The bill creates a new law by adding new sections to chapter 28B.30 RCW to establish a Heritage Orchard Program at Washington State University. The program must, at minimum, maintain a registry of heritage orchards in Washington, provide resources to preserve heritage orchards, propagate rare and lost apple cultivars for backyard and commercial production, and develop and maintain a list of rare and lost apple varieties. The bill defines "heritage orchard" as either an orchard with at least five apple trees that are more than 74 years old or an orchard with at least one tree of a rare or lost apple variety as defined by the Heritage Orchard Program. Washington State University is required to establish the program. The bill text is labeled as NEW SECTION Sec. 1 (findings) and NEW SECTION Sec. 2 (program provisions). It was read for the first time on 01/13/26, referred to the Committee on Higher Education & Workforce Development, and sponsored by Senators Braun, Conway, Lovelett, Schoesler, Shewmake, and Wellman. The extracted text does not specify an exact RCW section number within chapter 28B.30, any funding source or appropriation, a deadline or timeline for establishing the program, nor a definition of "rare or lost apple variety" beyond assignment of that definition to the program itself. No changes to penalties or criminal procedures are included in the provided text.

If enacted, Washington State University would be required to create and run a heritage orchard program that keeps a registry of qualifying orchards, provides resources to preserve them, propagates rare and lost apple cultivars for backyard and commercial use, and maintains a list of those varieties. That assigns new ongoing duties to WSU staff and extension services, gives owners of older or rare-tree orchards a role in a formal registry and access to preservation help, and gives backyard and commercial growers a potential new source of propagated rare apple varieties. The bill defines a heritage orchard as either at least five apple trees older than 74 years or at least one tree of a rare or lost variety, but the program itself must define what “rare or lost” means. The text does not identify funding or a deadline for establishing the program, so WSU would likely need to reallocate resources or wait for a legislative appropriation, creating uncertainty about timing and costs; the proposal would be added as a new section to chapter 28B.30 RCW and has been referred to the Higher Education & Workforce Development committee.