(1) The department shall create a program to compensate registered tow truck operators for private property impounds or impounds performed at the direction of law enforcement to apply when the owner of the vehicle is indigent, except when the vehicle has been impounded after the vehicle owner has been arrested by a law enforcement officer.

(2) An individual seeking the release of a vehicle under this program must:

(a) Be the legal or registered owner of the vehicle;

(b) Be indigent;

(c) Either not have the ability to pay for the towing service or when making such payment would be a severe hardship;

(d) Not have applied for the release of a vehicle under this program more than once in the preceding year; and

(e) Fill out and certify the first part of the form described in subsection (4)(a) of this section and submit it to the registered tow truck operator.

(3) A registered tow truck operator may seek payment for private property impounds or impounds ordered by a law enforcement agency when the impound was not ordered following an arrest, for vehicles owned by individuals meeting the requirements of subsection (2) of this section. The registered tow truck operator applying for payment must fill out the second part of the form described in subsection (4)(b) of this section and must submit the completed form to the department.

(4) The department shall provide a form to registered tow truck operators that consists of two parts.

(a) The first part of the form is to be completed by individuals seeking the release of a vehicle and must include a requirement that individuals self-certify under penalty of perjury that they meet the requirements of the program and acknowledge that they understand that the department may verify or audit the information and that perjury is a criminal offense.

(b)(i) The second part of the form is to be completed by registered tow truck operators and must include a requirement that registered tow truck operators self-certify under penalty of perjury that they have verified that:

(A) The impound was a private property impound or ordered by a law enforcement agency;

(B) The impound was not ordered following an arrest;

(C) The individual seeking the release of a vehicle is the owner of the vehicle registered or titled with the department; and

(ii) The registered tow truck operators must acknowledge that they understand that the department may verify or audit the information and that perjury is a criminal offense.

(5)(a) Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for this specific purpose, the department shall disburse excess funds deposited under RCW 46.55.130(2)(h) that are no longer subject to payment for a valid claim under RCW 46.55.130(2)(h) in an amount equal to the cost of the towing, storage, or other services incurred by the registered tow truck operators during the course of the private property impound or law enforcement directed impound to the eligible registered tow truck operators following submission of the form by the registered tow truck operator. Eligibility for payment under this section does not constitute an entitlement for payment. If eligible applications for payment exceed the funds available, the department must create and maintain a waitlist in the order the forms are received pursuant to this section. The department is not civilly or criminally liable and no penalty or cause of action may be brought against it regarding the provision or lack of provision of funds.

(b) After consulting with appropriate stakeholders, the department must develop rules establishing maximum rates of reimbursement for towing, storage, and other services, under this subsection. The department shall convene a stakeholder work group every two years, with the first meeting to be held within 12 months of rule adoption, to make recommendations on amendments to these rules.

(6) The department shall provide an annual report to the appropriate committees of the legislature by October 1st of each year. The annual report must include the total number of law enforcement directed tows not following an arrest, the number of vehicles released under this program, the number of applicants who received payment under this program, the total funds provided to applicants, the number of applicants on the waitlist who did not receive grants, the total amount of grants unpaid due to lack of funds, and the number of ineligible applicants and the reasons for ineligibility.

(7) A registered tow truck operator who releases the vehicle under this section does not have a lien or deficiency claim on the released vehicle.

(8) When an impounding tow truck operator sends notification to the legal and registered owners of a vehicle regarding the impoundment of it as required under RCW 46.55.110 and the vehicle may be eligible under this program, the impounding tow truck operator must include information in the notification about the program established in this section for the release of vehicles to indigent persons.

(9) The registered tow truck operator shall provide to each person who seeks to redeem an impounded vehicle that may be eligible under this program written notice, in a form and manner specified by the department, of the release of vehicles to indigent individuals. The notice must be accompanied by the form described in subsection (4) of this section.

Effective date—2025 c 417 ss 1307-1309: "Sections 1307 through 1309 of this act take effect February 1, 2026." [ 2025 c 417 s 1406.]

Findings—Intent—2025 c 417: See note following RCW 82.38.030.