This bill proposes statewide preemption of local regulation in two areas: controls on the amount of rent and regulations of the landlord-tenant relationship. It amends two existing Washington statutes, RCW 35.21.830 (cities and towns) and RCW 36.01.130 (counties), to prohibit those local governments from enacting, maintaining, or enforcing ordinances or other provisions that (a) regulate the amount of rent for most single-family or multi-unit residential rental properties, or (b) regulate any agreement between a landlord and tenant entered into under chapters 59.18 and 59.20 RCW. The amendments expressly exempt properties in public ownership or under public management and properties providing low-income rental housing under joint public-private agreements. The bill also adds a new legislative findings section describing conflicts between local landlord-tenant regulations and the state residential landlord-tenant act and states an intent to create statewide consistency; it cites specific local jurisdictions and reports. The amended sections include a nonlimiting clause stating the prohibition is not to be construed as preventing local governments from entering into agreements with private persons that regulate or control rent amounts. Legally, this is a modification of existing law that creates statewide preemption of local rent controls and local regulation of landlord-tenant agreements in the specified categories. The provided text does not include any implementing provisions such as an effective date, enforcement mechanisms, penalties, or formal definitions beyond the phrases used in the amendments; if those items exist they are not included in the extracted facts. The bill was read for the first time on 02/04/25 and referred to the Committee on Housing.

If enacted, the bill would remove city and county authority to set or enforce rent limits or to regulate the terms of landlord-tenant agreements covered by Washington’s residential landlord-tenant laws for most privately owned singleand multiunit rental housing, while leaving rules for publicly owned/managed properties and certain low-income public-private projects unchanged. Practically, cities and counties lose a policy tool and enforcement duties in these areas, landlords will face a more uniform statewide rule instead of a patchwork of local rules, and tenants in jurisdictions that now have local rent or tenant protections would likely lose those additional protections. Local governments may see reduced enforcement costs and fewer local regulatory options, while landlords may save on local compliance efforts; tenants may face higher rent pressure or fewer contract protections where local controls are repealed. The text provided does not say when the changes would take effect or how they would be enforced or penalized, so timing and implementation details are unclear.