SB 6015 — Concerning permit-ready residential building plans.

S-4678.1S-3749.1 SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 6015 State of Washington 69th Legislature 2026 Regular Session By Senate Housing (originally sponsored by Senators Bateman, Frame, Gildon, Liias, Lovelett, Nobles, Salomon, and Shewmake)Shewmake READPrefiled FIRST01/07/26. TIME 02/04/26.

Read first time 01/12/26.

Referred to Committee on Housing.

amending RCW 43.22.460;

and creating a new section;section.

and providing an effective date.

The legislature further finds that complex and inconsistent local design standards and permitting processes can add substantial cost and delay to new housing development, particularly for small builders and for missingmissing-middle middle housing types such as duplexes, triplexes, stacked flats, and townhomes.

The legislature finds that providing preapproved permit-readypermit- ready residential building plans and model ordinances can shorten permitting timelines, increase predictability, and support local implementation of state housing goals.

FactoryModular and factory built housing can further reduce time and cost to build and should be p.

1 SSBSB 6015 built housing can further reduce time and cost to build and should be supported through a consistent statewide frameworkframework. so that plans can be more easily used across jurisdictions.

It is therefore the intent of the legislature to facilitate increased housing production and predictability by creating a state-approved program for permit-ready factoryresidential builtbuilding housing and exempting qualifying projects from localduplicative architecturalrequirements. and aesthetic design requirements unrelated to health and safety.

(1) The department shallshall, establishwith aadvice processand toinput solicitfrom the department of commerce and publicizethe permit-readystate plansbuilding that:code council:

(a) IncludesEstablish a process to solicit and publish permit-ready plans for factory built housing for each of the following housing types:

and (b) AllowsCreate for county and citymaintain buildinga departmentspublic-facing towebsite reviewfor proposed permit-ready plans forapproved aby periodthe ofdepartment. no less than 30 days prior to publication.

Based(2) onThe thisplans feedback,published theunder departmentthis maysection designatemust: specific geographic areas where a permit-ready plan is not available;

(c)(a) CreatesMeet andall maintainsapplicable astate public-facingbuilding websitecode forand permit-state readyenergy planscode approvedrequirements; by the department;

(d)(b) DevelopsIndicate athe memorandumclimate ofzones, agreementas tocreated bein signedRCW by19.27A.020, thefor departmentwhich andthey themeet creatorall ofapplicable eachrequirements; permit-ready plan, such that:

(i)(c) TheIndicate creatorthe dated version of the planapplicable expresslycodes allowswith usewhich of the planfactory inbuilt theresidential permit-readybuilding program;plans are compliant;

(ii)(d) TheInclude creatora ofwaiver signed by the planbuilding retainsplan's ownershipcreator that waives confidentiality and copyrightexpressly allows use of the plan in the permit-ready plan;program;

(iii)and The(e) creatorAllow releasescounty state and localcity governmentsbuilding fromdepartments claimsto relatingreview toproposed theirpermit-ready participationplans infor thea permit-readyperiod programof andno anyless subsequentthan licensing30 ofdays theirprior permit-readyto plans;publication.

(iv)Based Theon departmentthis hasfeedback, the rightdepartment andmay licensedesignate tospecific usegeographic andareas copywhere thea permit-ready plan asis necessarynot toavailable. carry out this program;

p.(3) No civil liability may be imposed by any court on the state or its officers and employees, or on any creator of a residential building plan for the purposes of this section and section 3 of this act, except upon proof of bad faith or willful misconduct.

2(4) SSBFor 6015the (v)purposes Otherof termsthis deemedsection, necessary"permit-ready byplan" themeans department,a includingset confidentiality,of copyrightdrawings protection,and licensing,specifications liability,that indemnification,are available for use and insurance;have been determined by the department of labor and industries to p.

(e)2 DeterminesSB maximum6015 licensingmeet feesthe thatrequirements mayof bethe chargedstate tobuilding licensecode, astate permit-readyenergy plan,code, and updatefire thesecode. maximums at each state code cycle change;

and (f) Includes coordination with the department of commerce and the state building code council as necessary.

(2) Each permit-ready plan published under this section must:

(a) Have received design plan approval from the department under RCW 43.22.470 through 43.22.485 and associated rule making;

(b) Indicate the climate zones, as created in RCW 19.27A.020, for which it meets all applicable requirements;

(c) Indicate the dated version of the applicable codes with which the permit-ready plan is compliant;

(d) Indicate the wildfire hazard level, as established under RCW 43.30.580, for which it meets the wildlife urban interface code requirements under RCW 19.27.560;

(e) Include a signed memorandum of agreement between the department and the building plan's creator;

and (f) Allow county and city building departments to review proposed permit-ready plans for a period of no less than 60 days prior to publication.

Based on this feedback, the department may designate specific cities, counties, or other geographic areas in which the specific permit-ready plan is not available.

(3) No civil liability may be imposed by any court on the state or its officers and employees, or on any creator of a residential building plan for the purposes of this section and RCW 43.22.460, except upon proof of bad faith or willful misconduct.

(4) Permit-ready plans must be approved for a specific edition of the state building code and expire upon the beginning of a new state building code cycle change.

(5) The department may adopt rules necessary to implement this section.

(6) For the purposes of this section, "permit-ready plan" means a set of drawings and specifications for factory built housing that are available to license and have been determined by the department to meet the requirements for factory built housing or factory built commercial structures adopted by the department under RCW 43.22.480.

p.

3 SSB 6015 Sec.

3.