[Joey]

Here is the final text but apparently this has not yet been signed by Inslee. https://legiscan.com/WA/text/HB1578/id/2782216/Washington-2023-HB1578-Enrolled.pdf One focus is the “wildland urban interface” (WUI). Starting at the bottom of p.3, areas “at significant risk for wildfire” will be identified and maps produced to show those areas. A planning process will “develop public safety evacuation strategies for [those] areas”. I am delighted to see this since my neighborhood (just west of the Redmond Watershed Preserve) is in the WUI and includes what is known locally as the “Fire road”. This is a dirt strip running north-south that the county owns. An evacuation plan for my neighborhood can address things like: 1. How does the locked gate get opened? 2. Once the gate is opened, how does it get secured in the open position? 3. Who is in charge of cutting back the blackberries and Alder trees that are encroaching on the strip? Obviously this planning process will take some time. But if there is a similar “fire road” and/or locked gate in your neighborhood then it is in your best interest to make sure the evacuation planning process addresses using that route for evacuation. Note the “Legend” link in the upper left corner of the map. The data is from 2019.