This bill amends two Washington statutes (RCW 46.20.2892 and RCW 46.20.311) to change administrative driver licensing procedures and penalties. Under the amended RCW 46.20.2892, a driver who commits moving-violation infractions on three or more occasions within one year, or four or more within two years, must have their license suspended for 60 days and then be placed on probation for one calendar year beginning when the suspension ends. Before reinstatement after that suspension the person must complete a safe driving course recommended by the licensing department. If the person completes the course after notice of a pending suspension, the department must terminate the 60-day suspension early and begin the one-year probation that day; this early termination option may be used only once every five years. Any moving-violation infraction during the probation period triggers an additional 30-day suspension to run consecutively with any suspension already being served, and a person is not eligible for early reinstatement if they violate probation. The department must send warning notice when a driver has two infractions in one year or three in two years that an additional infraction will result in a 60-day suspension. The statute also clarifies that multiple infractions issued during or resulting from a single traffic stop count as one occasion, and the department may not charge a reissue fee at the end of the suspension imposed under this section. The amended RCW 46.20.311 revises broader licensing eligibility, reinstatement, and fee rules. It reiterates that the department generally may not impose a fixed suspension longer than one year and that many suspensions based on conviction or specified administrative actions remain in effect until the person gives and maintains proof of financial responsibility. For nonfelony violations of RCW 46.61.502 or 46.61.504 and certain related violations, the department must base eligibility for reinstatement on reports from designated substance use disorder agencies or probation departments and may deny reinstatement until enrollment, participation, or satisfactory progress in an approved program is established. For suspensions or revocations tied to ignition interlock requirements, the department relies on written verification from interlock companies (with limited waiver authority) and must suspend licenses if a required device is no longer installed or functioning. Child-support certification suspensions remain until a release from the Department of Social and Health Services. The bill specifies reissue fee amounts in various circumstances (generally $75, or $170 for certain DUIor refusal-related matters and some administrative actions) and explains restoration timing and fees after revocation. The act names the Department of Licensing, Department of Social and Health Services, designated substance use disorder agencies, probation departments, and interlock companies as affected parties and takes effect April 1, 2026. The text provided does not explicitly define “the department,” does not include the prior versions of the amended sections for direct comparison, and does not specify the content, approval standards, or verification procedures for the safe driving course or for program enrollment and progress beyond referencing agency reports and recommendations.

If this law takes effect April 1, 2026, drivers who accrue three moving-violation infractions in one year or four in two years will likely lose their license for 60 days and then be on one year of probation. They can avoid serving the full 60 days by completing a department-recommended safe driving course, but that early reinstatement option can only be used once every five years; any moving-violation during the subsequent probation triggers an extra 30-day suspension that cannot be shortened by the early-reinstatement rule, and the department must warn drivers after two infractions in one year (or three in two years) that another infraction will cause the 60-day suspension. The department also may not charge a reissue fee at the end of the specific 60-day suspension under this section. The Department of Licensing will bear the new operational duties of issuing warnings, accepting course completions to end suspensions early, and imposing consecutive suspensions for probation violations; other agencies and businesses—such as DSHS for child support releases, designated substance-use agencies and probation departments for program enrollment reports, and companies that install ignition interlock devices for verification—will be relied on to confirm compliance for other types of suspensions. Drivers face likely costs for safe driving courses and, in many other suspension or revocation situations, standard reissue fees ($75 generally, $170 for DUIor certain alcohol/drug-related cases); key details about what counts as an approved course, how program enrollment or progress is verified, and the precise meaning of “the department” are not provided in the extracted text.