H-973                _______________________________________________

                                           HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 20

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                              49th Legislature                              1985 Regular Session

By Representatives K. Wilson, Fisher, Kremen, Wang, Miller, Winsley, Barnes, Scott, Locke, Hargrove, Todd, P. King, D. Nelson, Tanner and Long

Read first time 2/6/85 and referred to Committee on Constitution, Elections & Ethics.

BE IT RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON, IN LEGISLATIVE SESSION ASSEMBLED:

          THAT, At the next general election to be held in this state there shall be submitted to the qualified voters of the state for their approval and ratification, or rejection, an amendment to Article I, section 33 of the Constitution of the state of Washington to read as follows:

Article I, section 33.            Every elective public officer of the state of Washington ((expect [except])) except judges of courts of record is subject to recall and discharge by the legal voters of the state, or of the political subdivision of the state, from which he or she was elected whenever a petition demanding his or her recall, reciting (1) that such officer has committed some act or acts of malfeasance or misfeasance while in office((,)); or ((who)) (2) that such officer has violated his or her oath of office((,)); or (3) that such officer, while a candidate for the office currently held, made, either directly or indirectly, a false claim stating or implying the support or endorsement of any person or organization, or made any other public statement that he or she knew, or should reasonably be expected to have known, to be false; stating the matters complained of, signed by the percentages of the qualified electors thereof, hereinafter provided, the percentage required to be computed from the total number of votes cast for all candidates for his or her said office to which he or she was elected at the preceding election, is filed with the officer with whom a petition for nomination, or certificate for nomination, to such office must be filed under the laws of this state, and the same officer shall call a special election as provided by the general election laws of this state, and the result determined as therein provided.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the secretary of state shall cause notice of the foregoing constitutional amendment to be published at least four times during the four weeks next preceding the election in every legal newspaper in the state.