The Legislature successfully landed HB 2015 on the desk of Governor Bob Ferguson, creating substantial new pathways for cities to grow their public safety funding.

The legislation sets up two processes for cities and counties to obtain funds for co-response, new officer hires, and other public safety purposes:

• Grant program: One is a state-funded grant administered by the Criminal Justice Training Commission (CJTC). To be eligible, cities must meet a series of requirements; and 
• Councilmanic sales tax: The second is a new 0.1% sales and use tax that cities or counties can levy without going to voters to fund broadly defined criminal justice purposes, provided they meet eligibility criteria.

The two funding mechanisms are structurally linked. To collect the sales tax, a jurisdiction must meet the requirements of the grant application. Among those requirements is authorizing the new public safety sales tax or receiving funds from an existing one, including a shared portion of the existing public safety sales tax (RCW 82.14.450) or the criminal justice tax (RCW 82.14.340).

The total amount of grant funding potentially available to jurisdictions statewide is not set in the legislation. The grants can be used for hiring corrections officers, peer counselors, and behavioral health personnel working in co-response, as well as training on use of force, de-escalation, crisis intervention, and broader public safety work.

For hiring new officers, the funding works as follows:

• Up to 75% for salaries and benefits for newly hired law enforcement officers;
• Up to a maximum of $125,000 per position; and
• Up to three years.

The legislation instructs CJTC to give highest priority to grant applications from agencies seeking to use the grants to pay for co-response teams, followed by those from agencies that already have co-response and are seeking to hire more law enforcement. The grant program expires on June 30, 2028.

Qualifying for a grant

To be eligible for a grant, a law enforcement agency must have:

• Established policies that comply with state law as well as the Attorney General’s guidance for law enforcement practices related to citizenship status;
• Participated in CJTC trainings related to behavioral health and first aid;
• Established policies on de-escalation and use of force that incorporate the Attorney General’s guidance on duty to intervene and use of police dogs;
• Complied with state laws on use of force data reporting (once that state program is operational);
• Established policies related to civil protection orders and the court-ordered surrender of firearms;
• At least 25% of officers who have completed CJTC crisis intervention team training;
• 100% completion by required officers for CJTC trainings on sexual assault and gender-based violence;
• Received funds from or authorized a public safety or criminal justice sales tax;
• A police chief, sheriff, or marshal who is CJTC-certified and has no felony convictions or gross misdemeanor convictions for moral turpitude, dishonesty, fraud, or corruption; and
• Established policies for supervising agency volunteers, for any insignia worn by volunteers, and for restricting those volunteers from enforcing criminal laws other than for special event traffic and parking, using force, carrying weapons, or using dogs for purposes besides search and rescue.

Grant applicants must also submit to the CJTC:

• Detailed agency staffing reports and plans including co-response teams, administrative staff, specially commissioned officers, and officers on flexible schedules; and
• Average rates for the preceding year for 911 responses and case closures.

Qualifying to impose the new sales tax

To levy the new 0.1% sales tax, a city or county must:

• Not have had voters reject (or repeal through referendum) sales taxes for public safety under RCW within the previous 12 months;
• Comply with the requirements for the CJTC grant program the bill creates and submit documentation of compliance to CJTC;
• Enact the tax through councilmanic action by June 30, 2028, or obtain voter approval at a primary or general election; and
• Spend the revenues for criminal justice purposes, and report this spending to AWC or the Washington State Association of Counties.

The funding from the new sales tax can be used for a broad range of programs and services that support public safety including domestic violence programs, diversion, reentry, public defense, homelessness reduction, behavioral health programs, co-response, mental health response, and emergency management.

Next steps

Governor Bob Ferguson can sign or veto this bill in its entirety, or issue a partial veto of any section of the bill. Once it becomes law, CJTC will then need to set up the appropriate grant administration process.

To stay informed on the next steps, read AWC’s Legislative Bulletin once monthly during the legislative interim as we track development of the two funding mechanisms and how you can access them, including timelines and technical assistance as the CJTC develops the grant application process.

Your jurisdiction can get a head start by:

• Reviewing internal policies and training requirements to ensure eligibility;
• Working with your police department to prepare data for required staffing and operations reporting;
• Building the grant’s 25% local match for new officer hiring into your city’s budget;
• Considering how you will pursue the new sales tax authority with your council; and
• Working with AWC for support in navigating requirements.

