Washington § 64.90.585 - Adult family home — Use of unit.

(1) A unit owners association may not adopt or enforce a restriction, covenant, condition, bylaw, rule, provision of a governing document, or master deed provision that effectively prohibits or unreasonably restricts the use of a unit as an adult family home, except as provided in subsection (2) of this section.

(2)(a) Nothing in this section prohibits a unit owners association from imposing reasonable rules on an adult family home including, but not limited to, architectural standards, as long as those rules are identical to those applied to all other units restricted to similar uses within the same common interest community as an adult family home.

(b) An association may require that only a unit with direct access may be used as an adult family home. A unit has direct access if it is accessible from public property or through publicly accessible common elements.

(c) An association may adopt or enforce a restriction, covenant, condition, bylaw, rule, provision of a governing document, or master deed provision that requires an adult family home operating out of a unit within the association to:

(i) Be licensed under chapter 70.128 RCW;

(ii) Indemnify and hold harmless the association against all claims, whether brought by judicial or administrative action, relating to the operation of the adult family home, excluding claims arising from the condition of a common element that the association is solely responsible for maintaining;

(iii) Obtain a signed waiver of liability releasing the association from legal claims directly related to the operation of an adult family home from each resident, or resident's guardian, being cared for by the adult family home. However, an association may not require that a waiver of liability under this subsection be notarized;

(iv) Obtain liability insurance as required by rule of the department of social and health services; and

(v) Pay any costs or expenses, including insurance costs, arising from the operation of the facility.

(3) A unit owners association that willfully violates this section is liable to the adult family home for actual damages, and shall pay a civil penalty to the adult family home in an amount not to exceed $1,000.

(4) For the purposes of this section, "adult family home" has the same meaning as in RCW 70.128.010.