An unincorporated area in the State of Washington can incorporate into a town or city.  Before the area can incorporate, however, there are certain requirements that must be satisfied.  The area must be contiguous and contain at least 1,500 inhabitants, or at least 3,000 inhabitants if the area is within five air miles of a city with 15,000 or more people.  A registered voter in the area proposed for incorporation may initiate incorporation proceedings by filing a notice with the county containing information about the proposed city or town and paying a $100 filing fee.  The county boundary review board, or the county legislative authority if there is no boundary review board in the county, must then hold a public meeting on the proposed incorporation.  Within 180 days of the meeting, at least 10 percent of the population of the area must sign a petition for incorporated and have it filed with the county auditor. 

If these steps are satisfied, an election will be held to determine whether or not the area will incorporate.  To be eligible to vote in the election, a voter must be qualified to vote in the county and must have resided within the area proposed for incorporation for at least 30 days.  If a majority vote in favor of incorporation, the new city or town is incorporated. 

The requirement that an area must have least 3,000 inhabitants in order for it to be incorporated if it is within five air miles of a city of 15,000 or more people is repealed.