Section 08.88.455 - Payments by real estate licensees(a) A real estate licensee, when applying for or renewing a real estate license, in lieu of obtaining a corporate surety bond, shall pay to the commission, in addition to the license fee, a recovery fund fee not to exceed $125. After each two-year licensing cycle, if the commission finds that the average balance in the recovery fund during the two-year licensing cycle was less than $250,000 or more than $500,000, the commission shall by regulation adjust the recovery fund fees so that the average balance of the recovery fund during the next two-year licensing cycle is anticipated to be an amount that is not less than $250,000 or more than $500,000. In this subsection, "average balance" means the average balance after taking into account anticipated expenditures for awards from the fund and legal expenses directly related to fund operations, and for real estate educational purposes.(b) All fees collected under this section shall be paid at least once a month by the department into the general fund. These payments shall be credited to the real estate recovery fund.