2026 Legislative session ends: Here’s the scorecard

OLYMPIA -- WashCOG and its allies for access held off the most dangerous challenges to government transparency in the legislative session that ended March 12.

Legislative chamber in Olympia. — Photo by Colette Weeks

WashCOG tracked more than 40 bills this year. Calls and letters from constituents, including subscribers to our weekly Olympia Report newsletter, made a difference. However, some incursions on the Public Records Act passed. There’s still a chance to stop them – several are on the governor’s desk awaiting his signature. You can still voice your concerns by calling Gov. Bob Ferguson’s office at 360-902-4111 or use his online contact form.

Here are summaries on some of those we monitored. Details and a record of their sequence through the legislative session are available on Olympia Watch.

On the governor’s desk: Voter registration records, police investigations

The legislature approved SB 5892, dubbed “Protection of voter registration database,” but WashCOG opposed this bill because it withholds from release information that has always been subject to the voter-enacted Public Records Act. The bill was pitched as resistance to federal immigration enforcement actions, but is unlikely to be effective in that goal. However, it will restrict information important to voters, journalists and others who monitor civic affairs. ICE doesn’t file PRA requests. The people of Washington do. WashCOG would like to see the governor veto this one.

Another bill that withholds public information is ESHB 2508, “Clarifying the scope of authority of the office of independent investigations to align with current operations and practices and to include public disclosure requirements and protect privacy.”  WashCOG opposed its passage because the change seems to allow the state office that investigates police misconduct to withhold all information in cases that do not end with a recommendation to prosecute.

Wins and mixed success

WashCOG and archivists pushed to ensure public accountability for historical records, specifically in regard to Lakeland Village, a state facility serving people with developmental and intellectual disabilities. SB 5863 “Authorizes restricted records transferred to the Division of Archives and Records Management to be open to inspection and copying after the expiration of 75 years from creation of the record. It extends the period when no documents or artifacts identified as part of the Lakeland Village preservation plan may be destroyed, until fiscal year 2030.” WashCOG backed this to ensure maximum public accountability, at least on a historic basis. 

WashCOG had earlier recognized preservation efforts in regard to Lakeland Village. Stacy Dym, executive director of The Arc of Washington, an advocacy group for people with intellectual disabilities and Tim Gerlitz, superintendent at Lakeland Village, worked together to preserve the facility’s records. They were recognized with a Key Award at the 2024 Sunshine Breakfast.

Transparency advocates got a mixed outcome with SB 6002, “Concerning driver privacy protections,” which morphed from a bill about automatic license plate readers to one that appears to also restrict public access to police dash- and body-cam video. However, an amendment passed in the House and accepted by the Senate assures that those videos will remain available. WashCOG’s priority is that all information collected on these cameras be classified as public records, and property of the government rather than of the private companies that install and operate the cameras. However, the legislation that passed appears to declare the content entirely exempt from the Public Records Act – but they are property of the government, not the company.

Still waiting

The Legislature again failed to act on a bill that would implement the recommendations of the bipartisan Sunshine Committee, which has sorted through and urged removal of many ill-advised and outdated exemptions to the Public Records Act. The voters of Washington enacted the PRA as a ballot initiative with with just 10 exemptions. Since then, the Legislature has allowed more than 700 additional exemptions. HB 2244 would have adopted the Sunshine Committee’s recommendations.

Additional information about final status of bills this session and the process of tracking them the past three months can be found on our Olympia Watch page.