This bill amends RCW 43.20B.030 to change procedures and time limits for the Department of Social and Health Services to collect overpayments and other debts. It is a procedural change to debt-collection law (not a new crime or penalty increase) that restates or establishes statutory limits, compromise and write-off authority, and rulemaking duties for the department. Key changes include: a six-year limit on collection of overpayments or other debts measured from the date of notice, unless the department has commenced recovery in court or an authorized administrative remedy is in place; amounts subject to recovery action or administrative remedy cease to be debts ten years after the date of notice unless a court-ordered remedy extends collection; and no collection after 20 years from the date a lien is recorded under RCW 43.20B.080. The department is authorized to accept compromise offers and grant partial or total write-offs when collection is no longer cost-effective and must adopt rules on the considerations for granting or denying write-offs. The department may also waive collection efforts under the equitable estoppel standard in WAC 388-02-0495 as it existed on January 1, 2012, notwithstanding certain RCW provisions. Beginning July 1, 2025, the department may waive all efforts to collect unintentional overpayments from recipients of the aged, blind, or disabled assistance program (RCW 74.62.030) and from functionally disabled clients receiving services under chapters 74.39, 74.39A, and 71A.12 RCW; the department must adopt rules describing circumstances for such waivers. The act declares an emergency and takes effect July 1, 2025. The text provided does not define "unintentional overpayments" or "functionally disabled clients," does not include the content of WAC 388-02-0495 as of January 1, 2012, and does not contain the specific rule language the department must adopt.

If enacted, the law would make it easier for some older or small debts to be dropped and give the Department of Social and Health Services broader discretion to accept compromises and write off overpayments, and to stop collection entirely for certain groups starting July 1, 2025. People receiving aged, blind, or disabled assistance and clients described as functionally disabled who receive services under the named chapters are most likely to see reduced collection pressure and a higher chance that past overpayments will be waived, especially where pursuing recovery is not cost‑effective or where equitable estoppel applies. For DSHS and state finances, that means likely lower collections from long‑standing or low‑value debts but also lower administrative costs from not pursuing unproductive cases; liens and court recovery options will have clearer time limits. The exact scope of who qualifies and the scale of fiscal impact are uncertain because the bill text here does not define “unintentional overpayments” or “functionally disabled clients,” nor does it include the detailed rules the department must adopt to implement waivers and write‑offs.