This bill creates a new two-year "extended foster care housing pilot program" by adding sections to chapter 74.13 RCW and chapter 13.34 RCW. The pilot starts January 1, 2027, may serve up to 50 youth who are enrolled in extended foster care under RCW 13.34.267 and who are either experiencing homelessness under RCW 13.34.030 or, subject to appropriations, are at imminent risk of homelessness. The department must conduct a competitive procurement to select contractor(s) to operate the pilot (or operate it itself if no outside entity is available) and must ensure the 50 eligible youth receive access to rental housing assistance. The bill establishes rental assistance rules and transition planning procedures: assistance may be provided for up to 24 months but not past a youth’s 21st birthday, and transition planning must begin at least three months before a youth turns 21. Rental assistance amounts are based on fair market rent for the youth’s location. A youth’s contribution toward rent, including the extended foster care subsidy, may not exceed 30% of adjusted gross income, except where rent and utilities exceed fair market rent in which case the contribution may not exceed 40% of adjusted gross income. The bill references federal housing voucher programs and the federal "foster youth to independence" program for equivalence or coordination but does not specify how that coordination is to occur. The bill imposes a reporting requirement: by June 30, 2029 the department must report specified program data to the appropriate legislative committees in compliance with RCW 43.01.036. Important details are not provided in the extracted text and remain unclear here: the specific agency named as "the department," the statutory definitions cited (for "experiencing homelessness," "extended foster care services," and "extended foster care subsidy"), funding or appropriation amounts, and operational details for ensuring and prioritizing enrollment or coordinating with federal programs. The bill identifier is Senate Bill 5940 (S-3680.2).

If enacted, the bill creates a two-year pilot starting January 1, 2027, that will pay rental assistance and related housing fees for up to 50 youth who are in extended foster care and are homeless or (if money is appropriated) imminently at risk of homelessness. Those youth could get assistance for up to 24 months, not past their 21st birthday, with payments tied to local fair market rent and limits that generally cap what the youth pays at 30% of their adjusted gross income (rising to 40% only if rent plus utilities exceed fair market rent). The agency running the program must hire contractors (or run the pilot itself if no contractors are available), do transition planning at least three months before a youth turns 21, and report program results to the legislature by June 30, 2029. Young people in extended foster care who meet the eligibility tests are the most directly affected and are likely to see more affordable housing options and short-term stability. The state agency and any selected contractors will take on new operational and reporting duties and will need funding to deliver the subsidies; the bill’s real ability to help depends on appropriations and other implementation details that are not specified here, including which department runs the pilot, exact definitions of eligibility, and how the pilot will coordinate with federal housing programs.