Behavioral health staffing

AN ACT Relating to making temporary staffing services provided to 1
nonprofit behavioral health entities exempt from retail sales tax; 2
amending RCW 82.04.050; and creating a new section.3
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:4
Sec. 1. RCW 82.04.050 and 2025 c 422 s 101 are each amended to 5
read as follows: 6
(1)(a) "Sale at retail" or "retail sale" means every sale of 7
tangible personal property (including articles produced, fabricated, 8
or imprinted) to all persons irrespective of the nature of their 9
business and including, among others, without limiting the scope 10
hereof, persons who install, repair, clean, alter, improve, 11
construct, or decorate real or personal property of or for consumers 12
other than a sale to a person who: 13
(i) Purchases for the purpose of resale as tangible personal 14
property in the regular course of business without intervening use by 15
such person, but a purchase for the purpose of resale by a regional 16
transit authority under RCW 81.112.300 is not a sale for resale; or17
(ii) Installs, repairs, cleans, alters, imprints, improves, 18
constructs, or decorates real or personal property of or for 19
consumers, if such tangible personal property becomes an ingredient 20
S-4203.2
SENATE BILL 6297
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2026 Regular Session
By Senators Muzzall, Dozier, and Wagoner
Read first time 01/23/26. Referred to Committee on Ways & Means.
p. 1 SB 6297
or component of such real or personal property without intervening 1
use by such person; or 2
(iii) Purchases for the purpose of consuming the property 3
purchased in producing for sale as a new article of tangible personal 4
property or substance, of which such property becomes an ingredient 5
or component or is a chemical used in processing, when the primary 6
purpose of such chemical is to create a chemical reaction directly 7
through contact with an ingredient of a new article being produced 8
for sale; or 9
(iv) Purchases for the purpose of consuming the property 10
purchased in producing ferrosilicon which is subsequently used in 11
producing magnesium for sale, if the primary purpose of such property 12
is to create a chemical reaction directly through contact with an 13
ingredient of ferrosilicon; or 14
(v) Purchases for the purpose of providing the property to 15
consumers as part of competitive telephone service, as defined in RCW 16
82.04.065; or 17
(vi) Purchases for the purpose of satisfying the person's 18
obligations under an extended warranty as defined in subsection (7) 19
of this section, if such tangible personal property replaces or 20
becomes an ingredient or component of property covered by the 21
extended warranty without intervening use by such person.22
(b) The term includes every sale of tangible personal property 23
that is used or consumed or to be used or consumed in the performance 24
of any activity defined as a "sale at retail" or "retail sale" even 25
though such property is resold or used as provided in (a)(i) through 26
(vi) of this subsection following such use. 27
(c) The term also means every sale of tangible personal property 28
to persons engaged in any business that is taxable under RCW 29
82.04.280(1) (a), (b), and (((g))) (f), 82.04.290, and 82.04.2908.30
(2) The term "sale at retail" or "retail sale" includes the sale 31
of or charge made for tangible personal property consumed and/or for 32
labor and services rendered in respect to the following:33
(a) The installing, repairing, cleaning, altering, imprinting, or 34
improving of tangible personal property of or for consumers, 35
including charges made for the mere use of facilities in respect 36
thereto, but excluding charges made for the use of self-service 37
laundry facilities, and also excluding sales of laundry service to 38
nonprofit health care facilities, and excluding services rendered in 39
respect to live animals, birds and insects; 40
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(b) The constructing, repairing, decorating, or improving of new 1
or existing buildings or other structures under, upon, or above real 2
property of or for consumers, including the installing or attaching 3
of any article of tangible personal property therein or thereto, 4
whether or not such personal property becomes a part of the realty by 5
virtue of installation, and also includes the sale of services or 6
charges made for the clearing of land and the moving of earth 7
excepting the mere leveling of land used in commercial farming or 8
agriculture; 9
(c) The constructing, repairing, or improving of any structure 10
upon, above, or under any real property owned by an owner who conveys 11
the property by title, possession, or any other means to the person 12
performing such construction, repair, or improvement for the purpose 13
