The Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) updated its rulemaking website
Rules filed March 3, 2026
For information on all L&I meetings and public hearings related to rulemaking, please visit our public participation calendar.
Division: Division of Labor Standards (formerly Fraud Prevention and Labor Standards) – Employment Standards Program
Topic: Proposal (CR-102) – Youth Employment Updates (ESHB 1644, SHB 1121, and HB 1722 Implementation)
Brief Description: The purpose of this rulemaking is to amend Chapter 296-125 WAC, Non-agricultural employment of minors, and create Chapter 296-122 WAC, Agricultural employment of minors. The proposed rules will implement the following:
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Substitute House Bill 1121 (SHB 1121), Chapter 79, Laws of 2025, requires L&I to allow minors enrolled in career and technical education programs to work the same number of hours during the school year as during school vacations, so long as the work is performed for an employer approved by the educational program.
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Engrossed Substitute House Bill 1644 (ESHB 1644), Chapter 173, Laws of 2025, requires safety-and-health and child labor consultations for employers seeking certain child labor exceptions. The bill also increases consequences for failures to keep minor workers safe in agricultural and non-agricultural industries.
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House Bill 1722 (HB 1722), Chapter 98, Laws of 2025, requires L&I to allow minors with certain licenses to work around bloodborne pathogens.
Chapter 296-122 WAC incorporates the existing agricultural child labor requirements found in Chapter 296-131 WAC. The proposed rules include the changes to hours of work and prohibited duty standards required by SHB 1121 and HB 1722, respectively. The proposed changes also incorporate and clarify the consultation requirement and penalty structure of ESHB 1644.
L&I is also proposing rules to clarify and improve readability for existing requirements in Chapter 296-125 WAC, including reorganizing, combining, renumbering, and moving existing standards, as well as repealing any duplicates. The proposed rules also include housekeeping and technical updates to ensure Chapters 296-125 and 296-122 WAC describe L&I’s existing child labor procedures. The proposed rules also improve the alignment of state and federal non-agricultural prohibited duty standards, and between child labor protections and procedures in agricultural and non-agricultural industries.
L&I is also proposing to remove outdated requirements in Chapters 296-125 and 296-131 WAC and WAC 296-128-400.
Public hearing dates: April 9, 2026 (Tumwater)
April 13, 2026 (virtual/telephonic)
April 14, 2026 (Union Gap)
Written comments due by: April 17, 2026, 5:00 p.m.
Intended adoption date: May 19, 2026
Additional information about this rulemaking:
CR-102 Proposal
Proposal Language
Preliminary Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA)
Division: Insurance Services - Self-Insurance Program
Topic: Preproposal (CR-101) – Self-Insurance Administrative Assessment
Brief Description: The purpose of this rulemaking is to consider amending WAC 296-15-223 under Chapter 296-15 WAC, Workers' compensation self-insurance rules and regulations, to create additional means of calculating administrative assessments for active self-insured employers, and in doing so, facilitate fair and equitable funding for current and future self-insurance projects.
Additional information about this rulemaking:
CR-101 Preproposal
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