This bill amends RCW 9.91.060 to add criminal prohibitions for leaving young children unattended in parked automobiles. It makes a person who has care and custody (temporary or permanent) of a minor child under age 12 guilty of a gross misdemeanor if the person leaves that child unattended by an adult in a parked automobile while the person enters a tavern or other premises where alcohol is dispensed for on-premises consumption. It also makes a person who has care and custody (temporary or permanent) of a minor child under age nine guilty of a misdemeanor if the person knowingly leaves the child unattended by an adult in a parked automobile. The bill also appropriates $100,000, or as much as necessary, from the general fund to the Department of Health for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, to promote awareness of this act and the dangers of leaving young children unattended in a vehicle. Affected parties identified in the text include the Department of Health and persons who have care and custody of young children; the bill was read first time 01/14/25 and was referred to the Senate Committee on Law & Justice. The bill is identified as SENATE BILL 5237 (S-0538.1), 69th Legislature, 2025 Regular Session. The extracted text does not show an effective date, does not include the prior text of RCW 9.91.060 for exact comparison, and does not provide statutory definitions for "adult," "parked automobile," or "knowingly" within this excerpt. The chunk also does not state specific jail terms or fine amounts associated with the misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor classifications, and it is unclear whether other sections of the bill exist beyond what is provided here.

If enacted, adults who have temporary or permanent care of children will face new criminal exposure for leaving kids alone in a parked car: knowingly leaving a child under 9 alone in a parked car becomes a misdemeanor, and leaving a child under 12 alone in a parked car while the caregiver goes into a tavern or other on‑site alcohol‑serving business becomes a gross misdemeanor. That is likely to make parents, other caregivers, and people dropping off children at errands or bars more cautious about leaving any child alone in vehicles because they could be charged, though the bill does not spell out the specific penalties, what counts as an “adult,” how long a child must be left alone, or the effective date. The Department of Health will receive up to $100,000 from the general fund for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, to run awareness efforts about the law and the dangers of leaving young children in vehicles, so there will be some state-funded public education but no additional enforcement budget provided in the text. Important details are missing from the extracted facts—such as exact penalty amounts or jail terms, definitions of “knowingly” and “adult,” and the law’s effective date—so how aggressively the new offenses are applied and how much behavior will change in practice is uncertain.