of performing such construction, repair, or improvement and the 14
property is then reconveyed by title, possession, or any other means 15
to the original owner; 16
(d) The cleaning, fumigating, razing, or moving of existing 17
buildings or structures, but does not include the charge made for 18
janitorial services; and for purposes of this section the term 19
"janitorial services" means those cleaning and caretaking services 20
ordinarily performed by commercial janitor service businesses 21
including, but not limited to, wall and window washing, floor 22
cleaning and waxing, and the cleaning in place of rugs, drapes and 23
upholstery. The term "janitorial services" does not include painting, 24
papering, repairing, furnace or septic tank cleaning, snow removal or 25
sandblasting; 26
(e) Automobile towing and similar automotive transportation 27
services, but not in respect to those required to report and pay 28
taxes under chapter 82.16 RCW; 29
(f) The furnishing of lodging and all other services by a hotel, 30
rooming house, tourist court, motel, trailer camp, and the granting 31
of any similar license to use real property, as distinguished from 32
the renting or leasing of real property, and it is presumed that the 33
occupancy of real property for a continuous period of one month or 34
more constitutes a rental or lease of real property and not a mere 35
license to use or enjoy the same. For the purposes of this 36
subsection, it is presumed that the sale of and charge made for the 37
furnishing of lodging for a continuous period of one month or more to 38
a person is a rental or lease of real property and not a mere license 39
to enjoy the same. For the purposes of this section, it is presumed 40
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that the sale of and charge made for the furnishing of lodging 1
offered regularly for public occupancy for periods of less than a 2
month constitutes a license to use or enjoy the property subject to 3
sales and use tax and not a rental or lease of property;4
(g) The installing, repairing, altering, or improving of digital 5
goods for consumers; 6
(h) Persons taxable under (a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (f), and (g) 7
of this subsection when such sales or charges are for property, labor 8
and services which are used or consumed in whole or in part by such 9
persons in the performance of any activity defined as a "sale at 10
retail" or "retail sale" even though such property, labor and 11
services may be resold after such use or consumption. Nothing 12
contained in this subsection may be construed to modify subsection 13
(1) of this section and nothing contained in subsection (1) of this 14
section may be construed to modify this subsection.15
(3) The term "sale at retail" or "retail sale" includes the sale 16
of or charge made for personal, business, or professional services 17
including amounts designated as interest, rents, fees, admission, and 18
other service emoluments however designated, received by persons 19
engaging in the following business activities: 20
(a) Abstract, title insurance, and escrow services;21
(b) Credit bureau services; 22
(c) Automobile parking and storage garage services;23
(d) Landscape maintenance and horticultural services but 24
excluding (i) horticultural services provided to farmers and (ii) 25
pruning, trimming, repairing, removing, and clearing of trees and 26
brush near electric transmission or distribution lines or equipment, 27
if performed by or at the direction of an electric utility;28
(e) Service charges associated with tickets to professional 29
sporting events; 30
(f) The following personal services: Tanning salon services, 31
tattoo parlor services, steam bath services, turkish bath services, 32
escort services, and dating services; 33
(g) Information technology training services, technical support, 34
and other services including, but not limited to, assisting with 35
network operations and support, help desk services, in-person 36
training related to hardware or software, network system support 37
services, data entry services, and data processing services;38
(h) Custom website development services. For the purposes of this 39
subsection (3), "website development services" means the design, 40
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development, and support of a website provided by a website developer 1
to a customer; 2
(i) Investigation, security services, security monitoring 3
services, and armored car services including, but not limited to, 4
background checks, security guard and patrol services, personal and 5
event security, armored car transportation of cash and valuables, and 6
security system services and monitoring. This does not include 7
locksmith services; 8
(j) Temporary staffing services. For the purposes of this 9
subsection (3)((, "temporary)) (j):10
(i) "Behavioral health services" has the same meaning as in RCW 11