We appreciate the bill sponsors and the Legislature for passing this important funding for local public safety needs.

Great news for cities: Priority public safety funding bill passes the Senate

April 21, 2025

HB 2015 passed the Senate with a bipartisan vote (30-19), bringing Washington closer to two new pathways for public safety funding.

As we outlined in last week’s update, the bill was amended substantially in the Senate on its way to passage. The revised version now moves back to the House, which can approve the changes, reject them, or request a conference committee to iron out the differences.

The two chambers must approve identical versions of the bill for it to advance to the Governor’s desk, and the grant program must be funded in the budget. You can help reach this final step by contacting your legislators to say “thank you” and tell them how important this funding will be to your city’s ability to hire more officers and co-responders.

The bill establishes a new grant program to fund hiring law enforcement, behavioral health, and other public safety officers, as well as expanding community safety programs and training. It also empowers cities and counties to enact a new councilmanic 0.1% sales tax to fund criminal justice.

The amended bill contains specific criteria to qualify for the funding streams, including:

• Meeting certain existing training requirements;
• Compliance with specific policies and practices on use of force and de-escalation;
• The grants can only fund hiring new law enforcement, not lateral hires from other police agencies;
• Have policies that prohibit volunteers from carrying weapons or enforcing most criminal laws;
• A city or county cannot authorize the new sales tax if its voters have disapproved a public safety sales tax in the last 12 months; and
• Statistics on training and staffing must be reported to the state every year.

Because HB 2015’s funding mechanisms grew more complex during the Legislature’s deliberations, misunderstanding of how the legislation would work proliferated among some stakeholders. Some of this misinterpretation surfaced in a letter from the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC) opposing the bill in the Senate.

AWC has consulted closely with Senate and House leaders and other stakeholders including the Governor’s office throughout this journey and examined the legislation at every step providing significant feedback and working to address technical issues and concerns. We were pleased that our feedback was incorporated in the bill at every step of the process. We would like to clarify how some of the concerns WASPC raised in writing are addressed in the current iteration of HB 2015, as follows:

• HB 2015 does not make hiring officers the lowest priority for grants. It does prioritize co-response and agencies seeking to hire new law enforcement officers — if the agencies maintain co-response teams.
• The Senate-passed version of HB 2015 does not require applicants to have implemented state policies that do not exist or engage in trainings not yet available.
• HB 2015 specifies that law enforcement agencies seeking grant funding can’t use volunteers to enforce criminal laws, but does not generally prohibit the use of volunteers.
• Eligibility for the bill’s grant funding does not preclude an agency from using police officers from using police canines to track people or animals.
• The new grant funding can be available to a jurisdiction that collects existing public safety and criminal justice sales taxes. So those jurisdictions that in the previous two years have turned down ballot measures for the public safety sales tax can still access grant funding and now after a 12-month waiting period can use the new sales tax authority.

Priority public safety funding bill amended as it heads for consideration by full Senate

April 11, 2025

HB 2015 is the remaining city-supported public safety funding bill this session. It was amended by the Senate Ways & Means Committee and now heads toward a vote by the full Senate before the April 16 cutoff deadline.

In its current form, we support that the bill provides cities and counties access to new public safety funding. The bill is very complicated with a number of complex eligibility and reporting requirements for applying for the new grant program and/or implementing the new taxing authority.

HB 2015 still creates two connected funding mechanisms:

• State CJTC-administered grants for co-response, public safety officer hiring, training, and retention, and other public safety needs; and
• City/county authority to impose a new councilmanic sales tax to fund public safety.

The two processes are mutually dependent. A city or county could not collect the sales tax unless it meets the requirements to receive a grant, and one of those requirements is having authorized or received funding from a local public safety sales tax or the criminal justice tax. A city in a county that imposes one of those taxes and shares funds with the city would meet this eligibility requirement.

We wish to alert cities about several of the approximately 30 amendments the original bill picked up in the Senate, including:

• Background check: Added grant-applicant requirement that the chief, marshal, or sheriff of the agency meet certain requirements including a Washington state patrol background check.
• Police volunteers: Added grant-applicant requirement that the agency have policies and practices addressing the use of volunteers with prohibitions against enforcing certain criminal laws, carrying or using weapons, or using animals other than for the purposes of search and rescue.
• Flexible work schedules: While not a specific requirement, applicants must provide the CJTC a detailed staffing plan inclusive of the number of officers on flexible work schedules.
• AGO verification: Now requires CJTC to consult with the AGO in verifying the applicant's compliance with the grant applicant requirements.
• Community-hired officers: Clarifies the use of grant funds for recruiting, funding, and retaining officers applies to recruiting, funding, and retaining officers from the community in which they will serve. We do not have specific clarification on what is intended by the term “community”.
• New city fines: Now establishes a fine related to cities and counties who authorize the newly created tax in violation of the act.

