State lawmakers shifted their focus back to committee work this week, following last week’s legislative cutoff deadline for bills to clear their house of origin.
Floor action was limited, with only one bill passing the House on March 15.
House Bill 1661, Creating the Department of Children, Youth, and Families
Passed the House on March 15 by a vote of 77-19 (two members excused)
This bill would create a new state agency, the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF), to replace the current Department of Early Learning beginning July 1, 2018.
The stated intent of creating this new agency is to improve the delivery of services and the outcomes for children and families by incorporating early learning, child welfare and juvenile justice services in the same agency.
The DCYF would be required to establish outcome measure goals and report to the Legislature on these outcome measures and progress toward these goals annually.
Rep. Mike Chapman (D-Port Angeles) Yes
Rep. Steve Tharinger (D-Sequim) Yes
Senate Bill 5312, Prohibiting employers from obtaining criminal background information from job applicants until after the employer determines they are otherwise qualified
Passed the Senate on March 7 by a vote of 25-24
This measure would create the “Washington Fair Chance Act,” under which employers would be prohibited from making inquiries related to criminal records until after initially determining a job applicant is otherwise qualified for a position. It also would prohibit employment ads or general policies that exclude applicants with criminal records.
The bill would preempt the entire field of employment laws related to criminal records, repealing local laws and ordinances that are inconsistent with the act. The state Attorney General would be authorized to enforce the act.
Sen. Kevin Van De Wege (D-Sequim) Yes
Senate Bill 5433, Concerning informed decision making for death with dignity decisions
Passed the Senate on March 7 by a vote of 26-23
Washington enacted its Death with Dignity law by initiative in 2008. Under current law, terminally ill adults who want to end their life may request a prescription for a lethal dose of medication. Terminally ill means that in the physician’s reasonable medical judgment, the patient has an incurable and irreversible disease that will result in death within the next six months.
The bill would preserve the option for terminally ill patients to request a lethal dose of medication to end their life, but clarifies and updates statutory language to require the treating physician to inform a terminally ill patient about all feasible alternatives to life-ending medication, including comfort care, hospice care, pain control, treatment for the purpose of cure and treatment for the purpose of extending the patient’s life. Treating physicians would be required to comply with Washington State’s standard of care when counseling a terminally ill patient who requests a life-ending dose of medication.
Sen. Van De Wege No
Senate Bill 5339, Accommodating the civil rights of religious objectors regarding mandatory payments to labor organizations
Passed the Senate on March 7 by a vote of 25-24
Collective bargaining agreements in Washington are authorized to include provisions that require employees to maintain union membership or pay union dues as a condition of continued employment. Under current law, employees who assert the right of non-association based on religious tenets or teachings must pay an amount of money equal to regular union dues and initiation fees to a nonreligious charitable organization mutually agreed upon by the employee and the union.
This bill would change the standard for religious non-association to bona fide personally held religious beliefs — not just to religious tenets of a church or organization to which the employee belongs, and an employee would be able to secure the right of non-association based on religious beliefs at any time.
The non-associated employee could make payments in lieu of union dues to any charitable organization participating in the Washington State Combined Fund Drive and the choice of charity would belong exclusively to the employee.
Sen. Van De Wege No
WashingtonVotes.org is a project of the Washington Policy Center. See www.WashingtonVotes.org.
