CERTIFICATION OF ENROLLMENT

SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 5827

Chapter 387, Laws of 1997

55th Legislature

1997 Regular Session

COLLECTION OF GOVERNMENTAL DEBT BY COLLECTION AGENCIES--CRIME VICTIM RESTITUTION--RECOVERY OF COSTS

EFFECTIVE DATE: 7/27/97

Passed by the Senate April 22, 1997

YEAS 41 NAYS 5

BRAD OWEN

President of the Senate

Passed by the House April 10, 1997

YEAS 80 NAYS 18

CERTIFICATE

I, Mike O=Connell, Secretary of the Senate of the State of Washington, do hereby certify that the attached is SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 5827 as passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives on the dates hereon set forth.

CLYDE BALLARD

Speaker of the

House of Representatives

MIKE O'CONNELL

Secretary

Approved May 15, 1997

FILED

May 15, 1997 - 4:37 p.m.

GARY LOCKE

Governor of the State of Washington

Secretary of State

State of Washington

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SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 5827

_______________________________________________

AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE

Passed Legislature - 1997 Regular Session

State of Washington 55th Legislature 1997 Regular Session

By Senate Committee on Government Operations (originally sponsored by Senators Roach, Haugen and Long)

Read first time 03/05/97.

AN ACT Relating to fees for judicial and nonjudicial collection of governmental debt by collection agencies; and amending RCW 19.16.500.

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

Sec. 1. RCW 19.16.500 and 1982 c 65 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

(1)(a) Agencies, departments, taxing districts, political subdivisions of the state, counties, and ((~~incorporated~~)) cities may retain, by written contract, collection agencies licensed under this chapter for the purpose of collecting public debts owed by any person, including any restitution that is being collected on behalf of a crime victim.

(b) Any governmental entity as described in (a) of this subsection using a collection agency may add a reasonable fee, payable by the debtor, to the outstanding debt for the collection agency fee incurred or to be incurred. The amount to be paid for collection services shall be left to the agreement of the governmental entity and its collection agency or agencies, but a contingent fee of up to fifty percent of the first one hundred thousand dollars of the unpaid debt per account and up to thirty-five percent of the unpaid debt over one hundred thousand dollars per account is reasonable, and a minimum fee of the full amount of the debt up to one hundred dollars per account is reasonable. Any fee agreement entered into by a governmental entity is presumptively reasonable.

(2) No debt may be assigned to a collection agency unless (a) there has been an attempt to advise the debtor (i) of the existence of the debt and (ii) that the debt may be assigned to a collection agency for collection if the debt is not paid, and (b) at least thirty days have elapsed from the time ((~~the~~)) notice was ((~~sent~~)) attempted.

(3) Collection agencies assigned debts under this section shall have only those remedies and powers which would be available to them as assignees of private creditors.

(4) For purposes of this section, the term debt shall include fines and other debts, including the fee required under subsection (1)(b) of this section.