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Council to place ordinance updating business license threshold on next consent agenda; state BLS raises out-of‑city threshold to $4,000
Summary
City attorney presented Ordinance 5004 to update city code to match the state Business Licensing Service change that raises the threshold for requiring a city business license from $2,000 to $4,000 of in‑city annual receipts for businesses without a physical location inside city limits; council moved the ordinance to next weeks consent agenda.
City staff asked the council Sept. 2 to place an ordinance on the next consent agenda that updates Anacortes Municipal Code to reflect a change from the Washington State Business Licensing Service. The state will increase the threshold for requiring a city business license for businesses that do not maintain a place of business within the city from $2,000 to $4,000 in annual receipts starting in 2026.
Why it matters: The change affects remote sellers and home‑based businesses that do not list a city address: those earning less than $4,000 a year within city limits will not be required to obtain a separate Anacortes business license. The cityalready sets its license fee at $50 initial and $5 renewal.
City staffer (recorded as “Mister Hoagland”) explained the ordinance is a housekeeping update to conform city code to the state Business Licensing Service change and said the state had targeted an October implementation window for jurisdictions that use the BLS platform. Councilmember Bolton moved to place Ordinance 5004 (amending AMC 5.04.030) on the consent agenda for next week; council agreed to bring the ordinance back for formal adoption.
What was not decided: The council did not adopt the ordinance Sept. 2; the item will appear on the consent agenda at the next meeting for formal action. Staff said they could obtain counts of out‑of‑town businesses affected from the state.
Key details: City business license fee: $50 initial; $5 annual renewal (as stated by staff). The threshold change applies only to businesses without a city place of business; businesses with an in‑city address remain subject to local licensing regardless of the threshold.
