Washington State
House of Representatives
Office of Program Research
BILL
ANALYSIS
Appropriations Committee
HB 1000
Brief Description: Expanding mental health support for law enforcement officers.
Sponsors: Representatives Maycumber, Lovick, Ryu, Leavitt, Boehnke, Eslick, Shewmake, Lekanoff, Fitzgibbon, Johnson, J., Slatter, Wylie, Tharinger, Goodman, Bronoske, Valdez, Callan, Young, Graham, Cody, Robertson, Ormsby, Dent, Stonier, Fey, Macri, Jacobsen, Schmick, Davis, Pollet and Bergquist.
Brief Summary of Bill
  • Authorizes pilot projects to support behavioral health improvement and suicide prevention efforts for law enforcement officers.
Hearing Date: 1/19/21
Staff: Yvonne Walker (786-7841).
Background:

The Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC) is a statewide organization consisting of executive and management personnel from law enforcement agencies.  Membership includes sheriffs, police chiefs, the Washington State Patrol, the Department of Corrections, and representatives from a number of federal agencies.  The 1975 Washington Legislature made the WASPC a statutory entity by designating the association as a "combination of units of local government."  The WASPC has been tasked with managing certain statewide programs, such as the Jail Booking and Reporting System.  Additionally, it has been given administrative responsibility for several state-funded grant programs, including grant programs addressing gang crime; graffiti and tagging abatement; denied firearm purchase attempts; sexual assault kits; metal theft; and mental health field response.
Summary of Bill:

The Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC) must establish three pilot projects to support behavioral health improvement and suicide prevention efforts for law enforcement officers.  Law enforcement associations and agencies are eligible to compete for grant funding beginning September 1, 2021.  Activities eligible for grant funding include public information and wellness promotion campaigns, embedded mental health professionals, peer support programs, resiliency training programs, and critical incident stress management programs.
 
Grantees must submit a report on the results of their programs by October 1, 2022 to the WASPC.  The WASPC must submit a report on the pilot projects to the Governor and the Legislature by December 1, 2022.
 
Funding for the pilot projects are made subject to the availability of the amounts appropriated for the grant program.
Appropriation: None.
Fiscal Note: Available.
Effective Date: The bill takes effect 90 days after adjournment of the session in which the bill is passed.