CERTIFICATION OF ENROLLMENT

                        SENATE BILL 6699

                        55th Legislature

                      1998 Regular Session

Passed by the Senate March 10, 1998   YEAS 32   NAYS 17 President of the Senate Passed by the House March 5, 1998   YEAS 55   NAYS 42

CERTIFICATE I, Mike O=Connell, Secretary of the Senate of the State of Washington, do hereby certify that the attached is  SENATE BILL 6699 as passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives on the dates hereon set forth.

Speaker of the       House of Representatives

Secretary

Approved Place Style On Codes above, and Style Off Codes below.

FILED

Governor of the State of Washington

Secretary of State                   State of Washington

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                         SENATE BILL 6699

          _______________________________________________

                      AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE

             Passed Legislature - 1998 Regular Session

State of Washington      55th Legislature     1998 Regular Session

By Senators Schow, Anderson, Newhouse, Zarelli, Horn, Winsley, Stevens, Benton, Rossi, Long, Sellar and Oke

Read first time 01/27/98.  Referred to Committee on Commerce & Labor.

Limiting the liability of a current or former employer who provides information about a current or former employee's work record to a prospective employer.   

    AN ACT Relating to information provided by former or current employers to a prospective employer; adding a new section to chapter 4.24 RCW; and creating a new section.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  The legislature finds that employers are becoming increasingly discouraged from disclosing job reference information.  The legislature further finds that full disclosure of such information will increase productivity and enhance the safety of the workplace.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  A new section is added to chapter 4.24 RCW to read as follows:

    An employer who discloses information about a former or current employee to a prospective employer is presumed to be acting in good faith and is immune from civil liability for such disclosure or its consequences if the disclosed information relates to: (1) The employee's ability to perform his or her job; (2) the diligence, skill or reliability with which the employee carried out the duties of his or her job; or (3) any illegal or wrongful act committed by the employee.  For purposes of this section, the presumption of good faith may only be rebutted upon a showing by clear and convincing evidence that the information disclosed by the employer was knowingly false or deliberately misleading.

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