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OLYMPIA, Wash. - Electric carmaker Rivian is pledging millions of dollars to an initiative that could overhaul the EV sales market in Washington. Tesla, as of now, is the only electric carmaker that is allowed to sell vehicles directly to consumers in the state.
By the numbers:
By the end of 2025, Rivian had contributed more than $130,000 to Washington Coalition for Consumer Choice and Innovation, according to the Public Disclosure Commission. The campaign finance report reveals millions more dollars are on the way.
Rivian has pledged $4,620,000 to change consumer law around electric vehicle sales. Right now, companies like Lucid and Rivian can have showrooms, as both companies do at the University Village in Seattle. However, they are not legally allowed to let customers buy direct from there or do test drives of their vehicles.
Rivian R1S electric vehicles (EV) on an auto transport truck at a dealership and service center in South San Francisco, California, US, on Tuesday, June 3, 2025. JPMorgan Chase & Co. is leading a potential high-yield bond sale for electronic …
The backstory:
Last year, HB 1721/SB 5592 was introduced to the legislature, but stalled in the House. It has now been reintroduced as of Jan. 12, 2026. With repeated attempts stalled over the years, it now appears carmakers are looking to make their case directly to voters.
The SB 5592 companion bill, HB 1721 stalled in the Washington House when no action was taken in the House Committee on Consumer Protection and Business on Feb. 21, 2025.
Dig deeper:
Rep. Amy Walen of Kirkland, the chair of the committee, said it lacked caucus support. Walen and her husband, Jim, are listed as owners of car dealerships in the area as shown on the staff pages of Seattle Jeep, Seattle Hyundai, and Hyundai of Kirkland.
"I don’t represent auto dealerships. I represent the people of the 48th Legislative District and the Democratic caucus…if it was a caucus priority, I would have supported it in some form. It needed a lot of work," Rep. Walen said, according to a report from Washington State Standard in February 2025.
What's next:
The ballot measure would first need more than 300,000 signatures by July to make it in front of voters on election day in November.
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The Source: Information in this story came from the Public Disclosure Commission, the Washington State Legislature website, the Washington State Standard, and various dealership webpages.