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Sophia Aldous
Details on a few bills Governor Bob Ferguson has signed into law
OLYMPIA - With the 2025 Washington State Legislature ending its session in April, Governor Bob Ferguson has been busy signing bills into law. You may recognize some of these bills and some might be new to you but take a gander to find out what’s changing in Washington.
Farmer compensation Senate Bill 5165
Concerning compensation in frontier counties for deer and elk damage.
Bill Sponsor: Shelly Short, R-Addy The law allocates a minimum of 20% of available funds specifically for claims arising from frontier one counties — areas with a population density of 20 people or fewer per square mile. To be eligible for compensation, commercial crop owners must have grown or produced agricultural products valued at over $10,000 in the previous year or be in their first year of agricultural production. They must also show efforts to prevent wildlife damage.
Compensation for claims will only be issued if the assessed damage equals or exceeds $1,000, according to guidelines set by the Washington State Fish and Wildlife Commission.
As of 2024, the designated frontier one counties include Pend Oreille, Stevens, Ferry, Okanogan, Lincoln, Adams, Columbia, Garfield, Klickitat, Skamania, Jefferson and Wahkiakum.
Effective date 7/27/2025.
Workers’ rights Senate Bill 5041
Concerning unemployment insurance benefits for striking or lockout workers.
Sponsored: Sen. Marcus Riccelli (D-Spokane) Bill Cosponsors: Conway, Hasegawa, Saldaña, Salomon, Stanford, Dhingra, Nobles The new law allows individuals unemployed due to a labor strike to receive up to six weeks of unemployment insurance benefits following a qualifying strike or lockout event. Benefits would start 15 to 21 days after the strike begins, depending on what day the strike starts. If the contract is resolved before that time, no benefits would be issued.
The bill also requires the state Employment Security Department to produce an annual report on the number of strikes occurring within Washington and the impact of strikes on the unemployment insurance trust fund. A sunset clause requires state lawmakers to review the policy in 2036 and decide whether to extend the law or let it expire.
Effective date 7/27/2025.
Senate Bill 5104 Protecting employees from coercion in the workplace based on immigra- tion status.
Bill Sponsor: Sen. Bob Hasegawa, D-11 The bill would require the state’s Department of Labor and Industries to investigate complaints of coercion and would allow the agency to impose civil penalties when violations occur. During the complaint process, when a worker files a complaint, the department will notify the employer, but language in the bill was added to make a worker’s personal information confidential to anyone other than the department and the employee.
Effective date 7/1/2025.
Pregnancy loss gets a reprieve Senate Bill 5093 Concerning dignity in pregnancy loss.
Bill Sponsor: Sen. Manka Dhingra, D-45 The law removes coroners’ and medical examiners’ jurisdiction over cases involving miscarriages, stillbirths or abortions unless other criminal circumstances — such as violence or homicide — were involved. It also ensures pregnancy loss isn’t subject to unwarranted legal scrutiny. The bill repeals a century-old law that critics argue could be used to criminalize individuals who experience an abortion, miscarriage or stillbirth.
Effective date 7/27/2025.
Clarifying hate crimes House Bill 1052 Clarifying a hate crime offense.
Bill Sponsor: Rep. Cindy Ryu, D-32 The new law aims to clear confusion caused by the existing language in RCW 9A.36.080, which defines a hate crime as one committed “because of” a victim’s identity. Jurors have grappled with whether a defendant’s bias needs to be the sole motive behind the crime or just one factor. The uncertainty has led to “not guilty” verdicts in cases where bias was one of several motives. The new law adds the phrase “in whole or in part” in front of “because of.” The goal is to make it clearer that hate crimes can be charged even if bias is just one factor behind the offense.
In 2023 Gov. Jay Inslee signed ESB 5623, reclassifying hate crimes as crimes against persons and allowing for community or therapeutic treatment in addition to jail time. It also expanded the definition of hate crimes to include assaults that do not result in physical injury.
Effective date 7/27/2025
Immigrants’ rights House Bill 1232
Concerning private detention facilities.
Bill Sponsor: Rep. Lillian Ortiz-Self, D-Mukilteo The law paves the way for the state’s Department of Health to inspect the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma and enforce compliance with state and federal laws there. It establishes added standards for such facilities in areas like medical care, sanitation, and ventilation, along with new safeguards against abuse.
The bill also expands the definition of private detention facilities to include those run by nonprofit organizations after The GEO Group, a for-profit company which runs the Tacoma facility, claimed to be singled out under existing law. The nonprofit Martin Hall Juvenile Detention Facility, near Spokane, is now included under the new law.
State lawmakers have been calling for more transparency at the for-profit immigrant detention center in Tacoma. Previous efforts have landed the state in court battles with The GEO Group.
Effective date 5/12/2025.
Senate Bill 5714 Declaring civil immigration enforcement as unprofessional conduct of bail bond recovery agents.
Bill Sponsor: Sen. Yasmin Trudeau, D-Tacoma The law expands the list of unprofessional conduct for bail bond agents to include enforcement of a civil immigration warrant. The Department of Licensing could take disciplinary action against agents found to be in violation.
Bail bond agents already largely lacked the authority to get involved in immigration issues. The law aims to provide clarification about those boundaries and the penalties for crossing them. It would also prevent agents from sharing a defendant’s immigration status with anyone outside their business.
Effective date 7/27/202.
Right to Repair Senate Bill 5680
Establishing a right to repair mobility equipment for persons with physical disabilities.
Bill Sponsor: Sen. Drew Hansen, D-Bainbridge Island The goal of the law is to aid wheelchair users, ensuring they and independent repair shops have access to parts, tools, and information needed to keep their equipment working. Many repairs that wheelchair users need involve fixes such as batteries, wheels, joysticks and bearings. Currently, a lack of access to tools and information limits repair options, causing service delays that can drag on for weeks or even months. This can become a quality of life issue and even cause health problems for wheelchair users.
The bill makes Washington the eighth state in the country with a Right to Repair law.
Effective date 7/27/2025.
House Bill 1483
Supporting the servicing and right to repair of certain products with digital electronics in a secure and reliable manner to increase access and affordability for Washingtonians.
Bill Sponsor: Mia Gregerson, D-33 Currently, manufacturers can restrict access to the tools, parts, and information needed for consumers in Washington to fix electronic devices and household appliances. When devices can’t be fixed, consumers are often left with no other option but to pay high prices for repair or replacement of the item, which adds to e-waste issues. The Right to Repair looks to ban these restrictions, make repair more affordable and accessible for Washingtonians, and reduce electronic waste.
Effective date 7/27/2025.
SOPHIA MATTICE-ALDOUS IS A MURROW NEWS FELLOW WORKING DIRECTLY WITH NEWSROOMS AT THE NEWPORT MINER AND RANGE MEDIA THROUGH A PROGRAM ADMINISTERED BY WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY. HER REPORTING IS AVAILABLE FOR USE VIA CREATIVE COMMONS WITH CREDIT.
