Ensuring the competitiveness of Washington state's fishing and seafood processing industries by supporting the recapitalization of fishing fleets through certain tax preferences.

Extending specific aerospace tax preferences to include spacecrafts to encourage the migration of good wage jobs in the state.

Provides a preferential business and occupation tax rate, business and occupation tax credits, and sales and use tax exemptions for manufacturers of spacecraft, including manufacturers of spacecraft components, spacecraft product development, space exploration, and satellite communications.

Protecting utility customers by modifying the authority of utilities to backbill customers for charges missed due to utility error.

Concerning the taxing authority of public facilities districts.

Regulating the manufacture, sale, distribution, and installation of motor vehicle air bags.

Concerning the excise taxation of martial arts.

Revises the following definitions for business and occupation tax purposes: (1) "Sale at retail" and "retail sale" with regard to yoga, chi gong, or martial arts classes, training, or events held at a facility that is not operated within and as part of an athletic or fitness facility; and

Promoting a sustainable, local renewable energy industry through modifying renewable energy system tax incentives and providing guidance for renewable energy system component recycling.

Providing local governments with flexibility regarding local fireworks ordinances.

Concerning the authority of the pollution liability insurance agency.

Requires the pollution liability insurance agency to establish an underground storage tank revolving loan and grant program to assist owners and operators of petroleum underground storage tank systems to: (1) Remediate past releases;

(2) Upgrade, replace, or remove petroleum underground storage tank systems to prevent future releases; and

(3) Install new infrastructure or retrofit existing infrastructure for dispensing of renewable or alternative energy.

Provides a July 1, 2030, expiration date for the program.

Delays, until July 1, 2030, the expiration of: (1) Chapter 70.148 RCW (underground petroleum storage tanks);

(2) Chapter 70.149 RCW (the heating oil pollution liability protection act); and

(3) Chapter 82.23A RCW (petroleum products--underground storage tank program funding).

Concerning the apple commission.

Modifying the appointment process for trustees of rural county library districts in counties with one million or more residents.

Preserving water resources for an array of water supply needs, including irrigated agriculture, fish and wildlife habitat, and municipal use, by updating water conservation standards for appliances.

Concerning the promotion of space exploration.

Creates, within the department of commerce, the Washington state space exploration center of excellence for the following purposes: (1) Supporting joint industry-university research in developing and supporting new and existing technologies that can be used by space exploration firms;

(2) Assisting the University of Washington, Washington State University, and other participating institutions in recruiting future space exploration sector leaders;

(3) Working directly with existing small, medium, and large-sized space firms and space industry associations;

(4) Providing a centralized Washington space exploration industry hub;

(5) Promoting and fostering local space exploration industry efforts; and

(6) Coordinating efforts with other governmental entities, nongovernmental organizations, and academics to solicit significant industry conferences and meetings to Washington.

Requires the joint legislative audit and review committee to conduct an evaluation of the performance of the center.

Restricting the social security offset to disability compensation.

Exempts the following from social security offset requirements: (1) Workers who applied to receive social security retirement benefits before the date of their injury; and

Concerning the compliance of certain conversion vending units and medical units with certain department of labor and industries requirements.

Addresses conversion vending units and medical units and their compliance with certain requirements of the department of labor and industries.

Protecting victims of sex crimes.

Requires the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs, when funded, to create and operate a statewide sexual assault kit tracking system.

Requires local law enforcement agencies, a sheriff and his or her deputies, the Washington state patrol, certain hospitals, and prosecuting attorneys to participate in the statewide sexual assault kit tracking system.

Requires the Washington state patrol bureau of forensic laboratory services, in consultation with the state forensic investigations council, to develop budget submissions to the office of financial management sufficient to increase capacity to test all evidence submitted from crimes against persons by 2020 and all evidence submitted from property crimes by 2025.

Declares an intent to use state, federal, and private resources to fund regional task forces for the reinvestigation of all cases where a sexual assault kit was in the possession of a Washington law enforcement agency but was not submitted for forensic testing as of July 24, 2015.

Creates the Washington sexual assault kit program within the department of commerce for the purpose of accepting private funds for testing previously untested sexual assault kits and conducting related investigations.

Imposes a four-dollar fee on the admission to a sexually oriented live adult entertainment establishment.

Exempts the following from public inspection and copying under the public records act: Records and information contained within the statewide sexual assault kit tracking system.

