SB 5060 Washington Senate · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Creating a law enforcement hiring grant program.

SB 5060 creates a state grant program to help local and tribal law enforcement agencies hire more officers and mental health responders for community safety. It provides grants covering up to 75% of entry-level salaries (capped at $125,000 per position for 36 months), requiring a 25% local cash match. Agencies must meet specific training and policy standards, including crisis intervention and trauma-informed care compliance, to qualify. The bill appropriates $100 million for this program and mandates annual reports tracking grant usage, staffing vacancies, and hiring timelines. It directly affects Washington’s local and tribal law enforcement agencies seeking to fill officer positions and improve co-response to community safety needs.

Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Jan 12, 2026 Last action Jan 12, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Substitute Bill → Second Substitute Bill · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was revised to include county corrections officers alongside law enforcement officers and peer counselors in the hiring grant program. The scope of the program was expanded to cover county corrections officers, and the bill was transferred from the Senate Law & Justice committee to the Senate Ways & Means committee. Additionally, the required compliance rate for crisis intervention training was lowered from 80% to 25% for agencies applying for grants.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded to include county corrections officers in addition to local and tribal law enforcement officers, peer counselors, and behavioral health personnel.

SCOPE

Added 'county corrections officers' to the list of personnel eligible for hiring grants and to the reportable data points.

REQUIREMENT

Reduced the required officer compliance rate for crisis intervention team training from 80% to 25% to qualify for a grant.

ELIGIBILITY

Added an exemption stating that agencies applying exclusively for county corrections officers do not need to meet the standard compliance requirements in subsection (3).

TECHNICAL

Changed the reporting committee from 'appropriate committees' to 'fiscal committees' and added 'state' before 'general fund' in the appropriation section.

TIMELINE

Added a new data collection point for July 1, 2023, in the annual law enforcement personnel report.

Bill → Substitute Bill · 6 edits

MODERATE

The bill was renumbered from S-0248.2 to S-0785.2 and updated to reflect its first reading on January 24, 2025, instead of January 13, 2025. The core purpose expanded to include peer counselors and behavioral health personnel in co-response programs alongside traditional law enforcement officers. New eligibility requirements were added, mandating that agencies maintain specific policies on use of force, firearm relinquishment, and domestic violence responses, along with high compliance rates for crisis intervention and trauma-informed training. A new section was added to require a detailed report on officer vacancies and turnover rates by the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs. The appropriation date for the new reporting section was adjusted to expire on July 1, 2026, while the grant program reporting was shifted to begin in fiscal year 2026.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded from solely hiring law enforcement officers to also include peer counselors and behavioral health personnel working in co-response models. Additionally, the bill now includes a new requirement for a statewide report on personnel vacancies and turnover rates.

TIMELINE

The bill number changed from S-0248.2 to S-0785.2, and the first reading date was updated to January 24, 2025.

The reporting requirement for the grant program was delayed to begin on July 31, 2026, instead of July 31, 2025.

SCOPE

The grant program now covers peer counselors and behavioral health personnel in co-response, not just law enforcement officers.

REQUIREMENT

New eligibility criteria require agencies to maintain specific policies on use of force, firearm relinquishment, and domestic violence, plus high compliance rates for crisis intervention and trauma-informed training.

ENFORCEMENT

A new section mandates the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs to submit a report on officer vacancies and turnover rates by January 1, 2026.

TECHNICAL

A new section was added to chapter 36.28A RCW to establish the vacancy and turnover reporting requirement.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Jan 12, 2026

Introduced

By resolution, reintroduced and retained in present status.

upper

Feb 27, 2025

Upper · Passed

Minority; without recommendation.

upper

Feb 27, 2025

Upper · Passed

Executive action taken in the Senate Committee on Ways & Means at 1:30 PM.

upper

Feb 3, 2025

Upper · Passed

Public hearing in the Senate Committee on Ways & Means at 4:00 PM.

upper

Jan 24, 2025

Committee

Referred to Ways & Means.

upper

Jan 23, 2025

Committee

And refer to Ways & Means.

upper

Jan 23, 2025

Upper · Passed

Executive action taken in the Senate Committee on Law & Justice at 10:30 AM.

upper

Jan 21, 2025

Upper · Passed

Public hearing in the Senate Committee on Law & Justice at 8:00 AM.

upper

1 primary · 12 co-sponsors