CERTIFICATION OF ENROLLMENT
ENGROSSED SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 5985
Chapter 289, Laws of 2024
68th Legislature
2024 Regular Session
FIREARMS BACKGROUND CHECK PROGRAM—VARIOUS PROVISIONS
EFFECTIVE DATE: March 26, 2024
Passed by the Senate March 4, 2024 CERTIFICATE
Yeas 30 Nays 19
I, Sarah Bannister, Secretary of
the Senate of the State of
DENNY HECK Washington, do hereby certify that
President of the Senate the attached is ENGROSSED
SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 5985 as
passed by the Senate and the House
of Representatives on the dates
Passed by the House February 27, 2024 hereon set forth.
Yeas 63 Nays 33
SARAH BANNISTER
LAURIE JINKINS
Secretary
Speaker of the House of
Representatives
Approved March 26, 2024 1:26 PM FILED
March 27, 2024
Secretary of State
JAY INSLEE State of Washington
Governor of the State of Washington
 ENGROSSED SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 5985
AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE
Passed Legislature - 2024 Regular Session
State of Washington 68th Legislature 2024 Regular Session
By Senate Law & Justice (originally sponsored by Senators Hansen,
Dhingra, Frame, Hasegawa, Hunt, Kuderer, Liias, Lovick, Nguyen,
Pedersen, Stanford, Trudeau, Valdez, Wellman, and C. Wilson; by
request of Washington State Patrol)
READ FIRST TIME 01/19/24.
1 AN ACT Relating to the firearms background check program;
2 amending RCW 9.41.049, 9.41.111, 9.41.114, 9.41.350, 43.43.823, and
3 43.43.580; reenacting and amending RCW 9.41.010; and declaring an
4 emergency.
5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
6 Sec. 1. RCW 9.41.010 and 2023 c 295 s 2, 2023 c 262 s 1, and
7 2023 c 162 s 2 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
8 Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in
9 this section apply throughout this chapter.
10 (1) "Antique firearm" means a firearm or replica of a firearm not
11 designed or redesigned for using rim fire or conventional center fire
12 ignition with fixed ammunition and manufactured in or before 1898,
13 including any matchlock, flintlock, percussion cap, or similar type
14 of ignition system and also any firearm using fixed ammunition
15 manufactured in or before 1898, for which ammunition is no longer
16 manufactured in the United States and is not readily available in the
17 ordinary channels of commercial trade.
18 (2)(a) "Assault weapon" means:
19 (i) Any of the following specific firearms regardless of which
20 company produced and manufactured the firearm:
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1 AK-47 in all forms
2 AK-74 in all forms
3 Algimec AGM-1 type semiautomatic
4 American Arms Spectre da semiautomatic carbine
5 AR15, M16, or M4 in all forms
6 AR 180 type semiautomatic
7 Argentine L.S.R. semiautomatic
8 Australian Automatic
9 Auto-Ordnance Thompson M1 and 1927 semiautomatics
10 Barrett .50 cal light semiautomatic
11 Barrett .50 cal M87
12 Barrett .50 cal M107A1
13 Barrett REC7
14 Beretta AR70/S70 type semiautomatic
15 Bushmaster Carbon 15
16 Bushmaster ACR
17 Bushmaster XM-15
18 Bushmaster MOE
19 Calico models M100 and M900
20 CETME Sporter
21 CIS SR 88 type semiautomatic
22 Colt CAR 15
23 Daewoo K-1
24 Daewoo K-2
25 Dragunov semiautomatic
26 Fabrique Nationale FAL in all forms
27 Fabrique Nationale F2000
28 Fabrique Nationale L1A1 Sporter
29 Fabrique Nationale M249S
30 Fabrique Nationale PS90
31 Fabrique Nationale SCAR
32 FAMAS .223 semiautomatic
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 1 Galil
2 Heckler & Koch G3 in all forms
3 Heckler & Koch HK-41/91
4 Heckler & Koch HK-43/93
5 Heckler & Koch HK94A2/3
6 Heckler & Koch MP-5 in all forms
7 Heckler & Koch PSG-1
8 Heckler & Koch SL8
9 Heckler & Koch UMP
10 Manchester Arms Commando MK-45
11 Manchester Arms MK-9
12 SAR-4800
13 SIG AMT SG510 in all forms
14 SIG SG550 in all forms
15 SKS
16 Spectre M4
17 Springfield Armory BM-59
18 Springfield Armory G3
19 Springfield Armory SAR-8
20 Springfield Armory SAR-48
21 Springfield Armory SAR-3
22 Springfield Armory M-21 sniper
23 Springfield Armory M1A
24 Smith & Wesson M&P 15
25 Sterling Mk 1
26 Sterling Mk 6/7
27 Steyr AUG
28 TNW M230
29 FAMAS F11
30 Uzi 9mm carbine/rifle
31 (ii) A semiautomatic rifle that has an overall length of less
32 than 30 inches;
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 1 (iii) A conversion kit, part, or combination of parts, from which
2 an assault weapon can be assembled or from which a firearm can be
3 converted into an assault weapon if those parts are in the possession
4 or under the control of the same person; or
5 (iv) A semiautomatic, center fire rifle that has the capacity to
6 accept a detachable magazine and has one or more of the following:
7 (A) A grip that is independent or detached from the stock that
8 protrudes conspicuously beneath the action of the weapon. The
9 addition of a fin attaching the grip to the stock does not exempt the
10 grip if it otherwise resembles the grip found on a pistol;
