The bill establishes a new environmental accelerator within the office of regulatory assistance to provide regulatory flexibility for salmon recovery and ecological resiliency projects funded by climate commitment act revenue. It mandates the appointment of an administrator to oversee the accelerator, which automatically enrolls entities receiving funding from specific climate-related accounts. The administrator is tasked with identifying regulatory barriers, facilitating potential regulatory relief, and maintaining a registry of enrolled entities. The bill outlines the process for requesting regulatory relief, the conditions under which such relief can be rescinded, and requires annual progress reports to the legislature detailing the activities and outcomes of the accelerator.

Additionally, the bill amends existing definitions in RCW 43.42.030 to include terms related to the environmental accelerator, such as "administrator" and "salmon recovery." A new section is added to chapter 44.28 RCW, requiring a joint committee to evaluate the implementation of the accelerator and report its findings and recommendations to the legislature by December 1, 2029. This evaluation will assess the effectiveness of the accelerator and whether it should continue in its current form, with the section set to expire on January 1, 2031.

Statutes affected:
Original Bill: 43.42.030