This bill creates a new chapter in Title 29A RCW that requires county auditors, jails, and state hospitals to establish coordinated voting access procedures for people who are incarcerated in jails or detained in state hospitals. It requires each county auditor to name a county voting coordinator and each facility to name a facility voting coordinator, and directs county auditors and facility coordinators to adopt a joint voting plan for each jail and state hospital by January 1, 2026, with review and readoption at least every two years. The plans must address voter registration and updates, access to identification and residency proof, information about eligibility and restoration of voting rights, nonpartisan voter education and voters’ pamphlet materials, private ballot completion and writing materials, accommodations for voters with disabilities (including accessible voting devices provided/maintained under the Help America Vote Act), visibility of voter information and key dates, collection/reporting of registration and ballot-return data consistent with privacy laws, documentation of voting-related requests and complaints, and training for facility staff. Ballots must be accessible at least eight days before a primary, special, or general election, and election officials must be allowed entry at least 30 days before each election for outreach and education, subject to local clearance, scheduling, and reasonable security, clinical, and privacy limitations. The bill treats election-related mail from county auditors, the secretary of state, or from incarcerated/hospitalized people as legal mail and requires facilities to provide voter materials to persons released at the time of release. This is a new statutory chapter creating procedural requirements and administrative duties rather than creating a new crime; it also creates an enforcement mechanism with civil penalties. The attorney general is authorized beginning July 31, 2030, to investigate and bring civil actions against counties, jails, or state hospitals for violations, to issue civil investigative demands and subpoenas, and to recover costs and reasonable attorneys’ fees; if a court finds an intentional violation the act requires a $25,000 per-violation award to the attorney general, with collected funds remitted to the secretary of state to improve accessibility for voters in jails and state hospitals. The secretary of state is directed, subject to appropriations, to contract with the University of Washington Evans School of Public Policy and Governance for a study and final report due June 30, 2026. The bill references external statutory definitions and requirements (RCW 70.48.020 for “jail,” RCW 72.23.010 for “state hospital,” chapter 29A.32 RCW for voters’ pamphlet materials, and the Help America Vote Act) and indicates operational details will be specified in the jointly created voting plans; those external statutes, any actual joint plans, and the availability of appropriated funds are not included in the provided text.

If enacted, counties, jails, and state hospitals will need to add staff roles and routine work to enable people who are jailed or hospitalized to register, get election information, and access ballots: each county auditor must name a coordinator and work with facility coordinators to adopt joint voting plans by January 1, 2026 (and update them every two years), allow election officials timed access for outreach, make ballots available at least eight days before elections, treat election mail as legal mail, and provide voting materials when people are released. The secretary of state may step in with a temporary plan if counties don’t adopt one, and there is a planned study by the UW Evans School on these processes, subject to available funding and a June 30, 2026 report deadline. The groups most affected are county auditor offices (new staffing, training, accessibility device responsibilities tied to federal Help America Vote Act requirements, ongoing reporting duties), jail and state hospital staff (managing access, security, privacy, mail protections, and documenting voting requests/complaints), and people who are incarcerated or hospitalized (greater potential access to registration and ballots). Counties and facilities may face added operating costs and training burdens, and after July 31, 2030 the attorney general can sue for violations and, for intentional violations, pursue $25,000 per violation—creating legal and financial risk. Important implementation details and funding sources for the UW study and some operational specifics depend on other statutes and local plans, so the precise burden and costs to agencies are not fully specified here.