strategies that work best for their communities — whether that is crisis intervention, trauma-informed care, or law enforcement training and hiring reforms.
  • SB 5714 ensures bail bond agents are not using their authority to enforce federal immigration orders by making such actions a violation of their professional standards.
  • HB 1829 ensures the effective implementation of the Tribal Warrants Act the Legislature passed last year. This legislation allows Washington state law enforcement officers to enforce tribal warrants, preventing people from committing a crime on a reservation and escaping justice by leaving the reservation. With this law, we become the first state in the country to provide full faith and credit to tribal warrants.
  • HB 1484 allows courts to impose enhanced sentences in rape cases that result in pregnancy, regardless of the survivor’s age.
  • SB 5093 removes the outdated crime of “concealing a birth”. This will ensure that anyone who experiences a pregnancy loss, such as a miscarriage, stillbirth, or neonatal death, retains the ability to make decisions about how they handle their loss.

Thank you for taking the time to read this newsletter. If you missed my newsletters on public education, housing, community projects, transportation, environmental protections, or LGBTQ rights, they are available on my website. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me with any questions at Jamie.Pedersen@leg.wa.gov.

Best wishes,

Jamie