What legislative efforts have been filed in Washington since 2025 to restore the precious-metal sales tax exemption and what are their prospects?
Executive summary
Since 2025 several restoration efforts have been filed — including pre-filed bipartisan bills House Bill 2115 and Senate Bill 5894 and petitions from trade groups such as the Washington Coin and Bullion Association — aiming to reinstate the decades-old sales-tax exemption for precious-metal bullion and coins that the Legislature repealed in ESSB 5794 (Chapter 423, Laws of 2025) and which takes effect Jan. 1, 2026 [1] [2] [3]. Those efforts face an uphill climb: the repeal was embedded in a broader revenue package tied to JLARC recommendations and state budget shortfalls, the governor signed the bill, and the 2026 session is short and politically constrained, so any restoration would require overcoming fiscal and political headwinds [4] [5] [6].
1. What was repealed and why that matters now
The Legislature removed the longtime sales- and use-tax and B&O exemption for qualifying precious-metal bullion and monetized bullion as part of ESSB 5794 (signed by Gov. Ferguson in May 2025), a package the Legislature framed as following JLARC’s 2024 tax-preference review and as one piece of addressing a budget shortfall; the Department of Revenue now advises these sales will be taxable beginning Jan. 1, 2026 [1] [4] [7].
2. The bills and players seeking a fix
Industry and advocacy actors immediately mobilized: the Washington Coin and Bullion Association pre-filed legislation aimed at restoring the exemption and national- and state-level groups such as the National Coin & Bullion Association and the Sound Money Defense League publicly pledged campaigns; media and trade outlets report two numbered bills — HB 2115 and SB 5894 — described by proponents as bipartisan and pre-filed to “fix” the repeal [8] [9] [2] [10].
3. The political and procedural headwinds
Restoration bills confront multiple obstacles: the repeal was bundled into a broader tax-modernization effort that removed many exemptions the JLARC review flagged as obsolete or lacking policy justification, making lawmakers’ fiscal rationale public and structurally tethering the change to budget needs; the governor already signed the repeal into law, so reversing it requires new legislative majorities to prioritize an exemption that reduces revenue — a difficult sell in a short 60-day session with competing priorities [4] [5] [6].
4. Arguments, constituencies and likely legislative dynamics
Pro-exemption advocates emphasize economic competitiveness and brick‑and‑mortar business impacts, warning of cross‑border shopping and lost commerce, and they have mobilized industry testimony and national trade groups to press the case [4] [11]. Lawmakers and analysts who supported repeal point to JLARC’s review and state revenue needs; that framing gives sponsors of the repeal a defensive posture in committee hearings and provides a policy rationale for maintaining the broader tax base [4] [5].
5. Prospects: cautious optimism among advocates, limited odds in near term
Sources indicate bipartisan bills have been filed and advocacy networks are active — a necessary condition for restoration — but there is no reporting showing legislative traction, committee passage, or fiscal offset plans that would make restoration palatable to majority lawmakers; given the signed law, DOR implementation guidance, and budgetary context, the realistic prospect is that advocates may secure amendments or carve-outs in future sessions but outright repeal of the repeal in 2026 appears unlikely without clear revenue replacements or a shifting political calculus [2] [3] [6] [7].
6. What to watch next
Key signals will be whether HB 2115 and SB 5894 receive fiscal notes and committee hearings, whether sponsors can identify offsets or limited carve-outs that JLARC would accept, and whether organized industry pressure translates to bipartisan coalition-building that outmaneuvers the revenue preservation argument that carried ESSB 5794; current reporting documents filings and advocacy but does not show successful legislative restoration as of early 2026 [2] [8] [4].