This bill adds new sections to chapter 82.14 RCW to allow counties and cities to impose a local sales and use tax of 0.10 percent that is treated as a credit against the state sales and use tax. The tax must be collected by “the department” on behalf of the imposing jurisdiction at no cost to that jurisdiction, and the state treasurer remits the receipts as provided in RCW 82.14.060. Jurisdictions may begin imposing the tax on a staggered schedule: counties and cities with population 50,000 or less by January 1, 2026; those with population 50,000–175,000 by January 1, 2027; and all counties and cities by January 1, 2028. At least 50 percent of revenue must be used solely to attract and retain additional commissioned law enforcement officers; the remainder in the current calendar year may be used for “criminal justice purposes,” a category the bill defines to include activities that substantially assist the criminal justice system (explicitly including domestic violence services) and, for May 13, 2021 through December 31, 2025, certain local programs reasonably related to reducing interactions with the criminal justice system (examples listed in the text). The bill also amends RCW 43.101.200 to set and clarify basic law enforcement training timelines, completion requirements, commission responsibilities, and certain reimbursement rules. It establishes different training commencement and completion windows based on hire date (employees hired before Jan 1, 1990; on or after Jan 1, 1990; and limited authority peace officers hired on or after July 1, 2023), authorizes the commission to review files and require supplemental training for certain limited authority officers, and provides limited exemptions for continuing employment and for transfers between qualifying agencies when specified conditions are met. The commission is given sole authority to provide required training and must provide facilities and support; to the extent funds are provided, the commission must reimburse eligible small agencies (those with 10 or fewer full-time commissioned patrol officers) for temporary replacement costs for officers in training, and limited authority agencies must reimburse the commission for the full cost of training their personnel. This is a mixed change: it creates a new local tax authority and funding mechanism (a 0.10% local sales/use tax credited against state tax) and it modifies existing law on training and administrative procedures by amending RCW 43.101.200. The extracted text does not name which “department” must collect the tax, does not define “the commission” within the provided material, and cites other RCWs and prior provisions without reproducing their full text, so those points and the full legal context are uncertain from the provided facts.

If enacted, counties and cities could choose to add a small local sales and use tax (0.10%) phased in by population through 2028, creating a new local revenue stream that must devote at least half of the money to hiring and keeping commissioned law enforcement officers and can use the rest in the same year for criminal-justice-related services (explicitly including domestic violence services). That gives local governments a clearer option to fund officer recruitment, pay, or retention programs, but the actual money and impact will depend on whether each jurisdiction adopts the tax and how they spend their allowable share; the bill says the tax will be collected by a state department and remitted by the state treasurer at no cost to the locality. Law enforcement agencies and officers will face stricter training timelines and funding rules: newer hires must begin and complete basic training within set periods or risk losing employment, the unnamed commission will provide training and facilities and may reimburse very small agencies for temporary replacements only if funds are provided, and limited-authority agencies must reimburse the commission for training their personnel. Important details are missing here—specifically which state department will collect the tax, which entity is the referenced commission, and how much reimbursement funding will actually be available—so local budget and operational effects for small agencies and training costs are uncertain.