Washington Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in Washington, with full citations and the original source on every page.
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Did Washington scrap-metal dealers have to follow pawnbroker transaction reporting rules for recycled metal?
The Attorney General concluded in 2007 that pawnbrokers and secondhand dealers buying statutorily defined “metal junk” for recycling were exempt from the cited transaction rules. The statutory…
Did cities inside the Yakama Reservation owe assessments to the Yakima clean-air authority?
The Attorney General concluded in 2007 that component cities remained subject to the regional air authority’s statutory assessment even though EPA directly administered federal clean-air law within…
Did a Washington geoduck farm need fish-and-wildlife hydraulic permits or shoreline development permits?
The Attorney General concluded in 2007 that Fish and Wildlife could not require a hydraulic-project permit for private geoduck culture. A shoreline substantial-development permit depended on whether…
Did EMT pay and employer deferred compensation count as basic salary for Washington firefighter pensions?
In the 2006 fact pattern, the AG counted salary increases for EMT certification required of all firefighters as basic salary, but excluded employer contributions to deferred compensation. The…
If a Washington city stopped its optional sales tax, could the county collect it and share revenue with the city?
In 2006, the AG said the county could collect its own optional tax if it had imposed one. A city choosing the alternative real estate excise tax could not simply receive part of the county’s sales…
Was Washington’s Department of Ecology bound by a water conservancy board’s record or findings on a water right transfer?
No. In 2006, the AG concluded Ecology could consider additional facts and need not defer to a local board’s facts or legal reading. A board was not bound by Ecology guidance that had not become law,…
Did Washington’s Legislative Ethics Board oversee the Code Reviser’s employees?
Yes. In 2006, the AG concluded that the Code Reviser’s Office was a legislative agency, so the Legislative Ethics Board had jurisdiction to enforce the state ethics law for its employees.
Could a Washington corrections officer carry a concealed pistol without a license?
In 2006, the AG said a qualifying full time, fully compensated Department of Corrections officer could do so only if empowered to detect or apprehend law violators in the department’s field and…
Could a Washington state employee object to union membership on personal religious grounds and pay dues without payroll deduction?
Under the law examined in 2006, a sincere personal religious objection could support nonassociation without membership in a church. A fee payer could use a method other than payroll deduction if…
Did Washington petition circulators have to sign the declaration printed on initiative or referendum petitions?
No. The AG read the 2005 amendment as requiring the statement to appear on the petition, but not requiring a circulator to complete or sign it. The Secretary of State could refuse a petition that…
Could a Washington county use housing tax proceeds for moderate income households and favor public employees?
The AG considered a county housing program for low and moderate income households likely to withstand the gift and lending of credit objections. A public employee preference was possible only if it…
Could a Washington city and county include anticipated tort costs and indemnity in a criminal justice services agreement?
Yes. The AG concluded that negotiators could count anticipated spending to manage tort exposure among service costs and could agree to city indemnity for county liability, apart from intentional…
Could a Washington employer with a religious objection omit prescription contraceptives from employee insurance?
The Attorney General concluded in 2006 that the conscience statute preserved an employer’s right not to purchase coverage for an objected-to service. But it could not exercise that choice through a…
Could a Washington fire district still tax annexed property to pay bonds issued before city annexation?
The Attorney General concluded in 2006 that it could levy taxes on property a code city annexed after the district issued limited-tax general obligation bonds. The annexed property remained liable…
Could a Washington county rewrite a conservation district’s proposed budget when approving special assessments?
The Attorney General concluded in 2006 that a county could modify the district’s proposed assessment system but could not rewrite its budget or spending plan. The district had to follow the approved…
Did Washington’s stadium law require the Seattle Seahawks themselves to publish annual audited profit-and-loss statements?
The Attorney General concluded in 2006 that the disclosure obligation attached to the team affiliate serving as the stadium’s sole master tenant, not separately to the football team. Because the…
Did a Washington council violate open-meeting law when a quorum attended someone else’s public event?
The Attorney General concluded in 2006 that attendance by a quorum alone did not trigger the Open Public Meetings Act. The Act applied if the members transacted council business, including…
Was a Washington teachers’ professional association an employee organization if it refused collective bargaining?
The Attorney General concluded in 2006 that an association that did not exist, even partly, to bargain over wages, hours, or employment terms was outside the “employee organization” definition in…
Could a Washington city use hotel-tax revenue to operate a private tourism facility or festival?
The Attorney General concluded in 2006 that a municipality needed an ownership interest to fund facility operations and could not fund a private festival’s operating expenses. It could pay for…
Did Washington public-school teachers and other public employees have a legal right to strike?
The Attorney General concluded in 2006 that state and local public employees had no legally protected strike right. State law then specified no strike penalty, though courts could enjoin a strike;…
Did every Washington shoreline have to be designated a critical area under the Growth Management Act?
