H-2024.1                  _______________________________________________

                                             SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 1768

                              _______________________________________________

State of Washington                              53rd Legislature                             1993 Regular Session

By House Committee on Judiciary (originally sponsored by Representatives Appelwick, Padden and Johanson)

Read first time 03/03/93.

Creating a courthouse facilitator program.

          AN ACT Relating to facilitating pro se litigation in domestic relations cases; amending RCW 26.12.220; and adding a new section to chapter 26.12 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 26.12 RCW to read as follows:

          A county may create a courthouse facilitator program to provide basic services to pro se litigants in family law cases.  The legislative authority of any county may impose user fees or may impose a surcharge on superior court filing fees for cases under Title 26 RCW, or both, to pay for the expenses of the courthouse facilitator program.  Fees collected under this section shall be collected and deposited in the same manner as other county funds are collected and deposited, and shall be maintained in a separate account to be used as provided in this section.

        Sec. 2.  RCW 26.12.220 and 1991 c 367 s 15 are each amended to read as follows:

          (1) The legislative authority of any county may authorize family court services as provided in RCW ((26.12.230)) 26.12.190(2).  The legislative authority may impose a fee in excess of that prescribed in RCW 36.18.010 for the issuance of a marriage license.  The fee shall not exceed eight dollars unless the county authorizes an additional fee to enhance family court reconciliation services as provided in subsection (2) of this section, in which case the additional fee increase may not exceed another eight dollars.

          (2) In addition to any other funds used therefor, the governing body of any county shall use the proceeds from the fee increases authorized by this section to pay the expenses of the family court and the family court services under chapter 26.12 RCW.  If the county authorizes a fee in excess of eight dollars, the amount of the fee increase that exceeds eight dollars may only be used to fund reconciliation services.  If there is no family court in the county, the legislative authority may provide such services through other county agencies or may contract with a public or private agency or person to provide such services.  Family court services also may be provided jointly with other counties as provided in RCW 26.12.230.

          (3) The family court services program may hire professional employees to provide the investigation, evaluation and reporting, and mediation services, or the county may contract for these services, or both.  To facilitate and promote the purposes of this chapter, the court may order or recommend the aid of physicians, psychiatrists, or other specialists.

          (4) The family court services program may provide or contract for:  (a) Mediation; (b) investigation, evaluation, and reporting to the court; and (c) reconciliation; and may provide a referral mechanism for drug and alcohol testing, monitoring, and treatment; and any other treatment, parenting, or anger management programs the family court professional considers necessary or appropriate.

          (5) Services other than family court investigation, evaluation, reconciliation, and mediation services shall be at the expense of the parties involved absent a court order to the contrary.  The parties shall bear all or a portion of the family court investigation, evaluation, reconciliation, and mediation services according to the parties' ability to pay.

          (6) The county legislative authority may establish rules of eligibility for the family court services funded under this section.  The rules shall not conflict with rules of the court adopted under chapter 26.12 RCW or any other statute.

          (7) The legislative authority may establish user fees for family court investigation, evaluation, reconciliation, and mediation services under this chapter according to the parties' ability to pay for the services.

(8) Fees collected under this section shall be collected and deposited in the same manner as other county funds are collected and deposited, and shall be maintained in a separate account to be used as provided in this section.

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