Allowing for direct review of administrative agency decisions in certain circumstances.

HB 2396 allows certain administrative agency decisions to be directly reviewed by the Washington Court of Appeals instead of first going through a superior court. It specifically applies to final decisions by environmental boards (as defined in RCW 43.21B.005) regarding clean energy projects or other environmental matters. The bill creates three pathways for direct review: through superior court certification (for cases involving urgent public interest issues), for clean energy project permits (with streamlined record review), or for non-clean energy environmental cases (with party consent or justice-based exceptions). This change aims to expedite legal challenges on significant environmental decisions while maintaining procedural safeguards.