Governor Signs New Sanctuary State Rules

SEATTLE (AP) — Washington is on track to become a sanctuary state, adding to a West Coast wall of states with such policies.

Gov. Jay Inslee signed a bill on Tuesday creating new rules.

Police officers in the state will be restricted from asking about immigration status except in limited circumstances, and the state attorney general will draw up rules for courthouses, hospitals and other government facilities aimed at limiting their use as hunting grounds for federal immigration agents.

The rules expand on a 2017 executive order from Inslee, which imposed similar requirements only on state agencies, a move advocates said stopped short of other sanctuary states, which include Oregon and California.