Bill
SB 5459
Requires 120-day notice before Washington call-center relocation abroad, imposes penalties and 5-year ineligibility for state aid, and ensures U.S. work for state contracts.
Status: Enacted (Chapter 114, 2025 Laws). Governor signed 4/22/2025. Effective date: 7/27/2025.
To discourage relocation of Washington-based call center work to foreign countries by (1) requiring advance notice of planned relocations, (2) imposing civil penalties for failure to notify, (3) making relocating employers temporarily ineligible for state financial assistance, and (4) requiring state agency call‑center contracts to be performed in the U.S. (with limited exceptions).
Definitions
- “Call center”: facility or operation where primary activity is making/receiving phone calls or other electronic communications to provide customer assistance or services.
- “Employer”: for call‑center purposes, an entity that employs either (a) 50 or more workers (excluding part‑time workers), or (b) 50 or more workers who in aggregate work at least 1,500 hours/week (excluding overtime).
- “Part‑time worker”: averages fewer than 20 hours/week or has worked fewer than 6 of the prior 12 months.
Notice and relocation
- Employers intending to relocate a call center (or facilities/units representing at least 25% of call volume measured against the prior 12‑month average) from Washington to a foreign country must notify the Employment Security Department (ESD) at least 120 days before the move.
- For state agencies, the relocation/notice rules apply only to moves to a foreign country (not to another U.S. state). State facilities providing spoken language interpretation services are exempt from certain requirements.
Penalties and enforcement
- Civil penalty for failure to provide the 120‑day notice: up to $10,000 per day of violation. The ESD Commissioner may reduce penalties if a governor or the president has declared a state of emergency for the call center’s location.
- ESD must compile a semiannual list of employers that have notified under the statute, post it online, and distribute it to state agencies.
State financial assistance and contracts
- Employers appearing on the ESD list are ineligible for any direct or indirect state grants or loans for five years after appearing on the list. ESD (with the relevant agency) may waive ineligibility if denial would cause substantial job loss in the state or harm the environment.
- If an ineligible employer is improperly awarded a grant or loan after the act’s effective date, the employer must remit the award.
- State agency contracts for call‑center services entered after the effective date must require that the work be performed entirely within the United States, except for interpreter services.
Worker protections
- The chapter does not allow withholding or denial of payments/benefits under other law to workers who relocate to a foreign country.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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