71.24.025;12
(ii) "Nonprofit behavioral health entity" means a nonprofit as 13
defined in RCW 84.36.800 that is exempt from federal income taxation 14
under 26 U.S.C. Sec. 501 (c)(3) of the federal internal revenue code 15
of 1986, as amended, that provides behavioral health services.16
(iii) "Temporary staffing services" ((means providing workers to 17
other businesses, except for hospitals licensed under chapter 70.41 18
or 71.12 RCW, for limited periods of time to supplement their 19
workforce and fill employment vacancies on a contract or for fee 20
basis)) has the same meaning as "staffing services" in RCW 82.04.540, 21
except that:22
(A) "Temporary staffing services" does not include staffing 23
services provided to hospitals licensed under chapter 70.41 or 71.12 24
RCW for limited periods of time to supplement their workforces and 25
fill employment vacancies on a contract or for a fee basis.26
(B) "Temporary staffing services" does not include staffing 27
services provided to nonprofit behavioral health entities;28
(k) Advertising services. (i) For the purposes of this subsection 29
(3), "advertising services" means all digital and nondigital services 30
related to the creation, preparation, production, or dissemination of 31
advertisements including, but not limited to: 32
(A) Layout, art direction, graphic design, mechanical 33
preparation, production supervision, placement, referrals, 34
acquisition of advertising space, and rendering advice concerning the 35
best methods of advertising products or services; and36
(B) Online referrals, search engine marketing ((,)) and lead 37
generation optimization, web campaign planning, the acquisition of 38
advertising space in the internet media, and the monitoring and 39
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evaluation of website traffic for purposes of determining the 1
effectiveness of an advertising campaign. 2
(ii) "Advertising services" do not include: 3
(A) Web hosting services and domain name registration;4
(B) Services rendered in respect to the following:5
(I) "Newspapers" as defined in RCW 82.04.214; 6
(II) Printing or publishing under RCW 82.04.280; and7
(III) "Radio and television broadcasting" within this state as 8
defined in RCW 82.04.281; and 9
(C) Services rendered in respect to out-of-home advertising, 10
including: Billboard advertising; street furniture advertising; 11
transit advertising; place-based advertising, such as in-store 12
display advertising or point-of-sale advertising; dynamic or static 13
signage at live events; naming rights; and fixed signage advertising. 14
Out-of-home advertising does not include direct mail;15
(l) Live presentations including, but not limited to, lectures, 16
seminars, workshops, or courses where participants attend either in-17
person or via the internet or telecommunications equipment that 18
allows audience members and the presenter or instructor to give, 19
receive, and discuss information with each other in real time; and20
(m)(i) Operating an athletic or fitness facility, including all 21
charges for the use of such a facility or for any associated services 22
and amenities, except as provided in (m)(ii) of this subsection.23
(ii) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in (m)(i) of this 24
subsection (3), the term "sale at retail" and "retail sale" under 25
this subsection does not include: 26
(A) Separately stated charges for the use of an athletic or 27
fitness facility where such use is primarily for a purpose other than 28
engaging in or receiving instruction in a physical fitness activity;29
(B) Separately stated charges for the use of a discrete portion 30
of an athletic or fitness facility, other than a pool, where such 31
discrete portion of the facility does not by itself meet the 32
definition of "athletic or fitness facility" in this subsection;33
(C) Separately stated charges for services, such as massage, 34
nutritional consulting, and body composition testing, that do not 35
require the customer to engage in physical fitness activities to 36
receive the service. The exclusion in this subsection (3)(m)(ii)(C) 37
does not apply to personal training services and instruction in a 38
physical fitness activity; 39
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(D) Separately stated charges for physical therapy provided by a 1
physical therapist, as those terms are defined in RCW 18.74.010, or 2
occupational therapy provided by an occupational therapy 3
practitioner, as those terms are defined in RCW 18.59.020, when 4
performed pursuant to a referral from an authorized health care 5
practitioner or in consultation with an authorized health care 6
practitioner. For the purposes of this subsection (3)(m)(ii)(D), an 7
authorized health care practitioner means a health care practitioner 8
licensed under chapter 18.83, 18.25, 18.36A, 18.57, 18.71, or 18.71A 9
