House Bill 2465 (H-2798.1), 69th Legislature, 2026 Regular Session, would add new sections to chapter 43.70 RCW and chapter 64.37 RCW requiring the department referenced in chapter 43.70 RCW to create and post a user safety guide for "water recreation facilities" on the department's website, require local authorities that issue short-term rental business licenses to publish that guide on their websites, and require short-term rentals with a water recreation facility to post the guide in a prominent place near the facility. The bill references the definition of "water recreation facility" in RCW 70.90.110. These are procedural changes creating new publication and posting requirements (new law added), not changes to criminal penalties or creation of new crimes. The text provided does not identify which specific department is meant, does not include the text of RCW 70.90.110 so the exact scope of "water recreation facility" is unclear, and it does not specify the required content of the safety guide, any effective dates, compliance deadlines, enforcement mechanisms, or penalties. The bill was read for the first time on 01/14/26 and referred to the Committee on Consumer Protection & Business.

If enacted, a state agency will need to create and publish a user safety guide for places with pools, spas, or other water recreation facilities and local governments that issue short‑term rental business licenses will have to post that same guide on their websites. Short‑term rental properties that have a pool, spa, or other water recreation facility must also display the guide in a prominent place near the facility. That means the immediate work and costs fall on the unnamed state department (staff time to draft and host the guide), on local licensing authorities (web posting and possible administrative updates), and on short‑term rental operators with water features (printing and displaying the guide); these are likely modest one‑time and ongoing administrative costs, and could change how operators manage guest information and safety communications. Key implementation details are missing from the provided text, so it’s unclear which state department is responsible, exactly what counts as a “water recreation facility,” what content the guide must include, whether the state will provide funding or templates, and how compliance will be checked or enforced. Those gaps make it uncertain how much time or money local governments and rental operators will ultimately need to comply or whether the requirement will affect liability or inspection practices.