House Bill 1446 (H-0589.1) amends existing law—RCW 1.16.050—and adds a new findings section. The bill renames the state holiday now commonly called Presidents' Day to "George Washington's Birthday (observed)" and revises RCW 1.16.050(1)(d) to state that the third Monday in February is to be known and celebrated as the anniversary of George Washington's birth. The bill includes legislative findings about Washington and notes that February 22 was historically observed federally as George Washington's Birthday. The amended RCW restates the list of state legal holidays and the rules governing paid and unpaid holidays, weekend observance, recognition when state and federal holidays differ, and days recognized but not legal holidays. The enumerated legal holidays in the bill are: January 1 (New Year's Day); third Monday in January (Martin Luther King Jr.); third Monday in February (George Washington's Birthday, observed); last Monday in May (Memorial Day); June 19 (Juneteenth); July 4 (Independence Day); first Monday in September (Labor Day); November 11 (Veterans Day); fourth Thursday in November (Thanksgiving Day); the Friday after that Thursday (Native American Heritage Day); and December 25 (Christmas Day). The bill specifies employee entitlements and procedures: most state employees are entitled to one additional paid holiday per year (with exceptions for certain school district employees and specified nonclassified higher-education employees), employees may select that day after consultation with their employer under promulgated guidelines, and all state and political subdivision employees are entitled to two unpaid holidays per year for reasons of faith or conscience unless the absence would impose an "undue hardship" or the employee is necessary to maintain public safety. It also clarifies whether state or federal holidays are recognized for pay purposes by state employees and by port districts and certain municipal employees. The change is a statutory amendment and procedural/terminology change rather than a new crime or penalty change. Affected parties include state and political subdivision employees, school district employees, certain nonclassified higher-education employees, employers and personnel authorities, port districts, municipal law enforcement and public transit employees, public higher education institutions, and the Office of Financial Management (for rulemaking on the meaning of "undue hardship" under RCW 43.41.109). The extracted text does not include an effective date or implementation timeline, does not specify placement or content of any additional new statutory sections beyond the findings, and does not say whether other statutes or administrative rules must be updated.

If enacted, the law would mostly change the official name used by the state for the third Monday in February to "George Washington's Birthday (observed)" while leaving the date and the rest of the holiday rules intact. The people who will feel this directly are state and local employers and employees, school districts, public colleges, port districts, and municipal law enforcement and transit agencies: they will need to update payroll and HR materials, calendars, websites, signage, and internal guidance to reflect the new name, which will cause small administrative costs and staff time but no new paid holiday liabilities because the number and timing of holidays stay the same. The Office of Financial Management will likely have to finalize or reference an "undue hardship" rule for religious leave as noted, so agencies should watch for administrative guidance, but the bill text here gives no effective date or full list of any other required statutory or rule updates, so the timing and scope of implementation work remain unclear.