RCW, or, until July 1, 2022, chapter 18.57A RCW; 10
(E) Rent or association fees charged by a landlord or residential 11
association to a tenant or residential owner with access to an 12
athletic or fitness facility maintained by the landlord or 13
residential association, unless the rent or fee varies depending on 14
whether the tenant or owner has access to the facility;15
(F) Services provided in the regular course of employment by an 16
employee with access to an athletic or fitness facility maintained by 17
the employer for use without charge by its employees or their family 18
members; 19
(G) The provision of access to an athletic or fitness facility by 20
an educational institution to its students and staff. However, 21
charges made by an educational institution to its alumni or other 22
members of the public for the use of any of the educational 23
institution's athletic or fitness facilities are a retail sale under 24
this subsection (3)(m). For purposes of this subsection 25
(3)(m)(ii)(G), "educational institution" has the same meaning as in 26
RCW 82.04.170; 27
(H) Yoga, chi gong, or martial arts classes, training, or events 28
held at a community center, park, school gymnasium, college or 29
university, hospital or other medical facility, private residence, or 30
any other facility that is not operated within and as part of an 31
athletic or fitness facility. 32
(iii) Nothing in (m)(ii) of this subsection (3) may be construed 33
to affect the taxation of sales made by the operator of an athletic 34
or fitness facility, where such sales are defined as a retail sale 35
under any provision of this section other than this subsection (3).36
(iv) For the purposes of this subsection (3)(m), the following 37
definitions apply: 38
(A) "Athletic or fitness facility" means an indoor or outdoor 39
facility or portion of a facility that is primarily used for: 40
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Exercise classes; strength and conditioning programs; personal 1
training services; tennis, racquetball, handball, squash, or 2
pickleball; or other activities requiring the use of exercise or 3
strength training equipment, such as treadmills, elliptical machines, 4
stair climbers, stationary cycles, rowing machines, pilates 5
equipment, balls, climbing ropes, jump ropes, and weightlifting 6
equipment. 7
(B) "Martial arts" means any of the various systems of training 8
for physical combat or self-defense. "Martial arts" includes, but is 9
not limited to, karate, kung fu, tae kwon do, Krav Maga, boxing, 10
kickboxing, jujitsu, shootfighting, wrestling, aikido, judo, hapkido, 11
Kendo, tai chi, and mixed martial arts. 12
(C) "Physical fitness activities" means activities that involve 13
physical exertion for the purpose of improving or maintaining the 14
general fitness, strength, flexibility, conditioning, or health of 15
the participant. "Physical fitness activities" includes participating 16
in yoga, chi gong, or martial arts. 17
For the purposes of (g) through (i) and (k) of this subsection 18
(3), the terms "sale at retail" and "retail sale" do not include a 19
sale between members of an affiliated group as defined in RCW 20
82.04.299(1)(f). 21
(4)(a) The term also includes the renting or leasing of tangible 22
personal property to consumers. 23
(b) The term does not include the renting or leasing of tangible 24
personal property where the lease or rental is for the purpose of 25
sublease or subrent. 26
(5) The term also includes the providing of "competitive 27
telephone service," "telecommunications service," or "ancillary 28
services," as those terms are defined in RCW 82.04.065, to consumers.29
(6)(a) The term also includes the sale of prewritten computer 30
software, custom software, and customization of prewritten computer 31
software to a consumer, regardless of the method of delivery to the 32
end user. For purposes of this subsection (6)(a), the sale of 33
prewritten computer software includes the sale of or charge made for 34
a key or an enabling or activation code, where the key or code is 35
required to activate prewritten computer software and put the 36
software into use. There is no separate sale of the key or code from 37
the prewritten computer software, regardless of how the sale may be 38
characterized by the vendor or by the purchaser. 39
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(b)(i) The term also includes the charge made to consumers for 1
the right to access and use prewritten computer software, custom 2
software, and customization of prewritten computer software, where 3
possession of the software is maintained by the seller or a third 4
party, regardless of whether the charge for the service is on a per 5
use, per user, per license, subscription, or some other basis.6
(ii)(A) The service described in (b)(i) of this subsection (6) 7
