HOUSE BILL REPORT

                 SHB 1186

                       As Passed House

                        March 6, 1991

Title:  An act relating to uniform criminal penalties.

Brief Description:  Requiring that criminal penalties set by cities and counties be the same as those set in state law.

Sponsor(s):  By House Committee on Judiciary (originally sponsored by Representatives Appelwick, Ludwig, Paris, Wineberry, Scott and Riley).

Brief History:

  Reported by House Committee on:

Judiciary, January 29, 1991, DPS;

Passed House, March 6, 1991, 97-0.

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON

JUDICIARY

Majority Report: That Substitute House Bill No. 1186 be substituted therefore, and the substitute bill do pass.  Signed by 16 members:  Representatives Appelwick, Chair; Ludwig, Vice Chair; Padden, Ranking Minority Member; Paris, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Broback; Forner; Hargrove; Inslee; R. Meyers; Mielke; H. Myers; Riley; Scott; Tate; Vance; and Wineberry.

Staff:  Bill Perry (786-7123).

Background:  Penalties imposed upon defendants in district court may vary depending on whether the defendant was cited for a violation of a state statute or a municipal ordinance.  Defendants committing similar offenses may receive more or less severe penalties, depending on the origin of the laws under which they were cited.

Summary of Bill:  A penalty established by a city, town, or county for an act constituting a crime under a state statute cannot be less than the penalty prescribed by state statute.

Fiscal Note:  Not requested.

Effective Date:  The bill takes effect July 1, 1992.

Testimony For:  It is unfair for the penalty for a crime to vary based on which jurisdiction charges are brought in.  Sometimes successive defendants in the same court may be subject to different penalties for the same crime.

Testimony Against:  Local communities ought to be free to set penalties for themselves.  The disparities in sentences actually given are not that large.

Witnesses:  Judge Robert McBeth, Washington State Magistrates Association (in favor of bill); Kathleen Collins, Association of Washington Cities (opposes).