S-3907.1
SENATE BILL 6329
State of Washington
69th Legislature
2026 Regular Session
By Senators Stanford and Hasegawa
Read first time 01/29/26. Referred to Committee on Environment, Energy & Technology.
AN ACT Relating to resiliency, public safety, and quality of broadband; amending RCW 80.01.040 and 80.04.010 ; adding a new chapter to Title 80 RCW; and creating a new section.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature hereby finds and declares that access to high-speed broadband is a necessity and essential to participation in the economy, education, and civic life. Closing gaps in broadband availability is a matter of deployment, affordability, and ensuring networks are resilient, high quality, and facilitate public safety. Because voice over internet protocol has replaced traditional voice telephone service for a large segment of the population, ensuring its reliability is in the public interest and consistent with public safety goals. State regulators require unambiguous authority and a clear mandate to establish and enforce appropriate oversight and regulation of broadband and voice over internet protocol in order to meet the state's goals of universal, high quality, and affordable access.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter unless the context clearly requires otherwise.