Human Composting, Vape Tax: See The Laws Inslee Signed This Week

OLYMPIA, WA — Gov. Jay Inslee signed over 50 new laws this week, including the state's next biennial operating budget. The bills cover a range of issues, from wolf management to taxing vape products.

Here are a some of the more interesting bills Inslee signed:

Homeless students, SB 5324

This law requires each school building to have a single point-of-contact for students experiencing homelessness. Before this law was signed, a school had to have a minimum of 10 homeless students for there to be a point-of contact. Also establishes a grant program for school districts working to end student homelessness.

I-405, SR 167 tolling and bonding

Allows WSDOT to issue $1.5 billion in bonds for work on the Puget Sound Gateway Program, which creates a corridor between the Port of Tacoma all the way up to I-405. Also makes the I-405 and SR 167 toll lanes permanent.

Real Estate Excise Tax, SB 5998

Changes the state's real estate excise tax from a flat 1.28 percent. The new schedule is as follows:

• 1.1 percent on sales equal or less than $500,000
• 1.28 percent on sales equal to $500,000 up to $1.5 million
• 2.75 percent on sales between $1.5 million and $3 million
• 3 percent on sale greater than $3 million

Elected officials financial affairs, HB 1195

The state Public Disclosure Commission will be able to publish the financial disclosure forms of elected officials. Lawmakers had tried to stop the PDC from doing this. Crosscut has the weird story on how they tried to do that.

Human composting, SB 5001

Washington is the first state in the U.S. to offer human composting as a burial option. From the bill analysis:

"Alkaline hydrolysis is the reduction of human remains to bone fragments and essential elements in a licensed hydrolysis facility using heat, pressure, water, and base chemical agents. Natural organic reduction is the contained, accelerated conversion of human remains to soil."

Rest stop parking, SB 5506

Under current law, you can park a disabled vehicles at a WSDOT rest stop without restrictions. Under the new law, you have you remove your disabled vehicle within 48 or risk impound. Eight-hour parking restrictions remain in place at rest stops.

New vape tax, HB 1873

The new tax is charged at the wholesale level, which means vape product distributors will likely pass the cost on to consumers. The tax is 9 cents per milliliter for vape liquid containers larger than 5 milliliters, and 27 cents per milliliter for all other vape products.

Half the revenue goes to a cancer research fund in honor of former Eastside lawmaker Andy Hill, who died of cancer in 2016. The other half goes to an account funding a range of state health programs.

You can see all the bills Inslee signed this week (and in past weeks) here.