A new law will allow cities and locals to contract with private labs to do DUI testing, but now the race is on to pay for it.
The new Washington state law, aimed at clearing a significant backlog of DUI toxicology testing, will allow private accredited laboratories to process cases. The law goes into effect June 11, but funding for private lab testing to ease the state’s massive backlog is not yet secured in all areas.
Thousands of toxicology cases are currently awaiting analysis at the Washington State Patrol (WSP) toxicology lab. The backlog is preventing the prosecution of many DUI cases, some of which lapse as the statute of limitations runs out.
This persistent issue prompted the creation of the new legislation through Senate Bill 5880, which was signed into law by Washington Governor Bob Ferguson after it passed through the legislature with bipartisan support. While lawmakers previously funded $3 million to help cut into the state’s backlog, this amount only applies to the state toxicology lab.
Seattle City Attorney Erika Evans has been working to ensure funding is available for private lab testing. She noted that Seattle currently faces a substantial delay in processing these reports.
“We currently have a 22-month delay to get a toxicology report,” Evans said, highlighting the impact on local cases.
Seattle alone has approximately 1,000 pending DUI cases, and Evans estimated that hundreds more are added each month. Toxicology testing costs range from several hundred to several thousand dollars per case, meaning clearing Seattle’s backlog could amount to millions of dollars.
Evans is exploring various funding avenues to address this need. She sat down with KIRO 7 recently and said she’s requested federal support through U.S. Congressman Adam Smith’s office, who she hopes will help bring some one-time funding to Seattle.
“I’ve met with Congressman Smith, who has set an earmark to allow us to get congressional funding, hopefully by the end of this year,” Evans stated.
Additionally, Evans has approached local leadership for a sustainable funding source.
“I’ve met with Mayor Wilson and requested to have the automated camera traffic revenue just part of it, not all of it, be applied toward our DUI ongoing cases,” Evans explained, suggesting that such revenue could provide long-term funding for Seattle’s ongoing DUI cases.
Washington State Sen. Keith Wagoner, a Republican representing the 39th District, which includes Skagit and Snohomish counties, supports the new law. He believes allowing private labs to assist will benefit the entire state.
“It’s just going to speed up the process and allow everybody what they deserve,” Sen. Wagoner said, emphasizing the law’s goal.
Sen. Wagoner also pointed out the broader impact of the law, especially when larger municipalities utilize private testing.
“They [Seattle] have thousands of cases. I guess you call them a big customer of the WSP toxicology lab. When they take that amount of work out of WSP’s hands, they’re freeing it up,” he added. “Just like I said before, just because some of the larger cities will take the backlog out, it helps every city across the state.”
The new law is scheduled to take effect on June 11. However, funding for cities like Seattle to utilize private lab testing may not be fully in place by that date.
©2026 Cox Media Group
