This bill adds a new section to chapter 9.41 RCW establishing secure storage requirements for firearms in vehicles and in residences, and it amends RCW 9.41.050 and RCW 9.41.360 and RCW 43.330A.020. Vehicle rules require pistols be stored unloaded in an opaque, locked, hard‑sided container affixed in the vehicle and concealed from view, with the vehicle locked; rifles and shotguns must be stored unloaded in an opaque, locked, hard‑ or soft‑sided container affixed in the vehicle and concealed, with soft‑sided storage also requiring a trigger lock or similar device. Residence rules require firearms not being carried or readily controlled to be “securely stored,” defined as locked/disabled with a tamper‑resistant mechanical lock or safety device and kept out of plain sight, or kept in a locked gun safe or similar locked container. The bill lists multiple exemptions (for example, antique firearms, certain farm vehicles, people who live in a vehicle as their primary residence, qualified peace officers, licensed hunters, hunter education, and active U.S. armed forces on duty) and provides definitions for terms such as “securely stored,” “carried or readily controlled,” “residence,” “hard‑sided container,” and “prohibited person.” The bill creates (within an unnamed “department”) the Washington office of firearm safety and violence prevention and adds duties including data collection and sharing, policy research, grant administration, contracting for a helpline and a therapy best practices guide, and public education on secure storage; the office must report to legislative policy committees by December 1 of every odd‑numbered year. Enforcement and penalties are established: a violation is a class 1 civil infraction with up to a $1,000 monetary penalty; it is a misdemeanor if it allows a prohibited person to obtain access to a firearm; a gross misdemeanor if it allows a prohibited person to take possession and use the firearm in the commission of a crime; and a class C felony if it allows a prohibited person to take possession and use the firearm to cause personal injury or death. The bill also amends the loaded‑pistol‑in‑vehicle rule for concealed carry licensees to require the pistol be on the licensee, the licensee be in the vehicle at all times, or the pistol be securely stored per the new section; that violation is a misdemeanor. It also defines community endangerment by unsafe storage in first and second degrees and ties penalties to those offenses, but the full second‑degree language is not present in the available text. The act contains procedural provisions and other rules: prosecuting attorneys are given discretion to decline prosecution in certain cases where a violation resulting in death or serious injury would serve no public purpose or defeat the law’s purpose; if a prohibited person’s access resulted from unlawful entry, the victim must report the unauthorized access or theft to the local law enforcement agency within five days of discovering it; the act includes a severability clause; and the effective date is January 1, 2026. Important parts of the bill text are missing from the provided excerpts (including the full text of subsection (1) that is excepted in one provision, the complete amendment to RCW 9.41.360, and the named “department” where the new office is placed), so some specifics and any additional provisions in the omitted material cannot be confirmed from these extracts.

If enacted, gun owners will need to change how they keep firearms in cars and homes: pistols in vehicles must be unloaded and locked in an opaque, hard-sided container that is fixed and hidden, rifles and shotguns must be unloaded and locked in an opaque container (soft cases must also have a trigger lock), and household firearms must be locked or disabled or kept in a locked safe whenever not on the person or within close control. That will likely mean one-time purchases of safes, locked containers or trigger locks and new habits for people who transport or live with guns; concealed pistol licensees will face a misdemeanor risk unless the pistol is carried on the person, the licensee remains in the vehicle, or it is securely stored as required. Owners also face up to $1,000 civil fines for violations and escalating criminal exposure if a prohibited person gains access and then causes harm, with several explicit exemptions (antique guns, certain farm vehicles, people living in vehicles subject to residence rules, peace officers, hunters, and active-duty military on duty) and a narrow duty to report thefts or unlawful entries to local police within five days. The bill creates a state Office of Firearm Safety and Violence Prevention charged with data work, policy research, grant administration, contracting for a helpline and a therapy best-practices guide (including a University of Washington contract), and public education, and it requires biennial reports to the legislature; it also gives prosecutors discretion to decline prosecution in some death or serious-injury cases and becomes effective January 1, 2026. Important details are missing from the provided text—such as the specific department housing the new office, complete language on some criminal penalties and the full text of certain subsections—so final obligations, penalty applications, and administrative roles could change depending on those unshown provisions.