We advocate for positive changes that improve Washington State’s response to domestic violence and increase survivors’ options for safety and independence. We do this through tracking bills, lobbying in Olympia, and informing and mobilizing our membership to take action on important policy and budget issues.
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2025 Legislative Session
The 2025 Washington State legislative session began on January 13, 2025 and ended on April 27, 2025. We’re proud to share the impact of our collective advocacy. This year, we tracked more than 175 bills that could affect survivors’ safety, housing, economic stability, legal access, and more.
Securing stable funding for crime victim services was our number one priority this year. The need for reliable and sustained funding has never been more urgent. In recent years, victim service providers across Washington have faced growing challenges due to a significant decline in federal funding, leaving many programs at risk of closing or drastically reducing services. Without a consistent funding stream, survivors of domestic violence face overwhelming barriers to accessing the support they need.
Thanks to a strong, collaborative effort, the legislature approved $20 million in state funding to sustain these vital services for the coming year.
We are deeply grateful to our member programs, victim services providers, survivors, and allies who spoke out, took action, and showed up in countless ways throughout the session. Your advocacy made this victory possible.
Learn more about the bills we tracked, what passed, and what it means for survivors and advocates across Washington: WSCADV Report on the 2025 State Legislative Session. If you have questions about our advocacy during the 2025 state legislative session, please email sherrie@wscadv.org.
Legislation WSCADV Supported
Domestic Violence Hope Cards (HB 1460)
Passed, effective 7/27/2025.
The Hope Card Program, enacted in 2023 via House Bill 1766 and implemented at the beginning of this year, offers survivors a wallet-size card that contain concise information regarding a protection order. Previously, those under a protection order had to carry bulky documents. HB 1460 eliminates the fee survivors previously had to pay to acquire a Hope Card, and makes several other adjustments to the program, including changing the source of Hope Cards from the clerk of the issuing court to the Administrative Office of the Courts Hope Card Program; no longer requiring Hope Cards to be in scannable, electronic format; and limiting the identifying information on Hope Cards to the names and dates of birth of the restrained subjects and the protected persons.
Concerning Limitations in Parenting Plans (HB 1620)
Passed, effective 7/27/2025.
This bill provides clearer standards for courts when limiting a parent’s time due to harmful or abusive behavior. This means better protections for survivors and their children navigating the family court system—especially in high-conflict custody cases where safety is at stake. It introduces new definitions such as “abusive use of conflict,” “protective actions,” and “willful abandonment,” which clarify behaviors that may lead to limitations on a parent’s residential time. The court is granted discretion to impose restrictions based on factors like domestic violence, neglect, and substance abuse. The bill emphasizes the child’s best interests and safety, allowing for supervised visitation under specific conditions.
Domestic Violence Protection Order Updates (SB 5202)
Passed, effective 7/27/2025.
This bill strengthens the effectiveness of civil protection orders as harm reduction tools to better protect survivors and support enforcement. The bill improves confidentiality protections, limits mutual protection orders, allows survivors to renew expired orders after turning 18, and expands options for modifying or correcting orders. It also addresses firearm safety by prohibiting the possession of “ghost guns” by individuals subject to protective orders. Together, these measures aim to enhance survivor safety and improve the enforceability of judicial orders.
Dignity in Pregnancy Loss (SB 5093)
Passed, effective 7/27/2025.
This bill aims to reduce the criminalization of pregnancy loss by repealing outdated and discriminatory laws. It would end the requirement that coroners—who are part of law enforcement—investigate every fetal death, helping protect people from being punished for miscarriages or abortions, especially those occurring outside the medical system. It also seeks to repeal the “concealment of birth” law, which has been misused in other states to criminally charge people after pregnancy loss. Finally, it would require prisons, jails, and immigration detention centers to report pregnancy losses annually, helping expose and address the unequal outcomes faced by incarcerated and detained people.
Previous Legislative Sessions
Check out the WSCADV Report on the 2024 State Legislative Session to learn more about some of the proposals passed last session that will have an impact on survivors in our state.
To view summaries of previous sessions of the Washington State Legislature, please see the “Public Policy” section of our Resource Library.
Wondering how laws are made in Washington State? Watch our short video, Ms. RCW.