Keep reading below for a more in-depth assessment of the bill as it currently stands.

Part 1: The Law Enforcement Grant Program

To qualify for a grant, a law enforcement agency must have:

• Implemented or received funding from either the public safety sales tax, criminal justice sales tax, or the new sales tax authorized in the bill;
• Issued and implemented certain state-issued model policies and training recommendations;
• Participated in required CJTC trainings;
• Issued and implemented use of force procedures and policies, de-escalation tactics, and the AGO's model policies;
• Implemented use of force data collection and reporting (when the state’s program becomes operational);
• Issued and implemented CJTC's model policies and training addressing firearm relinquishment pursuant to court orders and domestic violence 911 response;
• A 25% completion rate with CJTC's 40-hour crisis intervention team training;
• A 100% compliance rate for officers required to complete trauma-informed, gender-based violence interviewing, investigation, response, and case review training;
• A chief of police, marshal, or sheriff who is certified by CJTC and who has not been convicted of a felony or convicted of a gross misdemeanor involving moral turpitude, dishonesty, fraud, or corruption;
• Policies for supervision of volunteers; and
• Policies that prohibit volunteers from enforcing criminal laws (other than to assist “special event traffic and parking”), carrying or using weapons, or using animals (other than search and rescue animals).

Grant applications must also include detailed staffing plans with:

• Total numbers of commissioned officers, administrative staff, and specially commissioned officers currently employed;
• Co-response teams established and officers on flexible work schedules; and
• Average 911 response and case closure rates for the prior year.

Grant funding may be used for:

• Recruiting, funding, and retaining new law enforcement officers from the community where they will work, and county corrections officers, peer counselors, and behavioral health personnel working in co-response in Washington state;
• Recruiting lateral hires is not a permitted use of funds;
• Up to 75% of the entry-level salaries and fringe benefits of fulltime local or tribal law enforcement officers for a maximum of 36 months, with a minimum 25% local cash match requirement and a maximum state share of $125,000 per position;
• Use of force, de-escalation, crisis intervention, and trauma-informed trainings for officers to remain in compliance with CJTC's required trainings; and
• Broader law enforcement and public safety efforts such as emergency management planning, environmental hazard mitigations, security personnel, community outreach and assistance programs, alternative response programs, and mental health crisis response.

Part 2: The Local Sales and Use Tax

To impose a new 0.1% sales tax for criminal justice purposes, a city or county must:

• Meet all eligibility requirements for the new grant program in Part 1;
• Submit documentation confirming eligibility to the CJTC, and rectify any deficiencies within 180 days or face a fine of $100,000 per month;
• Be at least two years past the last time the voters of that city or county rejected the imposition of a local sales tax; and
• Pass the tax by legislative authority.

Once collected, the tax money received must:

• Be spent on criminal justice purposes, which includes services related to behavioral health, domestic violence, reentry work, public defense, diversion programs, community placements for juvenile offenders, and outreach programs; and
• File a report on use of funds with AWC and WSAC for reporting to the Legislature.

City-supported-public safety funding bill gets amended – Still needs some work

April 7, 2025

HB 2015 was vastly changed in committee and voted out with some critical fixes, but it needs some additional technical work to benefit the most cities.

At one point during this legislative session, AWC was tracking at least seven public safety funding bills. It’s a city legislative priority that many legislators and the Governor have echoed in public statements – that local law enforcement funding is a state legislative priority as well. Among several ideas that have floated around the Legislature this year, there is one city-supported bill left that is on the move and gaining traction.

HB 2015 was amended significantly in its Senate policy committee on April 1 to remove some of the issues that cities and our public safety partners had pointed out to make it work better for cities. However, several technical issues remain. AWC is working with legislators to continue asking for improvements to this bill we support, because we want to make it the most functional program it can be for as many cities as possible.

You can help by reaching out to your Senators to let them know you support this funding mechanism, but would like to see a few changes and improvements to best help your city.

