Legislature oath of office

AN ACT Relating to the oath of office for members of the state 1
legislature; amending RCW 29A.04.133 and 36.32.120; and adding a new 2
section to chapter 44.04 RCW. 3
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:4
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 44.04 5
RCW to read as follows: 6
(1) Elected and appointed members of the senate and house of 7
representatives, before entering upon the duties of their office, 8
shall take and subscribe the following oath or affirmation: "I do 9
solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support the Constitution of 10
the United States and the Constitution and laws of the State of 11
Washington, and that I will faithfully and impartially discharge the 12
duties of the office of (senator or representative) of the State of 13
Washington to the best of my ability." Which oath or affirmation may 14
be administered by any person authorized to administer oaths, a 15
certificate whereof shall be affixed thereto by the person 16
administering the oath, and the oath or affirmation so certified 17
shall be filed in the office of the secretary of state.18
(2) The following persons are eligible to administer the oath of 19
office: 20
(a) Court commissioners pursuant to RCW 2.24.010;21
S-0409.1
SENATE BILL 5245
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session
By Senators Krishnadasan, Valdez, Nobles, Shewmake, and J. Wilson
Read first time 01/14/25. Referred to Committee on State Government,
Tribal Affairs & Elections.
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(b) Judicial officers pursuant to RCW 2.28.060;1
(c) Every court, judge, clerk of a court, state-certified court 2
reporter, or notary public pursuant to RCW 5.28.010; and3
(d) County councilmembers and commissioners pursuant to RCW 4
36.32.120. 5
Sec. 2. RCW 29A.04.133 and 2007 c 374 s 1 are each amended to 6
read as follows: 7
"Qualified" when pertaining to a winner of an election means that 8
for such election: 9
(1) The results have been certified; 10
(2) Any required bond has been posted; and 11
(3) The winner has taken and subscribed an oath or affirmation in 12
compliance with ((the)) section 1 of this act or other appropriate 13
statute, or if none is specified, that he or she will faithfully and 14
impartially discharge the duties of the office to the best of his or 15
her ability. This oath or affirmation shall be administered and 16
certified by any officer or notary public authorized to administer 17
oaths, without charge therefor. 18
Sec. 3. RCW 36.32.120 and 2020 c 20 s 1019 are each amended to 19
read as follows: 20
The legislative authorities of the several counties shall:21
(1) Provide for the erection and repairing of courthouses, jails, 22
and other necessary public buildings for the use of the county;23
(2) Lay out, discontinue, or alter county roads and highways 24
within their respective counties, and do all other necessary acts 25
relating thereto according to law, except within cities and towns 26
which have jurisdiction over the roads within their limits;27
(3) License and fix the rates of ferriage; grant grocery and 28
other licenses authorized by law to be by them granted at fees set by 29
the legislative authorities which shall not exceed the costs of 30
administration and operation of such licensed activities;31
(4) Fix the amount of county taxes to be assessed according to 32
the provisions of law, and cause the same to be collected as 33
prescribed by law; 34
(5) Allow all accounts legally chargeable against the county not 35
otherwise provided for, and audit the accounts of all officers having 36
the care, management, collection, or disbursement of any money 37
belonging to the county or appropriated to its benefit;38
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(6) Have the care of the county property and the management of 1
the county funds and business and in the name of the county prosecute 2
and defend all actions for and against the county, and such other 3
powers as are or may be conferred by law; 4
(7) Make and enforce, by appropriate resolutions or ordinances, 5
all such police and sanitary regulations as are not in conflict with 6
state law, and within the unincorporated area of the county may adopt 7
by reference Washington state statutes and recognized codes and/or 8
compilations printed in book form relating to the construction of 9
buildings, the installation of plumbing, the installation of electric 10
wiring, health, or other subjects, and may adopt such codes and/or 11
compilations or portions thereof, together with amendments thereto, 12
or additions thereto: PROVIDED, That except for Washington state 13
statutes, there shall be filed in the county auditor's office one 14
copy of such codes and compilations ten days prior to their adoption 15
by reference, and additional copies may also be filed in library or 16
city offices within the county as deemed necessary by the county 17
legislative authority: PROVIDED FURTHER, That no such regulation, 18
code, compilation, and/or statute shall be effective unless before 19
its adoption, a public hearing has been held thereon by the county 20
legislative authority of which at least ten days' notice has been 21
given. Any violation of such regulations, ordinances, codes, 22
compilations, and/or statutes or resolutions shall constitute a 23
misdemeanor or a civil violation subject to a monetary penalty: 24
PROVIDED FURTHER, That violation of a regulation, ordinance, code, 25
compilation, and/or statute relating to traffic including parking, 26
standing, stopping, and pedestrian offenses is a traffic infraction, 27
except that violation of a regulation, ordinance, code, compilation, 28
and/or statute equivalent to those provisions of Title 46 RCW set 29
forth in RCW 46.63.020 remains a misdemeanor. However, the punishment 30
for any criminal ordinance shall be the same as the punishment 31
provided in state law for the same crime and no act that is a state 32
crime may be made a civil violation. The notice must set out a copy 33
of the proposed regulations or summarize the content of each proposed 34
regulation; or if a code is adopted by reference the notice shall set 35
forth the full official title and a statement describing the general 36
purpose of such code. For purposes of this subsection, a summary 37
shall mean a brief description which succinctly describes the main 38
points of the proposed regulation. When the county publishes a 39
summary, the publication shall include a statement that the full text 40
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of the proposed regulation will be mailed upon request. An 1
inadvertent mistake or omission in publishing the text or a summary 2
of the content of a proposed regulation shall not render the 3
regulation invalid if it is adopted. The notice shall also include 4
the day, hour, and place of hearing and must be given by publication 5
in the newspaper in which legal notices of the county are printed;6
(8) Have power to compound and release in whole or in part any 7
debt due to the county when in their opinion the interest of their 8
county will not be prejudiced thereby, except in cases where they or 9
any of them are personally interested; 10
(9) Have power to administer oaths or affirmations necessary in 11
the discharge of their duties , or as otherwise authorized by section 12
1 of this act, and commit for contempt any witness refusing to 13
testify before them with the same power as district judges;14
(10) Have power to declare by ordinance what shall be deemed a 15
nuisance within the county, including but not limited to "litter" and 16
"potentially dangerous litter" as defined in RCW 70A.200.030; to 17
prevent, remove, and abate a nuisance at the expense of the parties 18
creating, causing, or committing the nuisance; and to levy a special 19
assessment on the land or premises on which the nuisance is situated 20
to defray the cost, or to reimburse the county for the cost of 21
abating it. This assessment shall constitute a lien against the 22
property which shall be of equal rank with state, county, and 23
municipal taxes. 24
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