includes the right to access and use prewritten computer software, 8
custom software, and customization of prewritten computer software to 9
perform data processing. 10
(B) For purposes of this subsection (6)(b)(ii), "data processing" 11
means the systematic performance of operations on data to extract the 12
required information in an appropriate form or to convert the data to 13
usable information. Data processing includes check processing, image 14
processing, form processing, survey processing, payroll processing, 15
claim processing, and similar activities. 16
(7) The term also includes the sale of or charge made for an 17
extended warranty to a consumer. For purposes of this subsection, 18
"extended warranty" means an agreement for a specified duration to 19
perform the replacement or repair of tangible personal property at no 20
additional charge or a reduced charge for tangible personal property, 21
labor, or both, or to provide indemnification for the replacement or 22
repair of tangible personal property, based on the occurrence of 23
specified events. The term "extended warranty" does not include an 24
agreement, otherwise meeting the definition of extended warranty in 25
this subsection, if no separate charge is made for the agreement and 26
the value of the agreement is included in the sales price of the 27
tangible personal property covered by the agreement. For purposes of 28
this subsection, "sales price" has the same meaning as in RCW 29
82.08.010. 30
(8)(a) The term also includes the following sales to consumers of 31
digital goods, digital codes, and digital automated services:32
(i) Sales in which the seller has granted the purchaser the right 33
of permanent use; 34
(ii) Sales in which the seller has granted the purchaser a right 35
of use that is less than permanent; 36
(iii) Sales in which the purchaser is not obligated to make 37
continued payment as a condition of the sale; and 38
(iv) Sales in which the purchaser is obligated to make continued 39
payment as a condition of the sale. 40
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(b) A retail sale of digital goods, digital codes, or digital 1
automated services under this subsection (8) includes any services 2
provided by the seller exclusively in connection with the digital 3
goods, digital codes, or digital automated services, whether or not a 4
separate charge is made for such services. 5
(c) A retail sale of digital goods, digital codes, or digital 6
automated services does not include the following services if the 7
sale occurs between members of an affiliated group as defined in RCW 8
82.04.299(1)(f): 9
(i) Any service that primarily involves the application of human 10
effort by the seller, and the human effort originated after the 11
customer requested the service; 12
(ii) Live presentations, such as lectures, seminars, workshops, 13
or courses, where participants are connected to other participants 14
via the internet or telecommunications equipment, which allows 15
audience members and the presenter or instructor to give, receive, 16
and discuss information with each other in real time;17
(iii) Advertising services. For purposes of this subsection 18
(8)(c), "advertising services" means all services directly related to 19
the creation, preparation, production, or dissemination of 20
advertisements. Advertising services include layout, art direction, 21
graphic design, mechanical preparation, production supervision, 22
placement, and rendering advice to a client concerning the best 23
methods of advertising that client's products or services. 24
Advertising services also include online referrals, search engine 25
marketing and lead generation optimization, web campaign planning, 26
the acquisition of advertising space in the internet media, and the 27
monitoring and evaluation of website traffic for purposes of 28
determining the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. Advertising 29
services do not include web hosting services and domain name 30
registration; and 31
(iv) Data processing services. For purposes of this subsection 32
(8)(c), "data processing service" means a primarily automated service 33
provided to a business or other organization where the primary object 34
of the service is the systematic performance of operations by the 35
service provider on data supplied in whole or in part by the customer 36
to extract the required information in an appropriate form or to 37
convert the data to usable information. Data processing services 38
include check processing, image processing, form processing, survey 39
processing, payroll processing, claim processing, and similar 40
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activities. Data processing does not include the service described in 1
subsection (6)(b) of this section. 2
(d) For purposes of this subsection, "permanent" means perpetual 3
