Washington state law authorizes the Washington State Building Code Council (SBCC) to impose a fee on residential and commercial building permits issued by local government agencies, plus an additional surcharge for each residential unit after the first unit (RCW 19.27.085). Each Washington county and city is required to send the money collected for this purpose to the state treasurer on a quarterly basis. SDCI has always added this fee and any related surcharges to building permits issued by the City of Seattle.
State law further specifies that the legislature may adjust these charges every four years, although the fee has not changed in several decades. This spring the state legislature established new SBCC fees, effective on July 1, 2018. The fee is increasing from $4.50 on each building permit (plus a $2 additional surcharge on each residential unit after the first unit) to $6.50 on each residential building permit and $25 on each commercial building permit. The $2 additional surcharge remains the same for both residential and commercial. The fees will be automatically added in our permitting system when building permits are issued.