Washington State’s Latest Laws: 7 Key Changes to Know for June 2024

It seems like the 2023-2024 legislative session came and went pretty quickly.

Perhaps not so for the lawmakers involved, but from January 8th thru March 7th, they spent consecutively sixty (60) days of committee meetings, hearings, debates, amendments, and voting sessions to churn bills into laws.

via GIPHY

In January 2024, Washington state had some new laws on the books that impacted our 7 million residents.

The minimum wage went up to $16.28 an hour, most employers are not allowed to refuse to hire you just because you failed a drug test when you're not "on the clock", and a new 10-day waiting period is in effect if you want to buy any gun.

As noted by Fox 13 News, more than 300 new laws have gone into effect in Washington state. A few of the most topical and talked about laws mentioned in their reporting include:

Excluding concealed gun carry permits, guns are now banned in public libraries, zoos, aquariums and transit centers. Violating this law will get you a misdemeanor.

Minors Getting Married

Washington state now requires anyone applying for a marriage license to be at least 18 years old. Permission from parents for minors under 18 will no longer be allowed.

State Income Taxes

Washington state residents will not have to pay a state income tax. It's now enshrined into law.

There are quite a few other new laws that I think are important for everybody to know about. I think that at least one of these will be impacting your life or that of someone close to you in a meaningful way.

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