The Attorney General concluded in 2006 that shoreline status alone did not make land a Growth Management Act critical area. A jurisdiction designated shoreline areas that met the Act’s critical-area…
Could a Washington special-purpose district board endorse or oppose a ballot measure by resolution?
The Attorney General concluded in 2006 that special-purpose districts lacked statutory authority to pass such advocacy resolutions, so the conduct did not fit the “normal and regular conduct”…
Did Washington’s 2005 Hood Canal cleanup appropriation require joint approval by the local coordinating council?
No. The AG read the specific budget appropriation as funding the Puget Sound Action Team without making it subject to the separate statute’s co management and consent provisions, though cooperation…
Did a Washington off road vehicle tag allow driving on public roads in 2005?
No. The AG concluded an ORV tag did not authorize operation on a public highway. Local governments could allow use on qualifying nonhighway roads, but could not override the statewide highway restriction.
Did Washington’s stock watering groundwater exemption have a 5,000 gallon daily limit?
The 2005 AG opinion said no numeric limit appeared in the permit exemption and Ecology could not impose a categorical cap by rule. Other water management laws could still limit a particular withdrawal.
Could Washington lawmakers repeal future pension gain sharing despite existing retirement statutes?
The 2005 AG opinion said the Legislature’s explicit reservation clauses left no contractual claim to gain sharing that had not yet been granted when a later amendment or repeal took effect. It…
Did a Washington business treating someone else’s lumber need a commercial pesticide applicator license?
In 2005, the AG said the answer depended on the land where the lumber sat and whether applying pesticide was a regular business activity. Treatment on another’s land required a commercial license;…
Could a Washington public facilities district shift sales tax funding from one regional center to another?
The 2005 AG opinion said a public facilities district could shift properly collected tax revenue among regional centers within its interlocal agreements and bond covenants. Whether the tax could…
Could a Washington referring physician mark up a pathologist’s bill for a patient’s tissue test?
No. The 2005 AG opinion allowed the physician to pass through the independent pathologist’s actual charge and bill for the physician’s own work, but barred adding a markup for pathology services the…
Could Washington cities with separate public facilities districts create a second overlapping joint district?
No, under the 2005 statute the AG read each eligible jurisdiction as able to participate in one district. Cities that already had individual districts could not create a joint overlapping one to…
Could a Washington growth management hearings board send a pending plan challenge back to a city for amendment?
Under the law examined in 2005, the board could remand after finding noncompliance, but lacked authority to remand simply so a city or county could amend its plan while a petition was pending. The…
Could a Washington mortgage broker deduct loan origination fees or points from business and occupation tax as interest?
The Attorney General concluded in 2005 that the deduction depended on what the payment actually compensated. Points or fees for lending money on qualifying residential mortgages could be deductible…
How specific did a Washington school board’s resolution need to be before placing a bond issue on the ballot?
The Attorney General concluded in 2005 that the resolution had to state the maximum debt and bond term, identify the specific buildings affected, and fairly inform voters of the general nature and…
Who paid for medical care an arrestee needed before being booked into a Washington jail?
The Attorney General concluded in 2005 that RCW 70.48.130 also covered care before booking. State program payments and an arrestee’s available resources came first; an interlocal agreement could…
Could Washington’s agriculture department charge fruit and vegetable inspection funds for its administrative overhead?
The Attorney General concluded in 2005 that the department could charge the fruit and vegetable inspection account for overhead tied to implementing and enforcing RCW 15.17. The opinion did not…
Could Washington agricultural producers elect a commodity commission’s members, and could the agriculture director reject that plan?
The Attorney General concluded in 2005 that RCW 15.66.110 allowed all or a majority of commodity commissioners to be elected by affected producers. The agriculture director was not required to adopt…
Could a Washington public library charge residents to borrow materials or fine them for overdue returns?
The Attorney General concluded in 2005 that a public library could not charge residents for traditional library services, including borrowing materials, but could assess reasonable fines for overdue…
Which Washington local boards counted as an elected legislative body for the public-resources ballot-measure exception?
The Attorney General concluded in 2005 that RCW 42.17.130’s exception applied only to a body directly elected by voters and empowered to make general laws. City and town councils and county…
Could Washington’s industrial insurance appeals board pay for public-employee death-benefit appeals from the accident and medical aid funds?
The Attorney General concluded in 2005 that the board could use the accident and medical aid funds for appeals of the specified public-employee death-benefit determinations. The Legislature could…
When could Washington property owners record an agreement fixing a disputed boundary, and could a charter county review it first?
The Attorney General concluded in 2005 that RCW 58.04.007 covered a boundary that records and landmarks could not identify or that adjoining owners actually disputed. A charter county could require…
Could a Washington noncharter county donate publicly funded buildings to a nonprofit disability-services provider?
