wa-law.org > bill > 2025-26 > HB 1816 > Original Bill

HB 1816 - Civilian crisis resp. teams

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Section 1

  1. A city with a population of more than 500,000 may establish and maintain a civilian-staffed crisis response team operating outside of a general authority Washington law enforcement agency.

  2. The crisis response team is authorized to serve as the primary response to 911 calls or on-view events when there is no report of active or imminent violence or possession of weapons and when the calls or events are regarding:

    1. A person in crisis with no request for law enforcement;

    2. A person who appears to need, or is reported to need, a safety and welfare check; or

    3. A request by a member of the public for resources including, but not limited to, shelter, food, or transportation.

  3. For calls not included in subsection (2) of this section, the crisis response team may also serve as a secondary response in support of a law enforcement response as determined by the executive head of the city.

  4. The executive head of the city will set minimum qualifications for crisis responders that must include training in scene safety, de-escalation, and interacting with individuals in crisis.

  5. The executive head of the city may determine the characteristics of the crisis response team including, but not limited to:

    1. The department in which the crisis response team is situated;

    2. The number of staff assigned to the crisis response team and their required qualifications, consistent with the minimum qualifications set forth in subsection (4) of this section;

    3. The deployable areas and hours of operation; and

    4. The specific types of calls in which primary 911 dispatch is appropriate, consistent with the criteria set forth in subsection (2) of this section.

  6. For any collective bargaining agreement covering law enforcement personnel with an effective date on or after January 1, 2026, any provision in conflict with this section is preempted and is unenforceable. A city covered by this section is prohibited from collectively bargaining with a bargaining unit representing law enforcement personnel in regard to the transfer of the 911 response duties in subsection (2) of this section to a civilian-staffed crisis response team.

  7. Any provision in a collective bargaining agreement covering law enforcement personnel with an effective date prior to January 1, 2026, that conflicts with this section or limits a city's ability to fully comply with this section may not be extended or renewed beyond the expiration date of the collective bargaining agreement.

  8. Notwithstanding the provisions of chapter 41.56 RCW, a city covered by this section is prohibited from collectively bargaining with a bargaining unit representing law enforcement personnel in regard to any decisions made by the executive head of a city pursuant to subsections (3), (4), and (5) of this section. However, to the extent such decisions impact the wages, hours, and other working conditions of law enforcement personnel, such impacts are subject to collective bargaining to the extent required by chapter 41.56 RCW.

Section 2

The following personal information is exempt from public inspection and copying under this chapter:

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