This bill adds a new chapter to Title 46 RCW and amends RCW 46.70.011, 46.70.180, 46.96.010, 46.96.105, 46.96.140, 46.96.185, and 46.96.230. It authorizes a narrowly defined class of “qualified zero emissions vehicle manufacturers” (entities that exclusively manufacture zero emissions vehicles and have no existing franchise agreements under chapter 46.96 RCW) to sell directly to consumers under conditions: the manufacturer must establish at least two in-state service centers and provide a mobile service before beginning direct sales, online sales must involve delivery through a designated service center/delivery center/partnered dealership, and vehicles sold by direct sale must carry warranties covering repairs and maintenance at designated service centers in accordance with chapter 19.118 RCW. Qualified manufacturers must also comply with chapter 19.86 RCW. The Department of Commerce is directed, subject to appropriations, to create a grant program for zero emissions vehicle technician training and publicly available charging infrastructure, to adopt rules to implement the program, and to make one-time grant awards for partnered dealers; dealers that meet specified zero-emission sales thresholds may receive additional grant awards through July 1, 2030, subject to appropriations. The responsible department must report annually to the Legislature beginning July 1, 2026, and the July 1, 2034 report must include a recommendation about retaining, modifying, or repealing the direct-sales authorization. The bill also makes multiple changes to dealer and manufacturer law, consumer protections, and enforcement procedures. It amends RCW 46.70.180 to identify numerous unlawful practices in advertising, sale, lease, and financing, establishes a four‑calendar‑day “bushing” notice period for conditional contracts, and sets documentary service fee caps and disclosure rules (general cap $200; up to $250 for zero emissions vehicles; up to $275 if the dealer meets Department of Ecology program standards), with written disclosure requirements before agreement execution. It strengthens title, damage, odometer, warranty, and “on deposit” trust-account protections (including making specified odometer offenses a class C felony punishable under chapter 9A.20 RCW), requires prompt warranty claim processing and payment (dealer claims submitted within 90 days; manufacturers must approve/disapprove within 30 days or the claim is deemed approved and payable within 30 days), limits manufacturer chargebacks and audits (nine months for most audits, longer where fraud is alleged), and bans offering subscription services for vehicle features that use hardware already installed at purchase except for enumerated exceptions. The bill further revises franchise and competition rules between manufacturers and dealers: it prescribes notice and relevant market area rules for new or relocated dealers (including 10-, 12-, or 16‑mile radii for certain county population brackets as specified), prohibits many forms of manufacturer discrimination and unfair competition with franchised dealers while listing specific exceptions for temporary ownership and other narrowly defined situations, requires manufacturer disclosure and fair compensation practices for dealer warranty work and parts, and sets procedural protections for dealer management changes, facility alterations, and franchise modifications. These are regulatory and procedural changes governing dealer-manufacturer relations, plus programmatic changes via the Commerce grant program and criminal/penalty specifications for certain unlawful acts. The extracted text is incomplete in several places: the new chapter number is not shown, some amended subsections and definitions are only partially present, the Department of Ecology’s zero emissions program standards referenced are not provided, and specific grant award amounts, application procedures, and certain cutoff provisions are not included in the material provided. Those details are therefore not summarized here.

If enacted, the bill creates a way for manufacturers that only make zero emissions vehicles and have no existing dealer franchises to sell directly to Washington consumers — but only after they open at least two in-state service centers, provide mobile service, and offer warranties that can be repaired at designated service centers. The Department of Commerce must run a grants program (subject to available appropriations) to help traditional franchised dealers pay for publicly available charging equipment and employee training; dealers that meet state ecology standards and sell at least half their vehicles as zero emissions vehicles can get larger grant awards through July 1, 2030, and partnered dealers can receive a one-time servicing grant. The Commerce Department must adopt rules for the grant program and report annually starting in 2026, with a 2034 report recommending whether to keep, change, or end the direct-sales allowance. The people and organizations most affected are the qualified zero-emission manufacturers (who gain a new sales option but face upfront costs and ongoing responsibilities to build service capacity, meet warranty and consumer‑protection rules, and comply with Ecology standards), franchised dealers (who gain grant and training funding opportunities, stronger payment and warranty-claim protections, and limits on some manufacturer practices, but may also face adjusted documentary service fee caps for ZEV sales), and consumers (who will see required damage disclosures, negotiable documentary fees, warranty coverage at designated centers, and other consumer protections). Important details that will affect how this works in practice — such as exact grant amounts, the Department of Ecology’s standards, and some implementation specifics referenced in the bill — are not provided in the extracted facts.