S-3504.1
SENATE BILL 5820
State of Washington
69th Legislature
2026 Regular Session
By Senators Cortes, Nobles, and Shewmake
Prefiled 12/01/25. Read first time 01/12/26. Referred to Committee on Local Government.
AN ACT Relating to the responsibility of certain counties to include freight rail dependent use overlay as part of the transportation element of their comprehensive plan; and amending RCW 36.70A.060 and 36.70A.108 .
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
Sec. 1. RCW 36.70A.060 and 2023 c 225 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
(1)(a) Each county that is required or chooses to plan under RCW 36.70A.040 , and each city within such county, shall adopt development regulations on or before September 1, 1991, to assure the conservation of agricultural, forest, and mineral resource lands designated under RCW 36.70A.170 . Regulations adopted under this subsection may not prohibit uses legally existing on any parcel prior to their adoption and shall remain in effect until the county or city adopts development regulations pursuant to RCW 36.70A.040 . Such regulations shall assure that the use of lands adjacent to agricultural, forest, or mineral resource lands shall not interfere with the continued use, in the accustomed manner and in accordance with best management practices, of these designated lands for the production of food, agricultural products, or timber, or for the extraction of minerals. (( Any county located to the west of the crest of the Cascade mountains that has both a population of at least four hundred thousand and a border that touches another state, and any city in such county, may adopt development regulations to assure that agriculture, forest, and mineral resource lands adjacent to short line railroads may be developed for freight rail dependent uses. ))