H-1996.1  _______________________________________________

                    SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 1117

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      57th Legislature     2001 Regular Session

By House Committee on Judiciary (originally sponsored by Representatives Carrell, Lantz, Lambert, O'Brien, Lovick, Hunt and Haigh)

Read first time .  Referred to Committee on .

Providing procedures for enforcement of court-ordered restitution obligations in courts of limited jurisdiction.

    AN ACT Relating to enforcement of court-ordered restitution obligations; and adding new sections to chapter 3.66 RCW.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 3.66 RCW to read as follows:

    All court-ordered restitution obligations that are ordered as a result of a conviction for a criminal offense in a court of limited jurisdiction may be enforced in the same manner as a judgment in a civil action by the party or entity to whom the legal financial obligation is owed.  The judgment and sentence must identify the party or entity to whom restitution is owed so that the state, party, or entity may enforce the judgment.

    All court-ordered restitution obligations may be enforced at any time during the ten-year period following the offender's release from total confinement or within ten years of entry of the judgment and sentence, whichever period is longer.  Prior to the expiration of the initial ten-year period, the court may extend the criminal judgment an additional ten years for payment of court-ordered restitution only if the court finds that the offender has not made a good faith attempt to pay.

    The party or entity to whom the court-ordered restitution obligation is owed may utilize any other remedies available to the party or entity to collect the court-ordered financial obligation.

    Nothing in this section may be construed to deprive the court of the authority to determine whether the offender's failure to pay the legal financial obligation constitutes a violation of a condition of probation or to impose a sanction upon the offender if such a violation is found.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  A new section is added to chapter 3.66 RCW to read as follows:

    If the party or entity for whom a court-ordered restitution obligation has been entered pursuant to this title seeks to enforce the judgment as a lien on real estate, he or she shall commence a lien of judgment upon the real estate of the judgment debtor/obligor as provided in RCW 4.56.200.

    When any court-ordered restitution obligation entered pursuant to this title is paid or satisfied, the clerk of the court of limited jurisdiction in which the restitution obligation was ordered shall note upon the record of the court of limited jurisdiction satisfaction thereof including the date of the satisfaction.

                            --- END ---