11 (B) Thumbhole stock;
12 (C) Folding or telescoping stock;
13 (D) Forward pistol, vertical, angled, or other grip designed for
14 use by the nonfiring hand to improve control;
15 (E) Flash suppressor, flash guard, flash eliminator, flash hider,
16 sound suppressor, silencer, or any item designed to reduce the visual
17 or audio signature of the firearm;
18 (F) Muzzle brake, recoil compensator, or any item designed to be
19 affixed to the barrel to reduce recoil or muzzle rise;
20 (G) Threaded barrel designed to attach a flash suppressor, sound
21 suppressor, muzzle break, or similar item;
22 (H) Grenade launcher or flare launcher; or
23 (I) A shroud that encircles either all or part of the barrel
24 designed to shield the bearer's hand from heat, except a solid
25 forearm of a stock that covers only the bottom of the barrel;
26 (v) A semiautomatic, center fire rifle that has a fixed magazine
27 with the capacity to accept more than 10 rounds;
28 (vi) A semiautomatic pistol that has the capacity to accept a
29 detachable magazine and has one or more of the following:
30 (A) A threaded barrel, capable of accepting a flash suppressor,
31 forward handgrip, or silencer;
32 (B) A second hand grip;
33 (C) A shroud that encircles either all or part of the barrel
34 designed to shield the bearer's hand from heat, except a solid
35 forearm of a stock that covers only the bottom of the barrel; or
36 (D) The capacity to accept a detachable magazine at some location
37 outside of the pistol grip;
38 (vii) A semiautomatic shotgun that has any of the following:
39 (A) A folding or telescoping stock;
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 1 (B) A grip that is independent or detached from the stock that
2 protrudes conspicuously beneath the action of the weapon. The
3 addition of a fin attaching the grip to the stock does not exempt the
4 grip if it otherwise resembles the grip found on a pistol;
5 (C) A thumbhole stock;
6 (D) A forward pistol, vertical, angled, or other grip designed
7 for use by the nonfiring hand to improve control;
8 (E) A fixed magazine in excess of seven rounds; or
9 (F) A revolving cylinder shotgun.
10 (b) For the purposes of this subsection, "fixed magazine" means
11 an ammunition feeding device contained in, or permanently attached
12 to, a firearm in such a manner that the device cannot be removed
13 without disassembly of the firearm action.
14 (c) "Assault weapon" does not include antique firearms, any
15 firearm that has been made permanently inoperable, or any firearm
16 that is manually operated by bolt, pump, lever, or slide action.
17 (3) "Assemble" means to fit together component parts.
18 (4) "Barrel length" means the distance from the bolt face of a
19 closed action down the length of the axis of the bore to the crown of
20 the muzzle, or in the case of a barrel with attachments to the end of
21 any legal device permanently attached to the end of the muzzle.
22 (5) "Bump-fire stock" means a butt stock designed to be attached
23 to a semiautomatic firearm with the effect of increasing the rate of
24 fire achievable with the semiautomatic firearm to that of a fully
25 automatic firearm by using the energy from the recoil of the firearm
26 to generate reciprocating action that facilitates repeated activation
27 of the trigger.
28 (6) "Conviction" or "convicted" means, whether in an adult court
29 or adjudicated in a juvenile court, that a plea of guilty has been
30 accepted or a verdict of guilty has been filed, or a finding of guilt
31 has been entered, notwithstanding the pendency of any future
32 proceedings including, but not limited to, sentencing or disposition,
33 posttrial or post-fact-finding motions, and appeals. "Conviction"
34 includes a dismissal entered after a period of probation, suspension,
35 or deferral of sentence, and also includes equivalent dispositions by
36 courts in jurisdictions other than Washington state.
37 (7) "Crime of violence" means:
38 (a) Any of the following felonies, as now existing or hereafter
39 amended: Any felony defined under any law as a class A felony or an
40 attempt to commit a class A felony, criminal solicitation of or
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 1 criminal conspiracy to commit a class A felony, manslaughter in the
2 first degree, manslaughter in the second degree, indecent liberties
3 if committed by forcible compulsion, kidnapping in the second degree,
4 arson in the second degree, assault in the second degree, assault of
5 a child in the second degree, extortion in the first degree, burglary
6 in the second degree, residential burglary, and robbery in the second
7 degree;
8 (b) Any conviction for a felony offense in effect at any time
9 prior to June 6, 1996, which is comparable to a felony classified as
10 a crime of violence in (a) of this subsection; and
11 (c) Any federal or out-of-state conviction for an offense
12 comparable to a felony classified as a crime of violence under (a) or
13 (b) of this subsection.
