King County holds 25 of the 99 census tracts Gov. Bob Ferguson nominated for Opportunity Zones 2.0, the most of any Washington county. That is our count of the Department of Commerce's published list, matched to counties in the IRS Rev. Proc. 2026-14 eligibility appendix. Pierce and Spokane counties follow with 9 each. On October 12 the City of Kent said five areas in the city are among the nominations. The list spans 27 counties, and 36 tracts are flagged rural, matching the counts in Commerce's October 8 release. Treasury still has to certify the nominations; designations take effect January 1, 2027.
Where the 99 are. We matched the 99 tract numbers on the Washington Department of Commerce nomination dashboard to counties using the eligibility appendix to IRS Rev. Proc. 2026-14 (appendix spreadsheet). King County has 25, followed by Pierce (9), Spokane (9), Snohomish (7), Kittitas (5) and Yakima (5). Clark and Thurston have 4 each. Twenty-seven counties have at least one tract, the same figure as Commerce's October 8 release, which says the nominations represent “27 counties and 17 tribal lands.”
King County's share. The appendix lists 80 eligible tracts in King County, so the governor nominated 25 of them, against 99 of the state's 394 eligible tracts overall. None of King County's 25 is flagged rural in the appendix. Statewide, 36 nominated tracts carry the appendix's rural flag, which matches Commerce's statement that “36 represent opportunities in rural communities.” Rural status matters because a qualified rural opportunity fund gets a 30% basis step-up instead of 10% under OZ 2.0 (IRS Notice 2026-55).
What Kent says. In a media release dated October 12, 2026 (listed on the City of Kent website; full text), the city said Gov. Ferguson “nominated five areas in the City of Kent for federal Opportunity Zone designation” and that they “were a handful of the 99 nominations made statewide.” Areas it describes include West Hill and Midway, Kent Valley, East Hill, and Downtown and Central Avenue. The release says the governor “has submitted the nominations to the U.S. Department of the Treasury” and that the new zones are expected to be ready for qualifying investment beginning January 1, 2027.
What happens next. According to Commerce, “The U.S. Treasury Department will review and certify all nominations it receives from states after submission,” and designations are scheduled to take effect January 1, 2027. Under Rev. Proc. 2026-14, Treasury's consideration period runs 30 days from receipt; see our explainer on Treasury's review window. Washington's filing is on our OZ 2.0 tracker, and every nominated tract is listed on the Washington zone page. Our earlier story covers the October 8 filing.
Original reporting by Sarah Whitfield for Opportunity Zone Invest, an independent OZ 2.0 research site. Facts are drawn from the primary sources cited above per our editorial standards. Nothing here is tax, legal, or investment advice.
OZ tools: 180-day rule calculator · Form 8997 instructions · Form 8996 instructions · all tools
Track OZ 2.0 as it happens
One email when major Opportunity Zone 2.0 events happen — Treasury guidance, state filings, and rule changes.