(1) The department shall, to the extent practical within existing resources, establish a program of technical assistance to counties, cities, and towns for the development of findings of fact and maps establishing the wildland urban interface areas of jurisdictions in accordance with the requirements of the International Wildland Urban Interface Code as adopted by reference in RCW 19.27.560.

(2) The department shall develop and administer a grant program, subject to funding provided for this purpose, to provide direct financial assistance to counties, cities, and towns for the development of findings of fact and maps establishing wildland urban interface areas. Applications for grant funds must be submitted by counties, cities, and towns in accordance with regulations adopted by the department. The department is authorized to make and administer grants on the basis of applications, within appropriations authorized by the legislature, to any county, city, or town for the purpose of developing findings of fact and maps establishing wildland urban interface areas.

(3) The department shall establish and maintain a statewide wildfire hazard map and a base-level wildfire risk map for each county of the state based upon criteria established in coordination with the state fire marshal office. The hazard map shall be made available on the department's website and shall designate areas as low, moderate, high, and very high wildfire hazard. The risk map shall be made available on the department's website and designate vulnerable resources or assets based on their exposure and susceptibility to a wildfire hazard. The department shall establish a method by which local governments may update the wildfire hazard map and wildfire risk map based on local assessments and approved by the jurisdiction's fire marshal. The department shall make publicly available the criteria and analysis utilized in assessing the wildfire hazard and risk.

Effective date—2024 c 133: See note following RCW 19.27.031.