This bill creates a new statutory section in chapter 46.30 RCW requiring the Washington State Department of Licensing to establish an online, common carrier–based motor vehicle liability insurance verification system. The system must be accessible only to authorized users (department staff, courts, law enforcement, and limited insurer access), interface with state data systems, accept insurer requests electronically using multiple data elements (for example NAIC company code, VIN, policy number), secure data, and retain a historical record of requests and responses for six to 12 months. Most insurers licensed in Washington must participate and provide verification for vehicles they insure in Washington, may use third-party vendors, and are required to keep verification records for up to six months; insurers are immune from civil and administrative liability for good faith compliance. The department may contract with private providers, pilot the system within 12 months without enforcing certain existing renewal rules, must consult industry representatives, publish guidance for comment, and must have the system fully operational by April 1, 2029. The bill also amends existing law. It changes RCW 46.16A.130 to require the department to notify owners about liability insurance requirements at original registration and renewal and, beginning April 1, 2029, to verify insurance at renewal for specified vehicle classes either through the new online system, in-person presentation of an insurance ID or other proof to a vehicle licensing agent, or by physical/electronic proof submitted with renewal; renewals may be withheld until verification or proof is received and the department must adopt implementing rules that consider equity and environmental justice. It amends RCW 46.30.020 to restate financial responsibility proof formats, the presumption created by failure to display proof, that failure to provide proof is a traffic infraction enforceable only as a secondary action, protections for proof displayed on portable electronic devices, and procedures for dismissal of citations on proof of compliance (including a possible $25 administrative cost). It amends RCW 46.63.110 and related provisions to impose immediate, civil-judgment-enforceable monetary obligations for traffic infractions, require payment plans for those unable to pay, assess non-reducible per-infraction fees ($5 to emergency medical services and trauma care, $10 to the state general fund, $10 to the traumatic brain injury account), add a generally nonwaivable $24 penalty with specified remittances (including $12.50 to the state treasurer, of which $4 is deposited to a newly created driver licensing technology support account), set a penalty schedule for RCW 46.37.395 ($250/$500/$750), and create the driver licensing technology support account in the highway safety fund to pay for the verification system and related IT. The Department of Licensing must adopt rules by April 1, 2028, sections 1–6 take effect April 1, 2028, and the department must report by October 1, 2030 on costs and effectiveness. This is a mix of new law (the online verification section and a new funding account), statutory amendments (to RCW 46.16A.130, 46.30.020, and 46.63.110), procedural changes (insurance verification at renewal, recordkeeping, rulemaking, and pilot testing), and changes to fee and penalty structures (new nonreducible fees, an additional $24 penalty with distribution rules, and specified penalties for a particular statute). The provided text is incomplete in places: the amendment to RCW 46.63.110 is cut off in the material supplied, the new section in chapter 46.30 RCW is not numbered here, and the bill’s text does not specify the exact vehicle classes subject to renewal verification or complete remittance formulas; those details may appear in other parts of the bill not included in the extracted facts.

If enacted, the Department of Licensing must build and run a statewide online motor vehicle insurance verification system, adopt implementing rules by April 1, 2028, and have the system fully operating by April 1, 2029, with a pilot allowed in the first year. Most auto insurers licensed in Washington will have to provide verification for every Washington-insured vehicle, keep verification records up to six months, and meet department response-time rules (smaller insurers may be allowed an alternate reporting method); the department will keep system records six to 12 months, may hire private vendors, and must report by October 1, 2030 on costs and effectiveness. Beginning April 1, 2029, the department can block vehicle renewals for specified classes until insurance is verified or proof is presented in person or electronically, and some penalties and fines are redirected to create a driver licensing technology support account to help pay for the system. The biggest impacts fall to the Department of Licensing (new technical build, rulemaking, ongoing operations, and reporting), insurers (technical and administrative costs to feed the system or use vendors, but immunity for good-faith compliance and a small-insurer alternative), and vehicle owners (risk of denied renewals if insurance isn’t verified or proof isn’t provided). Local courts and treasurers will handle new fee flows and collection rules, including immediate enforceability of certain penalties and specified per-infraction fee distributions that partly fund the system. Important details are missing from the provided text—notably which vehicle classes are subject to automatic renewal checks, the remainder of the amendment to the penalty statute, and some revenue allocation specifics—so exact operational and fiscal effects for some parties remain uncertain.