HB 2660 Washington House · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Authorizing the court to order certain conditions during child welfare shelter care hearings.

HB 2660 requires Washington courts to hold shelter care hearings within 72 hours for children under five in foster care, with additional hearings if needed. It mandates courts to specifically assess safety risks, housing assistance, relative placement efforts, and school continuity during these hearings to protect young children. The bill adds new court inquiries about whether homelessness contributed to removal and if housing support was offered to keep families together. This change applies directly to children under five in child welfare cases and their families, aiming to strengthen safety oversight during initial shelter care decisions.

Issues: ✓ Education ✓ Housing

Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Jan 26, 2026 Last action Feb 9, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Substitute Bill → Second Substitute Bill · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill was reclassified from the Early Learning committee to the Appropriations committee and its reading date was updated. The core policy changes focus on child safety: courts are now authorized to require parents to prove sobriety or treatment compliance before keeping children under five at home if substance use is a risk factor, and the bill was updated to include a sunset clause that voids the law if specific funding is not provided by June 30, 2026.

Scope change

The bill's scope was expanded to explicitly address substance use and caregiver impairment as specific risk factors requiring verification of sobriety or treatment compliance before a child can remain in the home.

TECHNICAL

The bill title was changed from 'Substitute House Bill' to 'Second Substitute House Bill' and the committee assignment was moved from 'Early Learning & Human Services' to 'Appropriations', with the first reading date updated to 02/09/26.

REQUIREMENT

Courts are now explicitly authorized to require verification of sobriety, treatment compliance, or other evidence of caregiver capacity before allowing a child under five to remain in the home if substance use or caregiver impairment contributed to the risk of harm.

The description of the bill's purpose was slightly updated to include 'creating new sections' (plural) to account for the addition of the sunset clause.

FISCAL

A new section was added stating that the act becomes null and void if specific funding is not provided in the omnibus appropriations act by June 30, 2026.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Feb 9, 2026

Committee

Referred to Rules 2 Review.

lower

Feb 9, 2026

Lower · Passed

Minority; do not pass.

lower

Feb 9, 2026

Lower · Passed

Executive action taken in the House Committee on Appropriations at 10:30 AM.

lower

Feb 6, 2026

Lower · Passed

Public hearing in the House Committee on Appropriations at 10:30 AM.

lower

Feb 4, 2026

Committee

Referred to Appropriations.

lower

Feb 3, 2026

Lower · Passed

Minority; without recommendation.

lower

Feb 3, 2026

Lower · Passed

Executive action taken in the House Committee on Early Learning & Human Services at 1:30 PM.

lower

Jan 27, 2026

Lower · Passed

Public hearing in the House Committee on Early Learning & Human Services at 1:30 PM.

lower

1 primary · 3 co-sponsors