or for an indefinite or unspecified length of time. A right of 4
permanent use is presumed to have been granted unless the agreement 5
between the seller and the purchaser specifies or the circumstances 6
surrounding the transaction suggest or indicate that the right to use 7
terminates on the occurrence of a condition subsequent.8
(9) The term also includes the charge made for providing tangible 9
personal property along with an operator for a fixed or indeterminate 10
period of time. A consideration of this is that the operator is 11
necessary for the tangible personal property to perform as designed. 12
For the purpose of this subsection (9), an operator must do more than 13
maintain, inspect, or set up the tangible personal property.14
(10) The term does not include the sale of or charge made for 15
labor and services rendered in respect to the building, repairing, or 16
improving of any street, place, road, highway, easement, right-of-17
way, mass public transportation terminal or parking facility, bridge, 18
tunnel, or trestle which is owned by a municipal corporation or 19
political subdivision of the state or by the United States and which 20
is used or to be used primarily for foot or vehicular traffic 21
including mass transportation vehicles of any kind.22
(11) The term also does not include sales of chemical sprays or 23
washes to persons for the purpose of postharvest treatment of fruit 24
for the prevention of scald, fungus, mold, or decay, nor does it 25
include sales of feed, seed, seedlings, fertilizer, agents for 26
enhanced pollination including insects such as bees, and spray 27
materials to: (a) Persons who participate in the federal conservation 28
reserve program, the environmental quality incentives program, the 29
wetlands reserve program, and the wildlife habitat incentives 30
program, or their successors administered by the United States 31
department of agriculture; (b) farmers for the purpose of producing 32
for sale any agricultural product; (c) farmers for the purpose of 33
providing bee pollination services; and (d) farmers acting under 34
cooperative habitat development or access contracts with an 35
organization exempt from federal income tax under 26 U.S.C. Sec. 36
501(c)(3) of the federal internal revenue code or the Washington 37
state department of fish and wildlife to produce or improve wildlife 38
habitat on land that the farmer owns or leases. 39
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(12) The term does not include the sale of or charge made for 1
labor and services rendered in respect to the constructing, 2
repairing, decorating, or improving of new or existing buildings or 3
other structures under, upon, or above real property of or for the 4
United States, any instrumentality thereof, or a county or city 5
housing authority created pursuant to chapter 35.82 RCW, including 6
the installing, or attaching of any article of tangible personal 7
property therein or thereto, whether or not such personal property 8
becomes a part of the realty by virtue of installation. Nor does the 9
term include the sale of services or charges made for the clearing of 10
land and the moving of earth of or for the United States, any 11
instrumentality thereof, or a county or city housing authority. Nor 12
does the term include the sale of services or charges made for 13
cleaning up for the United States, or its instrumentalities, 14
radioactive waste and other by-products of weapons production and 15
nuclear research and development. 16
(13) The term does not include the sale of or charge made for 17
labor, services, or tangible personal property pursuant to agreements 18
providing maintenance services for bus, rail, or rail fixed guideway 19
equipment when a regional transit authority is the recipient of the 20
labor, services, or tangible personal property, and a transit agency, 21
as defined in RCW 81.104.015, performs the labor or services.22
(14) The term does not include the sale for resale of any service 23
described in this section if the sale would otherwise constitute a 24
"sale at retail" and "retail sale" under this section.25
(15)(a) The term "sale at retail" or "retail sale" includes 26
amounts charged, however labeled, to consumers to engage in any of 27
the activities listed in this subsection (15)(a), including the 28
furnishing of any associated equipment or, except as otherwise 29
provided in this subsection, providing instruction in such 30
activities, where such charges are not otherwise defined as a "sale 31
at retail" or "retail sale" in this section: 32
(i)(A) Golf, including any variant in which either golf balls or 33
golf clubs are used, such as miniature golf, hitting golf balls at a 34
driving range, and golf simulators, and including fees charged by a 35
golf course to a player for using his or her own cart. However, 36
charges for golf instruction are not a retail sale, provided that if 37
