S‑1511.4 _____________________________________________
SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 5031
_____________________________________________
State of Washington 57th Legislature 2001 Regular Session
By Senate Committee on Human Services & Corrections (originally sponsored by Senators Franklin, Thibaudeau, Kohl‑Welles, Regala and Costa)
READ FIRST TIME 02/26/01.
_1 AN ACT Relating to transportation for recipients of temporary
_2 assistance for needy families; adding a new section to chapter
_3 74.08A RCW; adding a new section to chapter 82.08 RCW; adding a
_4 new section to chapter 82.12 RCW; creating new sections; and
_5 declaring an emergency.
_6 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
_7 NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that families
_8 receiving temporary assistance for needy families face many
_9 barriers to economic success. According to recent studies, lack of
10 reliable transportation to work and to school and child care sites
11 is one of the primary barriers to consistent employment. Families
12 without reliable transportation are faced with the struggle to get
13 children to school and child care sites, and parents to work, in
14 situations where public transportation is lacking or
15 impractical. Families that own cars are sometimes unable to pay for
16 adequate maintenance. The result can be losing a job because of
17 poor attendance, another setback in a life of struggle.
18 Unlike some of the other, less tangible, primary barriers to
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_1 employment such as mental health conditions or alcohol or
_2 substance abuse problems, the lack of a reliable means of
_3 transportation can be solved in some cases, by providing the
_4 family with access to its own vehicle.
_5 The legislature finds that other states have created programs
_6 called "wheels to work," to provide qualifying adults receiving
_7 temporary assistance for needy families with a method of acquiring
_8 a vehicle in order to stabilize their employment. These programs
_9 have met with some success.
10 The legislature intends that Washington establish a wheels to
11 work program, as a public-private partnership, to provide
12 qualified families on temporary assistance for needy families with
13 the ability to own a vehicle. The legislature intends to study the
14 costs and benefits of the wheels to work program.
15 NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 74.08A
16 RCW to read as follows:
17 (1) The wheels to work program is established in the
18 department. The program will accept donated vehicles and provide
19 them for lease to qualified adults who are receiving temporary
20 assistance for needy families at the time of application for the
21 program. The department shall contract with a private nonprofit
22 entity to operate the program in three locations, one in Pierce
23 county, one in Yakima county, and one in Spokane county. The
24 program shall be expanded statewide one year after implementation.
25 (2) The entity under contract with the department shall
26 determine the acceptability of donated vehicles, based upon the
27 needs of the program and the budget constraints of the entity. The
28 entity shall only accept driveable vehicles, and shall not accept
29 vehicles for parts or scrap, but may accept charitable donations
30 of funds to use in the repair or maintenance of the donated
31 vehicles. The entity shall assume title on acceptance of the
32 donated vehicle, and shall provide a receipt for tax purposes to
33 the vehicle donor.
34 (3) In addition to obtaining donated vehicles for the wheels to
35 work program, the department may, at its election, choose to make
36 interagency arrangements with state and local government motor
37 pools in order to acquire government surplus vehicles for use in
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_1 the program. The department may also purchase vehicles from the
_2 commercial market for use in the program, if the vehicles meet
_3 recipient asset and resource considerations and are inspected and
_4 certified by an independent mechanic before their use by
_5 recipients. The department may coordinate with local community and
_6 technical colleges for the refurbishing and maintenance of
_7 vehicles.
_8 (4) Upon donation of a vehicle and transfer of title, the donor
_9 is not liable for any damage, repair, emissions compliance,
10 vehicle insurance, or determination of vehicle safety.
11 (5) To qualify for the program, an applicant must be receiving
12 temporary assistance for needy families at the time of
13 application; have a verifiable job or a bona fide job offer for
14 which the vehicle is essential transportation; possess a valid
15 Washington driver's license; and be insurable. The department shall
16 certify to the entity that the applicant for a vehicle is
17 qualified to participate in the program. Donated vehicles shall be
18 available for a twelve-month lease for thirty dollars per month to
19 participants. For the first six months of the lease term, the
20 department shall cover the cost of the participant's car insurance
21 premium. At the end of six months, the qualified participant shall
22 provide insurance for the vehicle, and continue paying thirty
23 dollars per month for an additional six-month lease term. During
24 the twelve months of the total lease term, the entity shall
25 provide all necessary repairs to the vehicle and ensure emissions
26 compliance, except that the participant shall be responsible for
27 normal vehicle maintenance. At the end of the twelve-month lease
28 term, title to the vehicle shall be transferred to the
29 participant.
