This act creates a new state tax and a new chapter in Title 82 RCW that imposes an 11 percent tax on the selling price of each retail sale of a firearm, parts for a firearm, and ammunition, effective January 1, 2026. The tax is explicitly in addition to existing federal, state, and local sales and use taxes. Sales to state, local, or tribal governments when buying to supply law enforcement agencies are exempt. The Legislature states its intent that revenue collected during the 2025–2027 biennium be appropriated to agencies and programs focused on gun violence prevention, domestic violence prevention, suicide prevention programs, and victims services, but no specific appropriation mechanism or allocations are provided in the extracted text. The bill also amends RCW 82.32.145 to classify this new tax as a “trust fund tax,” adds detailed definitions (for example, chief executive, chief financial officer, responsible individual, and a definition of insolvency for collection purposes), and makes Chapter 82.32 RCW applicable to administration of the tax with the department authorized to adopt rules. It references collection warrant and appeal procedures in existing RCW sections and states that RCW 82.32.805 and 82.32.808 do not apply. These are procedural and collection-law changes rather than creation of a new criminal offense; the extracted text does not itself create new criminal penalties, but it brings the tax within existing trust-fund collection provisions. The text repeatedly refers to “the department” without identifying which state department is meant, does not define “parts for a firearm,” and does not provide the detailed appropriation or allocation method for the stated 2025–2027 biennium uses. Several external RCW definitions cited (for firearms, law enforcement agency, manager/member, etc.) are referenced but not reproduced in the extracted facts.

Starting January 1, 2026, retail buyers of firearms, ammunition, and firearm parts would face an added 11% tax on top of existing state and local sales taxes, which will likely raise retail prices or reduce sellers’ margins. Firearm retailers will have new collection and remittance duties and may face stricter enforcement: the tax is treated as a trust fund tax, so if a seller or its business entity fails to remit the tax, officers, managers, or other “responsible individuals” can be pursued for unpaid amounts and collection warrants, and normal tax appeal and collection procedures apply. Sales by state, local, or tribal governments to arm law enforcement are exempt, and an unspecified state department will write rules to administer the tax. The legislature intends revenue collected in the 2025–2027 biennium to go to gun violence prevention, domestic violence and suicide prevention programs, and victim services, so those programs could see new funding during that budget cycle, but this excerpt does not set exact allocation amounts or the formal appropriation mechanism. It is unclear from the provided text which department will administer the tax and how “parts for a firearm” are defined, so some implementation details and compliance obligations remain unspecified.