BP BHEAD INT S

AN ACT Relating to disabled persons' parking permits; and amending RCW 46.16.381.

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

Sec. 1. RCW 46.16.381 and 1995 c 384 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) The director shall grant special parking privileges to any person who has a disability that limits or impairs the ability to walk and meets one of the following criteria, as determined by a licensed physician:

(a) Cannot walk two hundred feet without stopping to rest;

(b) Is severely limited in ability to walk due to arthritic, neurological, or orthopedic condition;

(c) Is so severely disabled, that the person cannot walk without the use of or assistance from a brace, cane, another person, prosthetic device, wheelchair, or other assistive device;

(d) Uses portable oxygen;

(e) Is restricted by lung disease to such an extent that forced expiratory respiratory volume, when measured by spirometry is less than one liter per second or the arterial oxygen tension is less than sixty mm/hg on room air at rest;

(f) Impairment by cardiovascular disease or cardiac condition to the extent that the person's functional limitations are classified as class III or IV under standards accepted by the American Heart Association; or

(g) Has a disability resulting from an acute sensitivity to automobile emissions which limits or impairs the ability to walk. The personal physician of the applicant shall document that the disability is comparable in severity to the others listed in this subsection.

(2) Persons who qualify for special parking privileges are entitled to receive from the department of licensing a removable windshield placard bearing the international symbol of access. The department shall design the placard to be displayed when the vehicle is parked by suspending it from the rearview mirror, or in the absence of a rearview mirror the card may be displayed on the dashboard of any vehicle used to transport the disabled person. Instead of regular motor vehicle license plates, disabled persons are entitled to receive special license plates bearing the international symbol of access for one vehicle registered in the disabled person's name. Disabled persons who are not issued the special license plates are entitled to receive a second special placard. Persons who have been issued the parking privileges and who are using a vehicle or are riding in a vehicle displaying the special license plates or placard may park in places reserved for mobility disabled persons. The director shall adopt rules providing for the issuance of special placards and license plates to public transportation authorities, nursing homes licensed under chapter 18.51 RCW, boarding homes licensed under chapter 18.20 RCW, senior citizen centers, private nonprofit agencies as defined in chapter 24.03 RCW, and vehicles registered with the department as cabulances that regularly transport disabled persons who have been determined eligible for special parking privileges provided under this section. The director may issue special license plates for a vehicle registered in the name of the public transportation authority, nursing home, boarding homes, senior citizen center, private nonprofit agency, or cabulance service if the vehicle is primarily used to transport persons with disabilities described in this section. Public transportation authorities, nursing homes, boarding homes, senior citizen centers, private nonprofit agencies, and cabulance services are responsible for insuring that the special placards and license plates are not used improperly and are responsible for all fines and penalties for improper use.

(3) Whenever the disabled person transfers or assigns his or her interest in the vehicle, the special license plates shall be removed from the motor vehicle. If another vehicle is acquired by the disabled person and the vehicle owner qualifies for a special plate, the plate shall be attached to the vehicle, and the director shall be immediately notified of the transfer of the plate. If another vehicle is not acquired by the disabled person, the removed plate shall be immediately surrendered to the director.

(4) The special license plate shall be renewed in the same manner and at the time required for the renewal of regular motor vehicle license plates under this chapter. No special license plate may be issued to a person who is temporarily disabled. A person who has a condition expected to improve within six months may be issued a temporary placard for a period not to exceed six months. The director may issue a second temporary placard during that period if requested by the person who is temporarily disabled. If the condition exists after six months a new temporary placard shall be issued upon receipt of a new certification from the disabled person's physician. The parking placard of a disabled person shall be renewed, when required by the director, by satisfactory proof of the right to continued use of the privileges.

(5) Additional fees shall not be charged for the issuance of the special placards. No additional fee may be charged for the issuance of the special license plates except the regular motor vehicle registration fee and any other fees and taxes required to be paid upon registration of a motor vehicle.

(6) Any unauthorized use of the special placard or the special license plate is a misdemeanor.

(7) It is a parking infraction, with a monetary penalty of one hundred seventy-five dollars for any person to park a vehicle in a parking place provided on private property without charge or on public property reserved for physically disabled persons without a special license plate or placard. If the parking of the vehicle is witnessed by a police officer or other person authorized to issue a citation for the offense, the operator of the vehicle is in violation of this section. If a person is charged with a violation, the person shall not be determined to have committed an infraction if the person produces in court or before the court appearance the special license plate or placard required under this section. A local jurisdiction providing on-street parking places reserved for physically disabled persons may impose by ordinance time restrictions on the use of these parking places.

(8) The penalty imposed under subsection (7) of this section shall be used by that local jurisdiction exclusively for law enforcement. The court may also impose an additional penalty sufficient to reimburse the local jurisdiction for any costs it may have incurred in removal and storage of the improperly parked vehicle.

(9) It is a misdemeanor for any person to willfully obtain a special license plate or placard in a manner other than that established under this section.

(10)(a) A law enforcement agency authorized to enforce parking laws may appoint volunteers to issue citations for violations of this section. Volunteers must be at least twenty-one years of age. The law enforcement agency appointing volunteers may establish any other qualifications the agency deems desirable.

(b) An agency appointing volunteers under this subsection must provide training to the volunteers before authorizing them to issue citations.

(c) A citation issued by a volunteer appointed under this subsection has the same force and effect as a citation issued by a police officer for the same offense.