30 (6) If the participant leaves employment without good cause,
31 the participant has sixty days to find new employment or the
32 vehicle shall be returned to the entity and the lease canceled.
33 (7) If the participant leasing the vehicle is convicted of any
34 felony in violation of Title 9 or 9A RCW, or of a driving-related
35 offense pursuant to RCW 46.61.502, 46.61.503, 46.61.504,
36 46.61.520, 46.61.522, or 46.61.5249, after the inception of the
37 lease, the leased vehicle shall be returned to the entity and the
38 lease canceled. For the purposes of this section, a person has been
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_1 "convicted," whether in an adult court or adjudicated in a
_2 juvenile court, at such time as a plea of guilty has been
_3 accepted, or a verdict of guilty has been filed, notwithstanding
_4 the pendency of any future proceedings including but not limited
_5 to sentencing or disposition, posttrial or post fact-finding
_6 motions, and appeals. Conviction includes a dismissal entered after
_7 a period of probation, suspension, or deferral of sentence.
_8 (8) The participant shall be the only driver of the vehicle
_9 during the lease term.
10 NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 82.08
11 RCW to read as follows:
12 (1) The tax levied by RCW 82.08.020 does not apply to sales of
13 vehicles to the department of social and health services or
14 nonprofit entities for use in the wheels for work program provided
15 in section 2 of this act.
16 (2) The tax levied by RCW 82.08.020 does not apply to sales of
17 vehicles to qualified recipients by the department of social and
18 health services or nonprofit entities under the wheels for work
19 program provided in section 2 of this act.
20 (3) The tax levied by RCW 82.08.020 does not apply to the lease
21 of vehicles to qualified recipients by the department of social
22 and health services or nonprofit entities under the wheels for
23 work program provided in section 2 of this act.
24 NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. A new section is added to chapter 82.12
25 RCW to read as follows:
26 (1) The provisions of this chapter do not apply in respect to
27 the use of vehicles by the department of social and health
28 services or nonprofit entities for use in the wheels for work
29 program provided in section 2 of this act.
30 (2) The provisions of this chapter do not apply in respect to
31 the use of a vehicle by a qualified recipient if the vehicle is
32 acquired by the qualified recipient under the wheels for work
33 program provided in section 2 of this act.
34 NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. The department of social and health
35 services shall contract with the Washington state institute for
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_1 public policy to perform a study of the wheels for work program,
_2 including at the minimum a cost-benefit analysis, and an
_3 evaluation of the extent to which access to a personal vehicle
_4 enabled the family on assistance to progress toward economic
_5 independence.
_6 The institute for public policy shall, as part of the pilot
_7 project evaluation, develop protocols for selection from the pool
_8 of WorkFirst clients eligible for wheels to work transportation
_9 assistance, in order to assure random assignment of clients and
10 enable clear identification of the costs and benefits attributable
11 to the pilot program.
12 The institute for public policy shall report to the legislature
13 two years after the implementation of the program, on the progress
14 of the study. The report shall include, without limitation, a
15 comparison of program administration expenditures versus
16 reductions, if any, in the use of welfare grants, food stamps,
17 medical assistance, and WorkFirst support services, such as child
18 care subsidies, clothing expenses, and other types of
19 transportation assistance. Any participant benefits, such as
20 increased earnings, shall also be included.
21 NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. If any part of this act is found to be in
22 conflict with federal requirements that are a prescribed condition
23 to the allocation of federal funds to the state, the conflicting
24 part of this act is inoperative solely to the extent of the
25 conflict and with respect to the agencies directly affected, and
26 this finding does not affect the operation of the remainder of
27 this act in its application to the agencies concerned. Rules
28 adopted under this act must meet federal requirements that are a
29 necessary condition to the receipt of federal funds by the state.
30 NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. This act is necessary for the immediate
31 preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of
32 the state government and its existing public institutions, and
33 takes effect immediately.
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