What the amended bill does

The bill as amended is slightly narrowed to two main funding mechanisms, a grant and a new local sales tax option.

1. Establishes a new CJTC-administered grant program
   The bill establishes a local law enforcement grant program to help fund hiring, retaining, and training law enforcement officers in Washington. The expanded provisions now allow the grant funding to be used for hiring peer counselors, behavioral health co-responders, and alternative response programs.

At this point, the House-proposed budget includes $12.5 million per year for a total of $25 million for the 2025-2027 biennium for the grant program, a noticeable difference from the original $100 million for police grants that Governor Ferguson said he supports.

To qualify for a grant, a law enforcement agency must have:

• Implemented funding from either the public safety sales tax, criminal justice sales tax or the new sales tax authorized in the bill.
• Issued and implemented certain state-issued model policies and training recommendations;
• Participated in required CJTC trainings;
• Issued and implemented use of force procedures and policies, de-escalation tactics, and the AGO's model policies;
• Implemented use of force data collection and reporting (when the program becomes operational);
• Issued and implemented CJTC's model policies and training addressing firearm relinquishment pursuant to court orders and domestic violence 911 response;
• A completion rate of 25% with CJTC's 40-hour crisis intervention team training;
• A compliance rate of 100% for officers required to complete trauma-informed, gender-based violence interviewing, investigation, response, and case review training;
• A chief of police, marshal, or sheriff who is certified by CJTC and who has not been convicted of a felony or convicted of a gross misdemeanor involving moral turpitude, dishonesty, fraud, or corruption; and
• Policies that prohibit volunteers and specially commissioned officers (with the exception of CJTC-certified reserve officers, volunteers, and specially commissioned officers) from enforcing criminal laws, carrying or using weapons, or using animals (other than search and rescue animals). AWC is requesting further amendments to this provision to ensure that it doesn’t negatively impact the use of volunteers.

Grant funding may be used for:

• Recruiting and funding new law enforcement officers, county corrections officers, peer counselors, and behavioral health personnel working in co-response in Washington State. Grants may provide up to: 
  • 75% of the entry-level salaries and fringe benefits of fulltime local or tribal law enforcement officers for a maximum of 36 months; and
  • A minimum 25% local cash match requirement and a maximum state share of $125,000 per position;
• Use of force, de-escalation, crisis intervention, and trauma-informed trainings for officers to remain in compliance with CJTC's required trainings; and
• Broader law enforcement and public safety efforts such as emergency management planning, environmental hazard mitigations, security personnel, community outreach and assistance programs, alternative response programs, and mental health crisis response.

2. Creates a new local sales & use tax authority
   The bill also establishes the ability for counties and cities to impose an additional 0.1% sales tax for criminal justice purposes. To impose the tax, a city or county must meet the eligibility requirements for the new grant program listed above.

Notably, if the voters of either a city or county have rejected the imposition of the local criminal justice sales and use tax or the local public safety sales and use tax within the past two years, then that city or county may not impose the new sales and use tax.

Dates to remember

HB 2015 is scheduled for a vote in the Senate Ways & Means Committee on Tuesday, April 8 at 1:30 pm.

Senate committee to hear public input on House-passed safety bill

March 21, 2025

HB 2015 to establish a set of new funding pathways for public safety hiring and training is set for a key public Senate committee hearing Tuesday, March 25.

This is a significant opportunity for cities to have a voice in shaping the legislation as it moves forward. After hearing public comment on the bill, the Senate Law & Justice Committee may amend the legislation before taking a scheduled Thursday vote on whether the bill should pass.

The bill is structured to create a new local sales tax, grant program, and direct funding distributions with each element contingent on the others. In the legislation’s current form, a city or county would need to apply for and receive one of the newly created grants prior to being eligible to implement the new sales tax or receive the new state funding distributions. AWC is asking for changes to this provision so that cities can access both the new local taxing authority and the new state funding with few restrictions.

Concerningly, some of the criteria to qualify for a grant will require legislative revision to function as intended, and the bill sets training requirements that the state’s Criminal Justice Training Center does not currently offer. AWC has highlighted these concerns and is working with other stakeholders to propose language that will resolve those technical issues. AWC continues to emphasize the importance of getting this milestone public safety legislation right so that it can help cities this year.

Please consider signing in as “pro” to voice support for this bill and provide input on how its expansion of safety funding can help your constituents.

