AN ACT Relating to the Washington division of civil air patrol as part of the Washington military department;
SB 6046 establishes a Washington Division of Civil Air Patrol within the Washington Military Department. The new division is made up of volunteer members who are civilian members of the federally chartered Civil Air Patrol Washington Wing, and the wing’s commanding officer serves as the head of the state division. If that office is vacant or the commanding officer cannot serve, the Civil Air Patrol may designate an acting head.
The bill authorizes the division to be available for call-up by the governor when ordered into active state service. It also allows the division to cooperate with state agencies, local governments, and federally recognized tribes on cadet training, communications, disaster relief, cyber security missions, search and rescue, and related functions within the scope of Civil Air Patrol activity. The division head may enter into agreements for those cooperative functions and may accept reimbursement for expenses, and the director may employ personnel and spend available appropriations or other funds to carry out the chapter.
The bill also includes a savings clause stating that nothing in the act changes the operation of the federally chartered Civil Air Patrol Washington Wing or limits its existing rights, powers, duties, or cooperation with the federal government. In effect, the bill adds a new chapter to Title 38 RCW and formally places the state’s Civil Air Patrol structure within the Military Department while preserving the federal wing’s separate status.
The general sentiment around the bill appears strongly favorable and noncontroversial. It passed the Senate committee unanimously, passed the Senate unanimously, passed the House committee unanimously, and passed the House with only four no votes, indicating broad bipartisan support for the organizational and emergency-response role of Civil Air Patrol.
There was little visible contention in the available materials. The main policy point is the relationship between the new state division and the federally chartered Civil Air Patrol wing, but the bill expressly says it does not alter the federal wing’s operations or authority. The lack of committee testimony in the record and the overwhelmingly positive votes suggest the bill was viewed as a technical or administrative alignment measure rather than a disputed policy change.
The bill amends Washington law by creating a new chapter in Title 38 RCW and establishing the Washington Division of Civil Air Patrol as part of the Washington Military Department. It gives the division statutory authority to operate under the state framework, to be called into active state service by the governor, and to coordinate with state, local, tribal, and federal partners on emergency and support missions. It also authorizes staffing, expenditures, and reimbursement arrangements tied to those activities, while preserving the separate status of the federally chartered Civil Air Patrol Washington Wing.
The bill appears to have enjoyed broad support throughout the legislative process. It received unanimous approval in the Senate committee and Senate floor vote, unanimous approval in the House committee, and a strong House floor vote of 86-4. The vote pattern suggests general agreement that the bill formalizes and supports an existing volunteer emergency-response organization without creating major controversy.
No major contention is evident in the available record. The only potentially sensitive issue is whether creating a state division could interfere with the federally chartered Civil Air Patrol wing, but the bill directly addresses that concern by stating it does not change or limit the wing’s existing rights, powers, duties, or federal cooperation. The near-unanimous votes indicate that any concerns were minimal or resolved before final passage.