This bill creates a new claims commission housed in the Office of Administrative Hearings to adjudicate tort claims against the state and its political subdivisions, or their officers, employees, or volunteers. It establishes a new chapter in Title 4 RCW and amends multiple existing RCW sections (including RCW 4.92.030, 4.92.040, 4.96.041, 4.92.110, 4.96.020, 4.92.130, 4.92.160, 4.92.220, 34.05.425, and 34.12.040). The commission uses chapter 34.05 RCW procedures, defines “tortious conduct” narrowly, creates a neutral hearing officer position with specified qualifications and trauma-informed training, and requires claimants to choose either an expedited examiner track (lower fee and summary process) or a contested hearing track (higher fee, required evidence packet, and set scheduling and disclosure deadlines). Claims for personal injury that occurred 10 or more years before filing (or after the claimant turned 18, whichever is later) must be brought to the commission before a civil suit; more recent claims may be filed in the commission or in court, but courts must dismiss suits if the same claim is later filed in the commission. Filing with the commission tolls applicable statutes of limitation. The bill changes procedures for adjudication, confidentiality, appeals, and state liability funding. Neutral hearing officers may allow remote appearances, must issue written findings within 30 days after a hearing, and their decisions and information exchanged in commission proceedings are confidential and inadmissible in other proceedings except to enforce a judgment. Any aggrieved party may reject a neutral officer’s determination and file suit in superior court within 30 days of receipt; superior courts may award costs and fees against a party that appeals and fails to improve their position. The Office of Risk Management and a liability account and a risk management administration account are given specific roles: the liability account (nonappropriated) pays judgments and defense costs under stated conditions and is financed by agency premiums, and the risk management administration account funds claim administration and pass-through insurance costs. The bill requires agency reporting and legislative review for large awards ($5,000,000 or more) and directs the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee to review the commission with specified metrics. Legally, the act creates a new adjudicative forum and makes substantive procedural changes to how tort claims against the state and local entities are presented, processed, and paid; it is therefore a mix of new law (new chapter and commission) and amendments to existing law. The text provided is incomplete in places: the extract omits the remainder of some subsections and does not include details on how awards are calculated, standards of proof, potential caps or limits on liability, some appeal standards, and other procedural and enforcement provisions that likely appear elsewhere in the bill. Section timing shown in the extract: most provisions take effect immediately, section 13 expires June 30, 2033, and section 14 takes effect June 30, 2033.

If enacted, the bill creates an administrative claims commission inside the Office of Administrative Hearings that will be the required path for many tort claims against the state and its political subdivisions—especially older childhood-injury claims (those occurring 10+ years before filing or when the claimant turned 18). Claimants must pick either a low-cost expedited examiner track ($250) or a formal hearing track ($5,000) with rules that toll filing deadlines, require production of records within set timelines, allow remote appearances, keep hearing materials confidential, and permit a 30‑day window to sue in superior court after a commission decision (with fee-shifting if an appeal fails to improve a party’s outcome). Large awards of $5 million or more trigger mandatory reporting and a legislative hearing within 12 months. The groups most affected will be state agencies, local governments, the Office of Risk Management, and claimants and their lawyers. State and local entities must appoint agents and use a standard claim form, face a 60‑day presentment period before suit, and see liability payments handled from a centrally managed liability account funded by premiums assessed to state agencies and constrained to no more than 50 percent of actuarial liability; the risk manager sets premiums and can require agency transfers for delinquency. Practically, agencies can expect new administrative duties, earlier record production, more predictable but potentially higher budgeted liability costs, and greater legislative scrutiny after large payouts, while claimants face upfront filing fees, confidentiality limits on later use of hearing materials, and possible financial risk if an appeal does not succeed. Important details about how awards are calculated, appeal standards, liability caps, and some procedural provisions are missing from the provided text.