Gov. Bob Ferguson Cuts Red Tape to Speed Wildfire Aid

SPOKANE, Wash. — Gov. Bob Ferguson signed an emergency proclamation Monday suspending a series of state laws and requirements as Washington works to help communities devastated by wildfires.

“Today I signed an emergency proclamation that waives and suspends numerous state laws so that help can move quickly to those impacted by wildfires.”

Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson

The proclamation is designed to get assistance to residents faster while giving businesses, health care providers and state agencies additional flexibility during the ongoing disaster.

“My administration is laser-focused on assisting Washingtonians who have lost so much. My emergency proclamation waives and suspends numerous state laws so that help can move quickly.”

Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson

The proclamation covers Chelan, Ferry, Okanogan, Spokane, Stevens, Douglas and Yakima counties. It also covers the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation, the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation and the Spokane Tribe of Indians.

Help Replacing Documents Lost in the Fires

For people who lost important documents, the state is bringing services directly to an emergency center.

The Department of Health and Department of Licensing will help residents replace documents including driver’s licenses, identification cards, birth certificates, vehicle titles and vessel titles.

Licenses, identification cards and other Department of Licensing records are available beginning Aug. 10. Vital records through the Department of Health will be available beginning Aug. 11.

There will be no charge for the replacement services under the emergency proclamation.

The proclamation also allows the Department of Licensing to give additional time for certain professional and business license renewals when wildfire impacts prevent people from meeting their normal deadlines.

Financial Help Expands for People Who Lost Homes

The state is also expanding access to disaster assistance.

People who lost their homes during the declared emergency and do not have insurance will be eligible for the State Individual Assistance Program regardless of household income.

The Family Emergency Assistance Program is also being expanded. The program normally provides cash assistance to families with children during disasters. Under the proclamation, families without children can also qualify.

Wildfire-affected families can access the program each month if needed rather than being limited to the program’s normal once-per-year availability.

Unemployment Benefits Can Begin Sooner

Washington is also removing some of the normal requirements for people who are out of work because of the fires.

The state’s one-week waiting period for unemployment benefits is suspended for wildfire-affected workers.

The normal weekly job-search requirement is also suspended for people affected by the wildfires.

Eviction Protections Are Temporarily Expanded

With fires creating an additional housing crisis, the proclamation also restricts certain eviction-related actions.

For the next two weeks, landlords generally cannot serve or act on eviction orders unless there is an immediate health or safety risk or the tenant previously received 90 days’ written notice because the owner intends to occupy or sell the property.

The order also protects Washington residents who have opened their homes to people displaced by the fires.

Landlords cannot evict tenants simply because they are temporarily housing wildfire evacuees or their pets.

The proclamation also prevents landlords from using an abandoned-property provision against residents who had to leave because of the fires.

Health Care Providers Get More Flexibility

The emergency proclamation also removes several administrative barriers for health care providers working in fire-affected communities.

Health care providers can receive additional time to renew their licenses. Medical assistants can provide care without a supervising provider physically present as long as that provider is immediately available.

Hospitals can also add or retain providers without completing some normal clinical privilege documentation and verification requirements.

Hospitals, pharmacies and other health care facilities will have additional flexibility to operate from alternative locations.

The proclamation also temporarily relaxes certain capacity, admissions and paperwork requirements for adult family homes and assisted living facilities serving people displaced by the wildfires.

Businesses and Deliveries Get Temporary Relief

The state is also making changes intended to keep essential supplies moving.

Truck drivers transporting supplies to communities and firefighters can temporarily exceed normal hours-of-service limits as long as they have received enough rest.

Businesses affected by the wildfires can also avoid late fees on second-quarter 2026 taxes when the fires prevent them from filing or paying on time.

State agencies have also been directed to identify laws, regulations and building code provisions that could be waived or suspended to make rebuilding homes destroyed by fire easier.

Those agencies must submit reports within 30 days.

“These actions will help Washingtonians access aid, documents, health care and housing, and give businesses relief.”

Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson

Federal Disaster Assistance Is Still Being Pursued

The state has already received a federal emergency declaration covering six counties and three Tribal nations in Eastern Washington.

That declaration provides federal help for local governments with evacuation costs, emergency shelters, food, water, search and rescue operations and other emergency response needs.

It does not, however, provide individual assistance to people whose homes or property were damaged.

That assistance would come through a separate major disaster declaration from President Donald Trump.

Ferguson is preparing that request while the Washington State Emergency Management Division works with local governments on damage assessments. The state expects to submit the request around mid-September after a more complete assessment of the damage.

If approved, the major disaster declaration could open three categories of FEMA assistance: individual assistance for residents, public assistance for governments and eligible nonprofits, and hazard mitigation assistance for projects designed to reduce future wildfire risk.

Washington’s Wildfire Response Continues

Monday’s proclamation follows Ferguson’s Aug. 1 declaration of a statewide wildfire emergency.

That declaration also imposed a statewide prohibition on most outdoor and agricultural burning through Sept. 30 and allows Washington to seek additional resources through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, a nationwide mutual-aid system.

The federal government has also approved a separate Public Health Emergency requested by Ferguson. That declaration is intended to expand access to health care and critical services, including faster medication and medical-supply replacements and reduced administrative requirements for providers.

For Washington residents affected by the fires, the changes announced Monday are aimed at removing some of the bureaucratic hurdles that normally stand between disaster victims and the help they need.

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