The bill creates new, temporary tax exemptions by adding sections to chapter 82.08 RCW (sales tax) and chapter 82.12 RCW (use tax) to exempt sales and use of bait when used in commercial fishing. It defines "bait" and defines "commercial fishing" as businesses with a fishery license under chapter 77.65 RCW that catch food fish and shellfish for commercial purposes, and it expressly excludes fishing charter companies that provide recreational fishing for a fee. The exemptions and their statutory sections take effect January 1, 2026, and expire January 1, 2037. The measure establishes procedural requirements: qualifying businesses must apply to an unspecified "department" in the form and manner prescribed to obtain an exemption certificate; the certificate is considered issued on the date the department receives the application. Buyers must provide sellers the certificate in the department-prescribed form and manner, and sellers must retain a copy. No changes to criminal penalties are included in the extracted facts. The act includes a tax preference performance statement requiring the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee (JLARC) to review the exemption, including fiscal impact, comparisons to similar tax preferences, and other analyses JLARC deems necessary; JLARC may access state-collected data, including from the Department of Fish and Wildlife. The extracted facts do not identify which department administers the certificate process, contain an incomplete statutory reference in Section 3, and do not include the text of the external RCW provisions, application form content, enforcement procedures, or revenue estimates.

If enacted, starting January 1, 2026 commercial fishers who buy bait for use in licensed commercial fishing would no longer have to pay state sales or use tax on those bait purchases, provided they obtain an exemption certificate from the state department that issues the form and give a copy to sellers; sellers must keep that certificate on file. The exemption applies from the date the department receives the fisher’s application, reduces the immediate purchase cost of bait for qualifying businesses, and sunsets on January 1, 2037. The most affected parties are small and larger businesses that hold commercial fishery licenses (they may see lower operating costs but will need to apply for and present certificates) and bait sellers (they must collect and retain certificates and face compliance risk if they fail to do so). A state department (not identified here) must create and process the certificates, and the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee will later review the fiscal impact and compare this preference to similar tax preferences, using state data including from the Department of Fish and Wildlife. Important details are missing here: which specific department administers the certificates, the content and process of the application, enforcement and reporting rules, and any revenue estimates.