the instruction involves the use of a golfing facility that would 38
otherwise require the payment of a fee, such as green fees or driving 39
range fees, such fees, including the applicable retail sales tax, 40
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must be separately identified and charged by the golfing facility 1
operator to the instructor or the person receiving the instruction.2
(B) Notwithstanding (a)(i)(A) of this subsection (15) and except 3
as otherwise provided in this subsection (15)(a)(i)(B), the term 4
"sale at retail" or "retail sale" does not include amounts charged to 5
participate in, or conduct, a golf tournament or other competitive 6
event. However, amounts paid by event participants to the golf 7
facility operator are retail sales under this subsection (15)(a)(i). 8
Likewise, amounts paid by the event organizer to the golf facility 9
are retail sales under this subsection (15)(a)(i), if such amounts 10
vary based on the number of event participants; 11
(ii) Ballooning, hang gliding, indoor or outdoor sky diving, 12
paragliding, parasailing, and similar activities; 13
(iii) Air hockey, billiards, pool, foosball, darts, shuffleboard, 14
ping pong, and similar games; 15
(iv) Access to amusement park, theme park, and water park 16
facilities, including but not limited to charges for admission and 17
locker or cabana rentals. Discrete charges for rides or other 18
attractions or entertainment that are in addition to the charge for 19
admission are not a retail sale under this subsection (15)(a)(iv). 20
For the purposes of this subsection, an amusement park or theme park 21
is a location that provides permanently affixed amusement rides, 22
games, and other entertainment, but does not include parks or zoos 23
for which the primary purpose is the exhibition of wildlife, or 24
fairs, carnivals, and festivals as defined in (b)(i) of this 25
subsection; 26
(v) Batting cage activities; 27
(vi) Bowling, but not including competitive events, except that 28
amounts paid by the event participants to the bowling alley operator 29
are retail sales under this subsection (15)(a)(vi). Likewise, amounts 30
paid by the event organizer to the operator of the bowling alley are 31
retail sales under this subsection (15)(a)(vi), if such amounts vary 32
based on the number of event participants; 33
(vii) Climbing on artificial climbing structures, whether indoors 34
or outdoors; 35
(viii) Day trips for sightseeing purposes; 36
(ix) Bungee jumping, zip lining, and riding inside a ball, 37
whether inflatable or otherwise; 38
(x) Horseback riding offered to the public, where the seller 39
furnishes the horse to the buyer and providing instruction is not the 40
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primary focus of the activity, including guided rides, but not 1
including therapeutic horseback riding provided by an instructor 2
certified by a nonprofit organization that offers national or 3
international certification for therapeutic riding instructors;4
(xi) Fishing, including providing access to private fishing areas 5
and charter or guided fishing, except that fishing contests and 6
license fees imposed by a government entity are not a retail sale 7
under this subsection; 8
(xii) Guided hunting and hunting at game farms and shooting 9
preserves, except that hunting contests and license fees imposed by a 10
government entity are not a retail sale under this subsection;11
(xiii) Swimming, but only in respect to (A) recreational or 12
fitness swimming that is open to the public, such as open swim, lap 13
swimming, and special events like kids night out and pool parties 14
during open swim time, and (B) pool parties for private events, such 15
as birthdays, family gatherings, and employee outings. Fees for 16
swimming lessons, to participate in swim meets and other 17
competitions, or to join a swim team, club, or aquatic facility are 18
not retail sales under this subsection (15)(a)(xiii);19
(xiv) Go-karting, bumper cars, and other motorized activities 20
where the seller provides the vehicle and the premises where the 21
buyer will operate the vehicle; 22
(xv) Indoor or outdoor playground activities, such as inflatable 23
bounce structures and other inflatables; mazes; trampolines; slides; 24
ball pits; games of tag, including laser tag and soft-dart tag; and 25
human gyroscope rides, regardless of whether such activities occur at 26
the seller's place of business, but not including playground 27
activities provided for children by a licensed child day care center 28
or licensed family day care provider as those terms are defined in 29
RCW 43.216.010; 30
(xvi) Shooting sports and activities, such as target shooting, 31
skeet, trap, sporting clays, "5" stand, and archery, but only in 32
respect to discrete charges to members of the public to engage in 33
