Surcharge for preservation of historical documents — Distribution of revenue to county and state treasurer — Creation of account.
RCW 36.22.170
in effect(1)(a) Except as provided in (b) of this subsection, a surcharge of five dollars per instrument shall be charged by the county auditor for each document recorded, which will be in addition to any other charge authorized by law. One dollar of the surcharge shall be used at the discretion of the county commissioners to promote historical preservation or historical programs, which may include preservation of historic documents. (b) A surcharge of two dollars per instrument shall be charged by the county auditor for each document presented for recording by the employment security department, which will be in addition to any other charge authorized by law. (2) Of the remaining revenue generated through the surcharges under subsection (1) of this section: (a) Fifty percent shall be transmitted monthly to the state treasurer who shall distribute such funds to each county treasurer within the state in July of each year in accordance with the formula described in RCW 36.22.190 . The county treasurer shall place the funds received in a special account titled the auditor's centennial document preservation and modernization account to be used solely for ongoing preservation of historical documents of all county offices and departments and shall not be added to the county current expense fund; and (b) Fifty percent shall be retained by the county and deposited in the auditor's operation and maintenance fund for ongoing preservation of historical documents of all county offices and departments. (3) The centennial document preservation and modernization account is hereby created in the custody of the state treasurer and shall be classified as a treasury trust account. State distributions from the centennial document preservation and modernization account shall be made without appropriation.
(1)(a) Except as provided in (b) of this subsection, a surcharge of five dollars per instrument shall be charged by the county auditor for each document recorded, which will be in addition to any other charge authorized by law. One dollar of the surcharge shall be used at the discretion of the county commissioners to promote historical preservation or historical programs, which may include preservation of historic documents.
(b) A surcharge of two dollars per instrument shall be charged by the county auditor for each document presented for recording by the employment security department, which will be in addition to any other charge authorized by law.
(2) Of the remaining revenue generated through the surcharges under subsection (1) of this section:
(a) Fifty percent shall be transmitted monthly to the state treasurer who shall distribute such funds to each county treasurer within the state in July of each year in accordance with the formula described in RCW 36.22.190 . The county treasurer shall place the funds received in a special account titled the auditor's centennial document preservation and modernization account to be used solely for ongoing preservation of historical documents of all county offices and departments and shall not be added to the county current expense fund; and
(b) Fifty percent shall be retained by the county and deposited in the auditor's operation and maintenance fund for ongoing preservation of historical documents of all county offices and departments.
(3) The centennial document preservation and modernization account is hereby created in the custody of the state treasurer and shall be classified as a treasury trust account. State distributions from the centennial document preservation and modernization account shall be made without appropriation.
Source: WA Statutes (Official Site)URL: https://app.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=36.22&full=trueFetched: 6/29/2026