14 (8) "Curio or relic" has the same meaning as provided in 27
15 C.F.R. Sec. 478.11.
16 (9) "Dealer" means a person engaged in the business of selling
17 firearms at wholesale or retail who has, or is required to have, a
18 federal firearms license under 18 U.S.C. Sec. 923(a). A person who
19 does not have, and is not required to have, a federal firearms
20 license under 18 U.S.C. Sec. 923(a), is not a dealer if that person
21 makes only occasional sales, exchanges, or purchases of firearms for
22 the enhancement of a personal collection or for a hobby, or sells all
23 or part of his or her personal collection of firearms.
24 (10) "Detachable magazine" means an ammunition feeding device
25 that can be loaded or unloaded while detached from a firearm and
26 readily inserted into a firearm.
27 (11) "Distribute" means to give out, provide, make available, or
28 deliver a firearm or large capacity magazine to any person in this
29 state, with or without consideration, whether the distributor is in-
30 state or out-of-state. "Distribute" includes, but is not limited to,
31 filling orders placed in this state, online or otherwise.
32 "Distribute" also includes causing a firearm or large capacity
33 magazine to be delivered in this state.
34 (12) "Domestic violence" has the same meaning as provided in RCW
35 10.99.020.
36 (13) "Family or household member" has the same meaning as in RCW
37 7.105.010.
38 (14) "Federal firearms dealer" means a licensed dealer as defined
39 in 18 U.S.C. Sec. 921(a)(11).
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 1 (15) "Federal firearms importer" means a licensed importer as
2 defined in 18 U.S.C. Sec. 921(a)(9).
3 (16) "Federal firearms manufacturer" means a licensed
4 manufacturer as defined in 18 U.S.C. Sec. 921(a)(10).
5 (17) "Felony" means any felony offense under the laws of this
6 state or any federal or out-of-state offense comparable to a felony
7 offense under the laws of this state.
8 (18) "Felony firearm offender" means a person who has previously
9 been convicted or found not guilty by reason of insanity in this
10 state of any felony firearm offense. A person is not a felony firearm
11 offender under this chapter if any and all qualifying offenses have
12 been the subject of an expungement, pardon, annulment, certificate,
13 or rehabilitation, or other equivalent procedure based on a finding
14 of the rehabilitation of the person convicted or a pardon, annulment,
15 or other equivalent procedure based on a finding of innocence.
16 (19) "Felony firearm offense" means:
17 (a) Any felony offense that is a violation of this chapter;
18 (b) A violation of RCW 9A.36.045;
19 (c) A violation of RCW 9A.56.300;
20 (d) A violation of RCW 9A.56.310;
21 (e) Any felony offense if the offender was armed with a firearm
22 in the commission of the offense.
23 (20) "Firearm" means a weapon or device from which a projectile
24 or projectiles may be fired by an explosive such as gunpowder. For
25 the purposes of RCW 9.41.040, "firearm" also includes frames and
26 receivers. "Firearm" does not include a flare gun or other
27 pyrotechnic visual distress signaling device, or a powder-actuated
28 tool or other device designed solely to be used for construction
29 purposes.
30 (21)(a) "Frame or receiver" means a part of a firearm that, when
31 the complete firearm is assembled, is visible from the exterior and
32 provides housing or a structure designed to hold or integrate one or
33 more fire control components, even if pins or other attachments are
34 required to connect the fire control components. Any such part
35 identified with a serial number shall be presumed, absent an official
36 determination by the bureau of alcohol, tobacco, firearms, and
37 explosives or other reliable evidence to the contrary, to be a frame
38 or receiver.
39 (b) For purposes of this subsection, "fire control component"
40 means a component necessary for the firearm to initiate, complete, or
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 1 continue the firing sequence, including any of the following: Hammer,
2 bolt, bolt carrier, breechblock, cylinder, trigger mechanism, firing
3 pin, striker, or slide rails.
4 (22) "Gun" has the same meaning as firearm.
5 (23) "Import" means to move, transport, or receive an item from a
6 place outside the territorial limits of the state of Washington to a
7 place inside the territorial limits of the state of Washington.
8 "Import" does not mean situations where an individual possesses a
9 large capacity magazine or assault weapon when departing from, and
10 returning to, Washington state, so long as the individual is
11 returning to Washington in possession of the same large capacity
12 magazine or assault weapon the individual transported out of state.
13 (24) "Intimate partner" has the same meaning as provided in RCW
14 7.105.010.
15 (25) "Large capacity magazine" means an ammunition feeding device
16 with the capacity to accept more than 10 rounds of ammunition, or any
17 conversion kit, part, or combination of parts, from which such a
18 device can be assembled if those parts are in possession of or under
19 the control of the same person, but shall not be construed to include
20 any of the following:
21 (a) An ammunition feeding device that has been permanently
22 altered so that it cannot accommodate more than 10 rounds of
23 ammunition;
24 (b) A 22 caliber tube ammunition feeding device; or
25 (c) A tubular magazine that is contained in a lever-action
26 firearm.
27 (26) "Law enforcement officer" includes a general authority
28 Washington peace officer as defined in RCW 10.93.020, or a specially
29 commissioned Washington peace officer as defined in RCW 10.93.020.
30 "Law enforcement officer"