This bill amends RCW 84.52.069 to change how certain emergency medical services (EMS) property tax levies may be imposed. It authorizes taxing districts (counties, EMS districts, cities/towns, hospital districts, urban EMS districts, regional fire protection service authorities, and fire protection districts) to impose additional regular property tax levies up to $0.50 per $1,000 assessed value for EMS purposes, with levy duration options of six consecutive years, 10 consecutive years, or permanently. The amendment modifies voter authorization rules: a permanent levy or the initial imposition of a sixor 10-year levy generally must be approved by voters with a higher turnout-based threshold requiring at least three-fifths of registered voters under specified turnout rules, while subsequent approvals of sixor 10-year levies require a majority of registered voters approving the proposition. Ballot propositions must follow RCW 29A.36.210 and a taxing district may not submit multiple propositions under this section at the same election. The bill also establishes operational and procedural requirements: permanent levies require separate accounting of revenues with a statement updated at least every two years and made publicly available for free; permanent levies are subject to an exclusive referendum petition procedure with specified filing officer duties, signature thresholds, and certification timelines; revenues from the tax may be used only for emergency medical care or services and related costs; and the tax is exempt from certain existing levy limitations in RCW 84.52.043 and from the limitation in RCW 84.55.010 for the first levy following voter approval. County-level rules are added, including that if a county levies the tax no other taxing district in the county may levy it (with specified exceptions and adjustments), countywide levies must provide countywide service as feasible, and certain city approvals are required before placing a countywide levy on the ballot. The bill also provides a procedure allowing a fire protection district that is only partially overlaid by another district’s EMS levy to submit a levy for the nonoverlay portion under specified conditions. Procedural details specified include filing officer responsibilities (issue petition identification and ballot title within 10 days), a 30-day period for petitioners to gather signatures, a required signature threshold of at least 15% of registered voters measured as of the last general election, and a requirement that the filing officer verify signatures and, if sufficient, certify the referendum to the next election within 180 days or to a special election under RCW 29A.04.330. Definitions of “taxing district,” “fire protection jurisdiction,” and “participating fire protection jurisdiction” are included. The extracted text reflects only amendments to RCW 84.52.069; it does not include other sections of the bill, legislative findings, fiscal impact statements, election turnout data used for the three‑fifths threshold, or final enactment status.

If enacted, the bill would give counties, emergency medical service districts, cities, public hospital districts, regional fire authorities and fire districts a clear, limited new option to raise money for emergency medical care and services by levying up to $0.50 per $1,000 of assessed value for either six years, ten years, or permanently, subject to voter approval. That can produce a significant new local revenue stream for staffing, training, equipment, vehicles, supplies and related structures where voters agree, but a county levy generally preempts other districts in the same county, so counties can centralize funding and block overlapping local levies; countywide levies must also meet extra procedural checks, including approval from a supermajority of larger cities before going on the ballot. Affected governments and officials should expect new administrative and public‑oversight requirements and some new risks: permanent levies require separate accounting that must be updated at least every two years and made publicly available, and they are subject to an exclusive referendum process (petition issuance and title within 10 days, 30 days to gather signatures equal to 15% of registered voters, verification and certification timelines), which can delay or challenge revenue flow. The bill leaves out final fiscal impact numbers, other statutory changes elsewhere in the bill, and the specific turnout figures that determine some voter approval thresholds, so the exact practical effects on revenues and timing in any jurisdiction are uncertain without that additional information.