Dates to remember

HB 2015 is scheduled for public hearing in the Senate Law & Justice Committee on Tuesday, March 25 at 8 am.

HB 2015 is scheduled for a vote in the Senate Law & Justice Committee on Thursday, March 27 at 10:30 am.

Important public safety funding bill wins House floor votes

March 17, 2025

A bill creating a new source for law enforcement funding has cleared a major legislative hurdle.

HB 2015, establishing new funding mechanism for public safety, passed the House in a 54-42 vote on March 11. It awaits a hearing in the Senate Law and Justice Committee.

The bill includes a new local sales tax, grant program, and direct funding distributions all contingent upon the other. As amended, a city or county would need to apply for and receive one of the newly created grants prior to being eligible to implement the new sales tax or receive the new state funding distributions. Some of the provisions of the bill remain confusing and some of the criteria for qualifying for a grant need to be revised so that they are implementable. Currently the bill requires meeting certain training requirements that the CJTC is unable to offer.

AWC supports this bill as a pathway to address cities’ longstanding need for expanded sustainable public safety funding. We are working with stakeholders to address training requirements within the bill to make this funding accessible to as many cities as it intends. We are also working with legislators on fixing contradictory language in the bill to clarify requirements for the tax and grant funding.

Another bill to fund law enforcement via a new grant program, SB 5060, did not receive a floor vote before a March 12 deadline, but could still be included in budget proposals later this session.

Reach out to us with any thoughts, concerns, or ideas you may have to improve this bill for your city.

Bill with three-tiered approach to public safety funding advancing in House

February 28, 2025

HB 2015, which contains multiple approaches to boosting funding for local law enforcement throughout Washington, is moving forward in the Legislature.

Cities and counties that wish to obtain this funding would first have to establish a new 0.1% sales tax to fund criminal justice purposes. This tax is separate from the existing public safety sales tax authority. AWC has requested that cities that have adopted the existing tax receive credit for that and could qualify for the additional state funding.

A jurisdiction that enacts the tax could then apply to the state Criminal Justice Training Center for a grant to support hiring, retaining, and training officers for community policing and public safety.

If that grant is approved, the jurisdiction could also apply for additional funds from a new state account, which would distribute money using a per-capita formula.

AWC is working to support the opportunity to increase resources for local law enforcement and is engaging with bill sponsors to ensure the funding mechanism will be helpful and available to all interested member cities.

Bill establishes supplemental criminal justice account for public safety funding

February 24, 2025

HB 2015 creates new, additional funding mechanisms to support local law enforcement and public safety.

The bill authorizing a new local option tax is cosponsored by Reps. Debra Entenman (D-Kent) and Kristine Reeves (D-Federal Way). Cities support new ideas for public safety funding, as one of AWC’s legislative priorities this session.

As written, it proposes to:

• Create a new state account for public safety funding
  • Funds would be distributed each quarter based on population size
  • Requires a city to apply for and get approved for a grant (see bullet 2 below)
    • Additional requirements for a city to qualify for grants, including specialized training, taking the local sales tax adoption, and reporting requirements
  • Requires a city to adopt a new local sales tax (see bullet 3 below)
• Establish a law enforcement grant program through CJTC, with funds used to:
  • Hire and retain officers
  • Train officers in crisis intervention, use of force, de-escalation, and trauma-informed practices
  • Support other public safety efforts like mental health and crisis response
• Authorize a local option sales tax for public safety
  • Cities and counties could impose a new, additional 0.1% sales tax to use towards criminal justice purposes
  • Funds can be used towards salaries, training, domestic violence programs, and other criminal justice improvements

This new proposal does represent an ongoing and stable funding source for some cities; however, the bill’s mechanism by which cities could qualify for grant funds could create extra hurdles for cities to both adopt the optional sales tax increase and comply with new requirements.

A complementary option

When it comes to funding for public safety, AWC also remains supportive of an existing state-shared revenue account, HB 1428 that would increase direct, sustainable, flexible, and equitable funding across a wider swath of cities. You can help us by contacting your Representative and saying that you support HB 1428 because it allows for wider use and requires fewer hoops for cities to jump through to access vital public safety funding for our communities.

Dates to remember

HB 2015 held public hearing in the House Finance Committee on Monday, February 24 at 8 am.

HB 2015 is scheduled for a committee vote in the House Finance Committee on Tuesday, February 25 at 8 am.