Senate Bill 5056 creates a new Washington State Patrol (WSP) firearms background check program and automated background check system, and it amends existing law (RCW 43.43.580 and RCW 9.41.090) to require dealers to use that system. The bill establishes a centralized single point of contact for dealers with web and phone access, unique transaction identifiers, automated responses, data security and performance metrics, and a required link to the Administrative Office of the Courts case management system. It changes procedure by requiring WSP to check the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) and specified state and federal records, to perform equivalency analysis for out-of-jurisdiction convictions, and to provide an appeal procedure and access to the basis for any denial. The bill imposes administrative duties and fees rather than creating new crimes or criminal penalties: dealers must collect a background-check fee set to cover system operating and maintenance costs, capped at $18, and remit fees to the state treasurer for deposit into the state firearms background check system account; pawnbroker pawn and redemption transactions are exempt from the fee. Other procedural requirements include dealers transmitting application information via SAFE by the end of the business day, retaining original applications for six years, purchasers showing proof of recognized firearm safety training or exemption before delivery, WSP consulting with the Washington background check advisory board, WSP reporting average processing times by July 1, 2025 and annually thereafter, and WSP records related to background checks being exempt from public inspection under chapter 42.56 RCW. If Washington state record systems are inaccessible for seven consecutive days, WSP may use a limited alternative checking procedure. Some details are incomplete in the provided text: portions of the amended RCW 9.41.090 are cut off, and the full statutory definitions referenced (for example the full text of RCW 9.41.010 defining “dealer”) and any additional amendments not contained in the extracted facts are not available here.

If enacted, the Washington State Patrol would become the central operator of an automated firearms background check program that dealers must use within 30 days of WSP notification. Dealers will need to transmit purchaser information by the end of the business day, keep original applications for six years, and collect a per-transfer fee (set to cover annual operation and maintenance costs but capped at $18) that they remit to the state treasurer; pawnbroker pawn and redemption transactions are exempt from the fee. Purchasers will generally have to show proof of recent firearms safety training or an exemption before a dealer can deliver a firearm, and the WSP must run NICS and other specified checks, provide an appeal process for denials, link to the courts’ case system, report average processing times annually, and keep background-check records exempt from public inspection. The most affected parties are the Washington State Patrol, which gains significant new operational duties and will rely on collected fees to fund the program; licensed dealers, who face added administrative work, recordkeeping, and a capped per-transfer cost; and purchasers, who will need to provide safety training proof. There is also a practical trade-off: if state record systems are unavailable for seven consecutive days, WSP may proceed with a limited set of checks, which could increase the chance of missed prohibiting records in that window. Some details are unclear from the provided text, including the full statutory definition of “dealer” referenced by RCW 9.41.010 and the cut-off portion of the amended section, so the exact scope of affected transactions cannot be fully confirmed.