Concerning the inheritance exemption for the real estate excise tax.

Creating the career and college-ready lighthouse pilot project.

Creates the career and college-ready lighthouse pilot project to provide an opportunity for students to: (1) Explore and understand a wide range of career opportunities through applied learning;

(2) Engage with industry mentors; and

(3) Plan for career and college success.

Requires the workforce training and education coordinating board to convene a career and college readiness advisory committee to advise the education and workforce sectors and the legislature on how to create the opportunities for students as mentioned above.

Requires the advisory committee to select, in cooperation with the office of the superintendent of public instruction: (1) Two innovative high schools to act as lighthouse mentors; and

(2) Four schools seeking to pilot innovative work-integrated and career-related instructional programs similar to those offered by the lighthouse mentors.

Requires the selected pilot schools to: (1) Implement a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics curriculum that can be delivered in the context of employment opportunities in one or more industry clusters, including manufacturing, building and construction, aerospace and maritime, and health and bioscience; and

(2) Submit the following to the workforce training and education coordinating board: An interim and end-of-project report that includes an evaluation of the effect of the instructional program on high school graduation rates, state test scores, industry and community partnerships, work-integrated learning experiences, and other relevant data.

Requires the workforce training and education coordinating board, in consultation with the advisory group, to use the pilot schools' reports, along with historical data from those schools, to evaluate the instructional programs of the lighthouse and pilot schools.

Concerning the use of a voter's party affiliation declaration with respect to the presidential primary.

Authorizes a major political party to, under national or state party rules, base the allocation of delegates from this state to the national nominating convention of that party in whole or in part on the results of the presidential primary.

Including displaying or wearing motorcycle-related or motorcycle club-related paraphernalia as a factor in profiling discrimination.

Addressing the transportation and storage of firearms and ammunition in privately owned motor vehicles.

Understanding the effects on the value of private property by the department of ecology's administrative actions to establish instream flow rules.

Requires the state institute for public policy to, either directly or through contract with a third party with expertise in economic analysis, produce a report to the legislature that estimates the loss in value of private property in the state that is a direct or proximate result of the inability to access water and develop land because of instream flow rules adopted by the department of ecology.

Increasing the dollar limitations on first-class cities using public employees to perform public works projects.

Prohibits a first-class city from having public employees perform a public works project: (1) In excess of one hundred fifty thousand dollars if more than a single craft or trade is involved with the public works project; or

Directing the department of commerce to study the sale and financing of manufactured homes.

Requires the department of commerce to: (1) Study the sale and financing of manufactured homes; and

Creating the Washington free to finish college program.

Creates the Washington free to finish college program, to be administered by the office of student financial assistance, to encourage state residents who attended a postsecondary education degree or certificate program, but were unable to graduate and are no longer enrolled in a postsecondary education degree or certificate program, to return to an institution of higher education to complete their program of study.

Establishing a legislative task force on technology in transportation.

Creates the legislative task force on information technology in transportation to assist policymakers, businesses, and the public to prepare for and develop a transportation system that: (1) Accommodates an array of information technology uses in vehicles and for transportation purposes, generally; and

Concerning the custody and placement of juveniles.

Ensuring a parent or guardian has the authority to admit and keep a minor child into a treatment facility for chemical dependency treatment for fourteen days.

Authorizes a parent or guardian to: (1) Admit a minor child to a chemical dependency treatment program; and

Concerning local business tax and licensing simplification.

Directs the state, cities, towns, and identified business associations to partner in developing options for centralized and simplified administration of local business and occupation taxes and business licensing and to evaluate the following: (1) Options to coordinate administration of local business and occupation taxes;

(2) Options for centralized administration of local business and occupation taxes for those cities and towns that desire to participate in a state-provided alternative;

(3) Options for all cities and towns to partner with the state business licensing service; and

(4) Implementing data sharing and establishing a seamless state and local user interface for those cities and towns participating in FileLocal.

Creates the task force for local business tax and licensing simplification and requires the task force to prepare legislation for introduction in 2017 that addresses the issues described above.

Increasing the number of tasting rooms allowed under a domestic winery license.

Concerning patients' access to investigational medical products.

Authorizes an eligible patient and his or her treating physician to request that a manufacturer make an investigational product available for treatment of the patient.

-- 2016 REGULAR SESSION --
Feb 1	First reading, referred to Health Care & Wellness (Not Officially read and referred until adoption of Introduction report).