Substitute House Bill 1212 adds new sections to chapter 35.21 RCW and chapter 35A.21 RCW requiring cities and code cities to allow child care centers, and conversion of existing buildings for use as child care centers, as an outright permitted use in all zones except industrial zones. Cities and code cities may impose reasonable restrictions on such permits, with the example given of pickup and drop-off areas. The bill requires cities and code cities that plan under the Growth Management Act and must submit their next comprehensive plan update in 2027 under RCW 36.70A.130 to adopt or amend an ordinance and incorporate these requirements into their development regulations, zoning regulations, and other official controls in that 2027 update. All other cities and code cities must implement the requirements within two years of the section’s effective date. The bill was read for the first time on 01/29/25. Legally, the bill creates new statutory provisions that change local land use and permitting procedure by mandating that child care centers be permitted uses outside industrial zones; it is a procedural zoning/regulatory change rather than a penalties or criminal provision. The extracted text does not include an effective date, definitions for terms such as “child care centers,” “industrial zones,” “code cities,” or “reasonable restrictions,” nor does it specify enforcement mechanisms, penalties, or other administrative procedures.

If enacted, general-law and code cities and towns would have to allow child care centers and conversions of existing buildings into child care centers as an outright permitted use in every zone except industrial zones, although cities could place reasonable permit restrictions such as pickup and drop-off areas. Cities that are on the Growth Management Act schedule and must update plans in 2027 would have to adopt these changes in that update, while all other cities must put the rules in place within two years of the section’s effective date (the extracted text does not state the effective date). The people most affected are city planning and zoning departments, local elected officials, and child care providers: cities will need to spend staff time and possibly money to revise ordinances, development regulations, and comprehensive plan language, and they may process more straightforward permits for child care uses, while providers will likely find it easier to open or convert buildings outside industrial zones. Key implementation details are missing from the extracted facts—definitions of “child care centers,” “industrial zones,” and “reasonable restrictions,” plus the effective date and enforcement mechanisms—so governments and providers will face uncertainty about the exact scope and timing until those items are clarified.