This bill amends RCW 70A.200.060 to change how littering and abandoned junk vehicles are classified and penalized, and it creates a littering solutions task force convened by the Department of Ecology. It modifies existing law rather than creating an entirely new statute, reclassifying littering by volume into three categories (one cubic foot or less; more than one cubic foot but less than 10 cubic yards; more than 10 cubic yards) with corresponding penalties: a class 2 civil infraction for the smallest amount (changed from class 3), a misdemeanor for the middle category (with the alternative of a natural resource infraction under chapter 7.84 RCW), and a gross misdemeanor for the largest amount. Discarding potentially dangerous litter in any amount is treated as a class 1 civil infraction. The bill also directs that abandoned junk vehicles be handled under RCW 46.55.230. The bill changes restitution and court procedures. Persons found liable or guilty must pay a litter clean-up restitution payment equal to four times actual cleanup costs for natural resource infractions and misdemeanors and two times actual cleanup costs for gross misdemeanors. Restitution is distributed so the landowner receives an amount equal to the actual cleanup cost and the remainder goes to the law enforcement agency that investigated the incident. Courts may order a person to pick up and remove litter (with the property owner's or managing agency's permission) instead of or in addition to restitution, and may suspend or modify restitution for a first-time offender who cleans up and properly disposes of the litter. If the violation occurs in a participating state park, the court must order 24 hours of community restitution in that park in addition to other penalties. The Department of Ecology must convene a task force to provide policy recommendations to the legislature aimed at ensuring at least as much litter is collected annually in Washington as is deposited. The task force membership must include representatives from multiple state agencies and industry and association stakeholders (listed in the bill), and the Department may contract with an independent third-party facilitator. The Department must file a status update by January 15, 2026, and a final report of recommendations by November 15, 2026. The text defines the litter volume categories but does not define the term "potentially dangerous litter" in the provided material; several cited statutory provisions (RCW 7.80.120; RCW 7.84.100; RCW 46.61.645(1); RCW 46.55.230; RCW 79A.05.050) are referenced for penalties or procedures but their contents are not included here, and the duplication of the Washington State Association of Counties in the membership list and further selection procedures for task force members are not explained in the extracted facts.

If enacted, the bill raises the real-world consequences for people who abandon junk vehicles or dump litter by carving out volume-based offense levels (small: ≤1 cubic foot; mid: >1 cubic foot to <10 cubic yards; large: >10 cubic yards) that carry progressively harsher penalties, and by requiring offenders to pay cleanup restitution at multiples of actual cleanup costs (four times for some infractions and misdemeanors, two times for gross misdemeanors). That change makes landowners more likely to recoup cleanup costs and sends the remainder of restitution to the investigating law enforcement agency, while courts can also order offenders to do the cleanup themselves (or impose community service in participating state parks); first-time offenders who actually clean up may get their payment suspended or modified. The Department of Ecology will need to convene a multi-stakeholder littering solutions task force (with specified agency and industry members), may hire an independent facilitator, and must report progress by January 15, 2026 and final recommendations by November 15, 2026. The groups most affected are individual dumpers (higher penalties and larger restitution obligations), landowners (more direct recovery of cleanup costs), law enforcement agencies (additional restitution revenue and investigative responsibilities), and the Department of Ecology (new convening and reporting duties). Businesses and trade groups named on the task force will need to engage in developing policy recommendations. The bill also treats any amount of “potentially dangerous litter” as a civil infraction, but the text provided does not define that term or include the cross-referenced statutes that explain some procedures and penalties, so some implementation details and exact penalty mechanics remain unclear.