Governor signs a package of bills on traffic safety, transit representation, ferries and privacy protections

Governor Ferguson signed a package of bills at a mid‑day event attended by legislators, family members of victims and agency staff, saying the measures range from traffic‑safety tools to procedural updates across state agencies.

The event included the signing of House Bill 15 96 — called in the remarks the "Beam Act" — which requires intelligent speed‑assistant devices for drivers found guilty of driving in a dangerous manner above the speed limit. The governor and Representative Mari Levitt credited families of crash victims with pushing the measure forward; the governor noted that "this legislation was inspired by a crash where 4 individuals, including 3 children, were killed when their car was struck by a driver going a 112 miles per hour." Representative Mari Levitt said the bill is "about saving lives," likening the approach to existing ignition‑interlock programs.

The governor also signed a bill aimed at transportation network drivers that requires companies to reinstate vehicles removed from premium product classes and to give drivers at least 120 days' notice before eligibility changes, a change described in the remarks as intended "for fairness" toward drivers who invest in qualifying vehicles.

Other bills signed at the event included House Bill 14 18, which allows public transportation benefit areas to add two voting board members who are transit users; House Bill 19 70, which authorizes the Washington State Department of Transportation to use alternative public works contracting procedures; and Senate Bill 57 16, which adds Washington State Ferries to the definition of "transit authority" for purposes of enforcing unlawful transit conduct (a misdemeanor capped at 90 days' jail and a $1,000 fine under the description at the signing).

The governor signed legislation that strengthens oversight of private detention facilities (House Bill 12 32) by authorizing the Department of Health to conduct unannounced inspections and enforce standards for sanitation and medical care, and a separate bill joining Washington to the cosmetology licensure compact (House Bill 10 23) to make out‑of‑state practice easier for cosmetologists in member states.

In remarks accompanying the signing of Senate Bill 56 32, the governor described updates to the state's shield law that add privacy protections for patients seeking or providing reproductive and gender‑affirming care, saying the changes "restrict Washington courts and law enforcement from cooperating with out of state investigations or legal proceedings related to these protective health care services." The shield‑law language was presented as an effort to protect patients' privacy.

The event was largely ceremonial: sponsors and family members joined the governor for photographs after each signing, and the governor repeatedly thanked legislative sponsors and staff. Most measures were described as having bipartisan support or near‑unanimous passage; the transcript records no formal roll‑call or vote counts at the signing ceremony itself.

What happens next: each bill will take effect on the schedule set by the statute text (not specified in the ceremony remarks). Sponsors and agencies involved at the signing said they would follow up with implementation details as required by each law.