Permit requirement for gun purchases clears state Senate

The Washington state Senate on Monday, April 14, approved legislation to require a new state permit to buy guns.

The debate over House Bill 1163 has been one of the most contentious this legislative session.

Conservatives and gun owners think it puts an unconstitutional barrier to the right to bear arms.

Democrats see it as one more step the state can take to reduce gun violence, after banning bump stocks and prohibiting sales of high-capacity magazines and semi-automatic firearms.

“As the son and grandson and nephew and cousin of responsible gun owners, I know that the Second Amendment is critical to our freedom that’s cherished by Washingtonians around the state,” said Sen. Marko Liias, D-Edmonds, in floor debate Monday, “but I know that gun owners across Washington are united in their desire to make sure that only those who are legally authorized to have firearms should have access to them.”

The bill moves beyond the state’s existing background check system.

It would require gun buyers to apply for a five-year permit from the Washington State Patrol. To qualify, applicants must have completed a certified firearms safety training program within the past five years, with some exceptions, and pay a fee.

If the applicant has completed the safety course, the state would have to approve the permit unless the person is barred from having guns, out of custody on bond awaiting trial or sentencing on felony charges, or the subject of an arrest warrant.

Troopers would issue the permit within 30 days, or 60 days if the applicant doesn’t have a state ID. State patrol anticipates receiving at least 100,000 applications per year, with over 40 employees tasked with handling them.

The agency expects the new program will cost nearly $20 million in the 2027-29 budget cycle. Fees collected for fingerprinting and background checks would offset the cost, according to a fiscal analysis. The system could bring in $31 million in the 2027-29 budget.

Democrats in the Senate passed the legislation on a party-line 29-19 vote.

Amendments made in the Senate include exemptions from the training requirement for licensed armed security guards and private investigators. Lawmakers also delayed the effective date from November 2026 to May 2027.

On Monday, Democratic senators shot down Republican amendments to exempt some groups from the permit requirement, among other things.

The bill, which has the support of state Attorney General Nick Brown, now returns to the House for lawmakers there to consider the changes before sending it to the governor.

The policy has never come this close to becoming law. Last year, it didn’t even advance out of committee.

About a dozen states have implemented permit-to-purchase programs, and such laws have withstood legal challenges.

Still, Republicans in the Legislature believe courts would strike down the Washington proposal. Sen. Keith Wagoner, R-Sedro-Woolley, called the bill “hostile to the Second Amendment.”

“This is simply a poorly designed assault on hard-working taxpayers who want to legally exercise their hunting rights, their Second Amendment rights,” said Sen. Mark Schoesler, R-Ritzville.

Most other Democratic priorities on guns have fizzled out this year in Olympia, including proposals to limit bulk purchases of firearms and ammunition, require gun owners to lock up their weapons in their cars and homes and add new requirements for gun dealers.

But a bill expanding the list of places where it’s illegal to carry a gun has cleared the Senate and now awaits a vote in the House.

Jake Goldstein-Street is a reporter for Washington State Standard, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Washington State Standard maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Bill Lucia for questions: info@washingtonstatestandard.com. Follow Washington State Standard on Facebook and Twitter.