S-1286.1

SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 5184

State of Washington
69th Legislature
2025 Regular Session
BySenate Housing (originally sponsored by Senators Bateman, Trudeau, Frame, Krishnadasan, Liias, Nobles, Pedersen, Salomon, Shewmake, and Stanford)
READ FIRST TIME 02/07/25.
AN ACT Relating to minimum parking requirements; adding a new section to chapter 35.21 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 35A.21 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 36.01 RCW; creating new sections; and repealing RCW 36.70A.620.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1. The legislature finds that predetermined on-site parking requirements needlessly drive up the cost of development, particularly housing; discourage walking and multimodal transit usage; and encourage excessive reliance of automobiles with attendant impacts on human health and greenhouse gas emissions. The legislature further finds that the amount of parking that a project actually needs should be determined on a case-by-case basis by permit applicants sensitive to actual market conditions rather than a one-size-fits-all regulation.
NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 35.21 RCW to read as follows:
(1) A city may not require more than 0.5 parking space per residential dwelling unit.
(2) A city may not require more than one parking space per 1,000 square feet of commercial space.
(3) A city may not require any minimum parking requirements for:
(a) Existing buildings undergoing change of use, including vacant buildings;
(b) Residences under 1,200 square feet;
(c) Commercial spaces under 5,000 square feet;
(d) Affordable housing;
(e) Senior housing;
(f) Housing for people with disabilities;
(g) Facilities that serve alcohol;
(h) Child care facilities;
(i) Commercial spaces in mixed-use projects.
(4) For purposes of this section, "affordable housing" has the same meaning as in RCW 36.70A.030.
(5) This section does not apply to accessible parking spaces in compliance with the Americans with disabilities act.
(6) The provisions of this section do not apply to portions of cities within a one-mile radius of a commercial airport in Washington with at least 9,000,000 annual enplanements.
NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 35A.21 RCW to read as follows:
(1) A code city may not require more than 0.5 parking space per residential dwelling unit.
(2) A code city may not require more than one parking space per 1,000 square feet of commercial space.
(3) A code city may not require any minimum parking requirements for:
(a) Existing buildings undergoing change of use, including vacant buildings;
(b) Residences under 1,200 square feet;
(c) Commercial spaces under 5,000 square feet;
(d) Affordable housing;
(e) Senior housing;
(f) Housing for people with disabilities;
(g) Facilities that serve alcohol;
(h) Child care facilities;
(i) Commercial spaces in mixed-use projects.
(4) For purposes of this section, "affordable housing" has the same meaning as in RCW 36.70A.030.
(5) This section does not apply to accessible parking spaces in compliance with the Americans with disabilities act.
(6) The provisions of this section do not apply to portions of code cities within a one-mile radius of a commercial airport in Washington with at least 9,000,000 annual enplanements.
NEW SECTION.  Sec. 4. A new section is added to chapter 36.01 RCW to read as follows:
(1) A county may not require more than 0.5 parking space per residential dwelling unit.
(2) A county may not require more than one parking space per 1,000 square feet of commercial space.
(3) A county may not require any minimum parking requirements for:
(a) Existing buildings undergoing change of use, including vacant buildings;
(b) Residences under 1,200 square feet;
(c) Commercial spaces under 5,000 square feet;
(d) Affordable housing;
(e) Senior housing;
(f) Housing for people with disabilities;
(g) Facilities that serve alcohol;
(h) Child care facilities;
(i) Commercial spaces in mixed-use projects.
(4) For purposes of this section, "affordable housing" has the same meaning as in RCW 36.70A.030.
(5) This section does not apply to accessible parking spaces in compliance with the Americans with disabilities act.
(6) The provisions of this section do not apply to portions of counties within a one-mile radius of a commercial airport in Washington with at least 9,000,000 annual enplanements.
NEW SECTION.  Sec. 5. RCW 36.70A.620 (Cities planning under RCW 36.70A.040Minimum residential parking requirements) and 2020 c 173 s 3 & 2019 c 348 s 5 are each repealed.
NEW SECTION.  Sec. 6. This act may be known and cited as the parking reform and modernization act.
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