these activities, but not including fees to enter a competitive 34
event, instruction that is entirely or predominately classroom based, 35
or to join or renew a membership at a club, range, or other facility;36
(xvii) Paintball and airsoft activities; 37
(xviii) Skating, including ice skating, roller skating, and 38
inline skating, but only in respect to discrete charges to members of 39
the public to engage in skating activities, but not including skating 40
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lessons, competitive events, team activities, or fees to join or 1
renew a membership at a skating facility, club, or other 2
organization; 3
(xix) Nonmotorized snow sports and activities, such as downhill 4
and cross-country skiing, snowboarding, ski jumping, sledding, snow 5
tubing, snowshoeing, and similar snow sports and activities, whether 6
engaged in outdoors or in an indoor facility with or without snow, 7
but only in respect to discrete charges to the public for the use of 8
land or facilities to engage in nonmotorized snow sports and 9
activities, such as fees, however labeled, for the use of ski lifts 10
and tows and daily or season passes for access to trails or other 11
areas where nonmotorized snow sports and activities are conducted. 12
However, fees for the following are not retail sales under this 13
subsection (15)(a)(xix): (A) Instructional lessons; (B) permits 14
issued by a governmental entity to park a vehicle on or access public 15
lands; and (C) permits or leases granted by an owner of private 16
timberland for recreational access to areas used primarily for 17
growing and harvesting timber; and 18
(xx) Scuba diving; snorkeling; river rafting; surfing; 19
kiteboarding; flyboarding; water slides; inflatables, such as water 20
pillows, water trampolines, and water rollers; and similar water 21
sports and activities. 22
(b) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this subsection 23
(15), the term "sale at retail" or "retail sale" does not include 24
charges: 25
(i) Made for admission to, and rides or attractions at, fairs, 26
carnivals, and festivals. For the purposes of this subsection, fairs, 27
carnivals, and festivals are events that do not exceed 21 days and a 28
majority of the amusement rides, if any, are not affixed to real 29
property; 30
(ii) Made by an educational institution to its students and staff 31
for activities defined as retail sales by (a)(i) through (xx) of this 32
subsection. However, charges made by an educational institution to 33
its alumni or other members of the general public for these 34
activities are a retail sale under this subsection (15). For purposes 35
of this subsection (15)(b)(ii), "educational institution" has the 36
same meaning as in RCW 82.04.170; 37
(iii) Made by a vocational school for commercial diver training 38
that is licensed by the workforce training and education coordinating 39
board under chapter 28C.10 RCW; or 40
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(iv) Made for day camps offered by a nonprofit organization or 1
state or local governmental entity that provide youth not older than 2
age 18, or that are focused on providing individuals with 3
disabilities or mental illness, the opportunity to participate in a 4
variety of supervised activities. 5
(16)(a) The term "sale at retail" or "retail sale" includes the 6
purchase or acquisition of tangible personal property and specified 7
services by a person who receives either a qualifying grant exempt 8
from tax under RCW 82.04.767 or 82.16.320 or a grant deductible under 9
RCW 82.04.4339, except for transactions excluded from the definition 10
of "sale at retail" or "retail sale" by any other provision of this 11
section. Nothing in this subsection (16) may be construed to limit 12
the application of any other provision of this section to purchases 13
by a recipient of either a qualifying grant exempt from tax under RCW 14
82.04.767 or a grant deductible under RCW 82.04.4339, or by any other 15
person. 16
(b) For purposes of this subsection (16), "specified services" 17
means: 18
(i) The constructing, repairing, decorating, or improving of new 19
or existing buildings or other structures under, upon, or above real 20
property, including the installing or attaching of any article of 21
tangible personal property therein or thereto, whether or not such 22
personal property becomes a part of the realty by virtue of 23
installation; 24
(ii) The clearing of land or the moving of earth, whether or not 25
associated with activities described in (b)(i) of this subsection 26
(16); 27
(iii) The razing or moving of existing buildings or structures; 28
and 29
(iv) Landscape maintenance and horticultural services.30
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. RCW 82.32.805 and 82.32.808 do not apply 31
to this act.32
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