The Attorney General concluded in 2005 that Yakima County lacked statutory authority to donate the land and buildings to its nonprofit lessee when the lease ended. Having answered that threshold…
Did a Washington county jail have to book people arrested by state officers, and could the sheriff cap admissions?
The Attorney General concluded in 2004 that a county jail had to accept arrestees presented by state officers with relevant arrest powers regardless of the charge’s severity. The sheriff could not…
Could Washington financial managers apply allotment controls to the Gambling Commission’s revolving fund?
The Attorney General concluded in 2004 that the fund was subject to RCW 43.88 allotment controls to prevent cash deficits and unlawful spending, even though expenditures required no appropriation.…
Could a Washington housing authority administer Section 8 contracts for a public housing agency in another state?
The Attorney General concluded in 2004 that a Washington housing authority could perform Section 8 contract administration for an out-of-state public agency under a qualifying interlocal agreement,…
Could a Washington advanced registered nurse practitioner prescribe abortion medication without physician supervision under the law considered in 2004?
The Attorney General concluded in 2004 that an advanced registered nurse practitioner acting within their professional license could prescribe or furnish a lawful abortion-inducing drug without…
Were Washington county prosecutor campaigns subject to state or county contribution limits?
Under the 2003 law, state campaign disclosure rules applied, but the state contribution caps for specified state offices did not. A charter county could impose its own consistent campaign limits on…
Could Washington cities and counties offer telecommunications service to residents?
In 2003, the AG said first class and code cities and charter counties had home rule authority to offer service unless a specific law barred it. Other cities, towns, and noncharter counties lacked…
Could a Washington city defer required sidewalk work and later offer a payment option under a development agreement?
The Attorney General concluded in 2003 that RCW 82.02.020 allowed a city to offer installation, renewed deferral, or a payment option if the initial condition and payment met the statute’s…
Could a mosquito control district assess city-owned land inside the city for its operations?
The Attorney General concluded in 2003 that city-owned land within a mosquito control district could be specially assessed under RCW 17.28.255 to the extent the land received a special benefit. The…
Could Washington’s education board allow private schools to hire teachers without Washington certification in exceptional cases?
The Attorney General concluded in 2003 that the board’s revised rule on non-Washington-certified private school teachers did not conflict with RCW 28A.195.010. The statute permitted unusual…
Could a Washington school district use its own funds to provide free breakfast to students who did not qualify for federal meal aid?
The Attorney General concluded in 2003 that the described school breakfast program likely did not violate the state constitution’s ban on gifts of public funds. The answer assumed administrative…
Did Washington’s fifteen-day military leave statute apply to elected city and county officials?
The Attorney General concluded in 2003 that the fifteen-day leave rule in RCW 38.40.060 did not apply to elected officials. Their military-service absence was governed by RCW 73.16.041, which…
Did Washington public four-year colleges have to bargain with faculty after the governor vetoed parts of the bargaining bill?
The Attorney General concluded in 2003 that the surviving provisions of Laws of 2002, chapter 356 still required public four-year institutions to bargain with a faculty unit’s exclusive…
Could Washington’s statutory health insurance pool become a nonprofit corporation or change board liability through its operating plan?
The Attorney General concluded in 2003 that the state-created health insurance pool lacked authority to reorganize as a nonprofit corporation. Insurance-commissioner approval of its operating plan…
Did a Washington driver have to receive a traffic citation showing their own signature?
The Attorney General concluded in 2003 that a person served with a traffic infraction notice or traffic citation had to receive a version bearing their signature if they had signed it. The opinion…
Could Washington’s elected-official salary commission consider the economy and state budget when setting salaries?
The Attorney General concluded in 2003 that the independent salary commission could consider economic conditions and budget size when setting state elected officials’ pay. It retained discretion…
Which fundraising activities could a Washington school district itself undertake under its educational powers?
The Attorney General concluded in 2003 that school districts could solicit related donations, use authorized interlocal arrangements, and sell goods or services tied to education or district…
Could a Washington public utility district leave an included city outside its commissioner voting districts?
The Attorney General concluded in 2002 that Benton PUD had to include all of Richland in its commissioner districts because the city remained within the PUD’s territorial boundaries. The county…
Who chose how a Washington county recording officer returned a recorded document?
The Attorney General concluded in 2002 that the person presenting a document for recording chose between personal delivery and transmission to the address on the document. RCW 65.04.090 required the…
Could a Washington health insurer charge employees extra for contraceptive coverage when their employer objected to buying it?
The Attorney General concluded in 2002 that a carrier could not add a separate employee charge for prescription contraception when the employer’s plan generally covered prescription drugs. The…
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Attorney general opinions in Washington are written by the Washington Attorney General's office in response to questions from state agencies, legislators, and prosecutors. They are not binding like court decisions, but courts and agencies treat them as persuasive guidance on how state law applies. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original text.