This bill amends RCW 43.43.386 to establish a new state trooper longevity bonus and a one-time retention incentive and to add quarterly staffing reporting requirements. Beginning July 1, 2024, eligible commissioned employees (those with 26 or more years of service in the Washington State Patrol retirement system) qualify for an annual longevity bonus of $15,000, paid on the employee’s state employment anniversary date in four equal quarterly payments. Employees who had 26 or more years of service before July 1, 2024 and who have been continuously employed by the Washington State Patrol for at least one year as of the effective date of the section qualify for a one-time retention incentive equal to $3,750 multiplied by (the fiscal quarter number of the employee’s anniversary date minus one); that incentive must be completed no later than June 30, 2025. The longevity bonus is subject to changes through collective bargaining, is explicitly excluded from salary or average final salary for pension calculations under the referenced chapter, the legislature may alter or abolish these benefits under chapter 237, Laws of 2024, and the amended section expires June 30, 2029. The act contains an emergency clause and takes effect immediately. The Washington State Patrol must begin quarterly reports on July 15, 2024 and every three months thereafter to the Office of Financial Management and the legislature’s transportation committees, showing average filled field force trooper positions compared to 683 authorized field force trooper positions in the prior fiscal quarter (the authorized level may be adjusted by the omnibus transportation appropriations act). The bill defines the fiscal quarter numbering for anniversary calculations. Affected parties include Washington State Patrol employees, their exclusive bargaining representatives, the Office of Financial Management, and the legislature’s transportation committees. The text references chapter 237, Laws of 2024 and other statutes but does not include the full contents of that chapter or the precise effective date used to determine the one-year continuous-employment condition, and it does not show any adjustments to the 683 authorized trooper baseline.

If enacted, senior Washington State Patrol commissioned officers with at least 26 years of service will become eligible for a recurring $15,000 yearly longevity payment (paid in four quarterly installments) starting July 1, 2024, and some already-eligible troopers can receive a one-time retention payment that must be paid by June 30, 2025. Practically, this will increase near-term payroll costs for the state and give long-serving troopers extra take-home pay while not increasing pensionable salary; collective bargaining can alter the exact terms and the legislature can change or end the benefit, and the whole provision expires June 30, 2029. The Patrol will also face a new reporting duty: beginning July 15, 2024 and every three months it must report average filled field force trooper positions compared to a 683 authorized baseline to the Office of Financial Management and legislative transportation committees, which may increase administrative work and expose staffing shortfalls that could influence future budget or hiring decisions. It is unclear from the provided text exactly which effective date is used to judge continuous employment for the one-time payment and which pension chapter is meant by "this chapter," and the 683 authorized level could be changed later by the omnibus transportation appropriations act.