AG Opinion AGLO 1973 No. 67 (1973) states:
“A person is not required to be an inhabitant of a rural county library district in order to serve as a member of a board of trustees thereof under the provisions of RCW 27.12.040… Neither this statute nor any other provision contained in this RCW chapter relating to libraries states either expressly or by implication that residency is a qualification for appointment to such a board.”
This opinion remains in force for five-member rural county library district boards of trustees established under RCW 27.12.190. As of 2017, seven-member rural county library district boards of trustees established under RCW 27.12.192—for “any county with an adopted home rule charter and one million or more residents”—are subject to residency requirements enumerated in RCW 27.12.192.