This bill amends two provisions of the Washington estate tax chapter (RCW 83.100.020 and RCW 83.100.040) to set a schedule of "applicable exclusion amounts" tied to the decedent’s date of death, to establish estate tax rate tables that vary by date of death, and to add rules for prorating tax when some estate property is located outside Washington. The text lists specific exclusion amounts for multiple date ranges (including $3,000,000 for deaths on or after July 1, 2026) and directs an annual cost‑of‑living adjustment for the 2027 calendar year and thereafter based on the Seattle CPI. The bill specifies that the Washington estate tax is a stand‑alone tax that incorporates only Internal Revenue Code provisions as of January 1, 2005 that do not conflict with state law, and states that intangible property owned by a Washington resident is located in Washington for tax purposes. The bill creates three distinct tax tables by date of death: one for decedents dying before July 1, 2025; one for decedents dying on or after July 1, 2025 but before July 1, 2026; and one for decedents dying on or after July 1, 2026. The mid‑2025 to mid‑2026 table applies higher marginal rates and higher top‑bracket rates (up to 35%), while the pre‑July 1, 2025 and post‑July 1, 2026 tables mirror each other with a top rate of 20% for the largest estates. The bill also prescribes a formula to prorate the tax by multiplying the table tax by the fraction equal to Washington‑located property divided by the decedent’s gross estate, excluding property that qualifies for a deduction under RCW 83.100.046 from both numerator and denominator. Legally, this is a statutory modification of the existing state estate tax: it changes exclusion amounts, adjusts tax rate schedules and brackets, adds proration and location rules, and revises certain definitions. It amends RCW 83.100.020 and RCW 83.100.040 and cross‑references other estate tax provisions and specified IRC sections. The extracted text does not include the content of the cross‑referenced RCW sections (83.100.046, .047, .048, .120) nor explain which prior changes are being "undone," and it omits other implementation, enforcement, or penalty details outside the two amended sections.

If this becomes law, estate tax bills will change mostly by date of death: estates of people who die between July 1, 2025 and July 1, 2026 will face a markedly higher tax schedule (top marginal rates rising to 35% on large taxable amounts), while estates for deaths before July 1, 2025 and for deaths on or after July 1, 2026 use a lower schedule with a top rate of 20%. The exclusion that shelters estate value from tax is set around $3 million for deaths on or after July 1, 2025 (with a $3,076,000 figure applying to early 2026 and an annual CPI-based inflation adjustment starting for 2027), and Washington will treat intangible property owned by a resident as located in Washington; taxes are prorated to Washington property by a specified fraction that excludes assets eligible for a particular deduction referenced but not shown here. Real-world effects fall heaviest on decedents’ estates, personal representatives, and beneficiaries: estates with taxable value in the 2025–2026 window can expect substantially larger tax bills and higher costs to plan for and pay the tax, while estates for other dates may see lower rates but still face a $3 million exclusion that will rise with CPI over time. The Department of Revenue will need to apply different rate tables depending on the date of death and compute prorated Washington shares; however, key details about which assets qualify for the referenced deductions (RCW 83.100.046 and related sections) are missing here, so exact liabilities and who benefits from exclusions cannot be fully determined from the provided text.