WashingtonHB 22392025-2026 Regular SessionHouseWALLET

Providing Washingtonians and their loved ones with location choices for interment of remains.

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Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

6 provisions identified: 0 benefits, 3 costs, 3 mixed.

Owners must meet burial structure safety rules

Beginning June 11, 2026, burial structures on family burial grounds must meet Class A fireproof construction standards. Mausoleums, structures for storing urns called columbaria, and similar structures must also meet durability and permanence standards. Local building-permit and public-health rules apply, including when an existing building is converted or altered for burial use. Each violation carries a $500 civil penalty. Cities, towns, and counties must set procedures requiring owners to fix violations at their own expense.

Family burial grounds lack cemetery tax exemption

Beginning June 11, 2026, family burial grounds created under this law do not qualify for the cemetery property tax exemption. That exemption still covers property used exclusively as qualifying public burying grounds or cemeteries. Setting aside land for family burials does not give owners this tax break. Any resulting tax bill depends on the property's assessed value and applicable taxes.

Burial ground owners face operating limits

Beginning June 11, 2026, owners cannot sell burial plots or space in mausoleums or columbaria on family burial grounds. They also cannot charge for goods or services they provide for a burial there. Within 30 days of each burial, owners must report it to the state historic preservation department and record it with the county auditor. Records must include the deceased's name and birth and death dates from the death certificate, the owner's name, and the property's legal description. They must also include exact latitude and longitude coordinates for the grave or structure. Two witnesses, the county coroner, the sheriff, or an authorized designee must verify those coordinates. Owners also have annual reporting and recordkeeping duties and bear compliance costs.

Home sellers must disclose burial grounds

Beginning June 11, 2026, owners selling property with a family burial ground must disclose it before the sale. They must also identify any mausoleums or columbaria on that property. Beginning January 1, 2027, the statewide residential disclosure form explicitly asks about family burial grounds, mausoleums, and columbaria. Sellers must deliver the completed form within five business days after mutual acceptance of a written purchase contract, unless both sides agree otherwise. Buyers have three business days after delivery to cancel through a separately signed written notice to the seller or seller's agent. If no completed disclosure is provided, buyers can waive that cancellation right before or after closing. Sellers must sign and date the form, sign each page, and answer to the best of their knowledge. The form covers title, water, sewage, structure, systems, homeowners' associations, and environmental hazards; it is informational, not a contract warranty. Sellers of never-occupied new construction can omit the structural and systems sections. Buyers must acknowledge receipt and are advised to seek inspections and expert advice; real estate licensees are not liable for inaccuracies except to the extent of actual knowledge.

Homeowners gain a limited family burial option

Beginning June 11, 2026, individual landowners can create family burial grounds as a lawful place for human remains. All individual co-owners must agree in writing; land co-owned with a corporation or other legal entity is ineligible. The ground can cover no more than 10% of the parcel. Required distances are 25 feet from parcel boundaries, 150 feet from designated critical areas, and 100 feet from public right-of-way or easement boundaries. It must also stay 100 feet from drinking-water wells and 200 feet from drinking-water springs. Owners can limit burials to relatives by birth, marriage, or adoption, but do not have to. Some cemetery laws, including certain burial-structure rules and the corporate-business restriction, no longer apply to qualifying grounds. Cities and counties can regulate or ban new grounds and expansions, and can use planning commissions to review proposals.

Moving family remains requires consent and permits

Beginning June 11, 2026, owners can move remains from family burial grounds through a consent or court-approval process. Written consent must be sought in order: surviving spouse or registered domestic partner, then children, parents, and siblings. A consenting relative can choose another lawful burial place. If required consent cannot be obtained, owners can ask the county superior court for approval. Through that process, owners must make reasonable efforts to consult surviving relatives about the new location. Before removing and reburying remains, owners must notify the state historic preservation department and get its permit. Owners pay all removal and reburial costs. The department must set permit procedures for moving remains to another lawful location.

Sponsors & Cosponsors

Sponsor

Hunter Abell
Republican • House

Cosponsors

Adam Bernbaum
Democratic • House
Andrew Engell
Republican • House
Brian Burnett
Republican • House
Jim Walsh
Republican • House
Rob Chase
Republican • House
Tarra Simmons
Democratic • House

Roll Call Votes

All Roll Calls

Yes: 238 • No: 2

House vote • 3/12/2026

Final Passage as Amended by the Senate

Yes: 96 • No: 0 • Other: 2

Senate vote • 3/6/2026

3rd Reading & Final Passage as Amended by the Senate

Yes: 46 • No: 2 • Other: 1

House vote • 2/12/2026

3rd Reading & Final Passage