BILL REQ. #:  S-0957.1 

Read first time 02/11/13.   Referred to Committee on Law & Justice.

     AN ACT Relating to establishing a task force on improving public health and safety regarding firearms; creating a new section; and providing an expiration date.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   (1) The legislature shall convene a task force to examine issues regarding public health and safety as it relates to firearms safety and firearms violence reduction. The task force shall be comprised of the following members:
     (a) The president of the senate shall appoint two members from each of the two largest caucuses of the senate;
     (b) The speaker of the house of representatives shall appoint two members from each of the two largest caucuses in the house of representatives. The task force shall be cochaired by a member from each caucus;
     (c) A representative of the governor's office appointed by the governor;
     (d) The assistant secretary of the mental health division of the department of social and health services or his or her designee;
     (e) The attorney general or his or her designee;
     (f) The superintendent of public instruction or his or her designee;
     (g) A representative of the administrative office of the courts appointed by the administrative office of the courts;
     (h) The executive director of the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs or his or her designee;
     (i) The executive director of the Washington state criminal justice training commission or his or her designee;
     (j) A representative of the Washington association of prosecuting attorneys appointed by the association;
     (k) The executive director of the office of public defense or his or her designee;
     (l) The secretary of the department of health or his or her designee;
     (m) Three representatives of organizations active on the issue of second amendment advocacy, appointed jointly by the cochairs;
     (n) Three representatives of nongovernmental or nonprofit organizations familiar with the effects of firearms violence appointed jointly by the cochairs;
     (o) The president of the superior court judges' association or his or her designee;
     (p) The director of the department of licensing or his or her designee;
     (q) A representative of an organization familiar with child safety issues appointed jointly by the cochairs;
     (r) Two representatives of an organization or agency whose mission is serving those with mental health diagnoses appointed jointly by the cochairs; and
     (s) Two representatives of an organization or agency whose mission is serving those with chemical dependency diagnoses appointed jointly by the cochairs.
     (2) The duties of the task force shall include, but are not limited to:
     (a) Reviewing available literature, studies, and data regarding the fact and impact of firearms violence, best practices to improve firearms safety, and the general impact of firearms on public health;
     (b) Reviewing the history, organization, and content of chapter 9.41 RCW and making any recommendations for improvement;
     (c) Reviewing the history of the second amendment and comparable provisions in the Washington state Constitution;
     (d) Reviewing other states' laws and federal laws regarding firearms possession, use, and safety;
     (e) Examining the relationship between firearms and accidental deaths and suicide, including for those under the age of eighteen, and making recommendations for reducing accidental deaths and suicides; and
     (f) Reviewing other states' public health and other efforts to reduce firearms violence and increase public safety.
     (3) The task force shall make recommendations to the governor and appropriate committees of the legislature by January 15, 2014.
     (4) Task force expenditures are subject to approval by the senate facilities and operations committee and the house of representatives executive rules committee, or their successor committees.
     (5) This section expires June 1, 2014.