SENATE BILL REPORT

SSB 5870

As Passed Senate, March 12, 2003

Title: An act relating to registration of sex offenders and kidnapping offenders enrolled or employed at institutions of higher education.

Brief Description: Revising provisions relating to registration of sex offenders and kidnapping offenders.

Sponsors: Senate Committee on Children & Family Services & Corrections (originally sponsored by Senators Stevens, Regala, Parlette, McAuliffe, Rasmussen and Shin; by request of Department of Community, Trade, and Economic Development).

Brief History:

Committee Activity: Children & Family Services & Corrections: 2/25/03, 2/28/03 [DPS].

Passed Senate: 3/12/03, 48-0.

SENATE COMMITTEE ON CHILDREN & FAMILY SERVICES & CORRECTIONS

Majority Report: That Substitute Senate Bill No. 5870 be substituted therefor, and the substitute bill do pass.

      Signed by Senators Stevens, Chair; Carlson, Deccio, Hargrove, McAuliffe and Regala.

Staff: Fara Daun (786-7459)

Background: The federal government, in the Campus Sex Crimes Prevention Act, has amended the registration requirements with which a state must comply in order to be eligible for its full share of Byrne Grant funds.

Current law requires persons convicted of sex or kidnapping offenses who live, work, carry on a vocation, or are students in the state to register with the sheriff of the county of their residence, or if resident of another state, with the county in which they work or attend school. To register, the person must provide the sheriff with his or her name, address (or location, if homeless), birth date and place, place of employment, crime for which convicted, date and place of conviction, aliases used, Social Security number, photograph, and fingerprints. There are some additional requirements for some categories of registrants including the homeless and college students. If a person who is required to register enrolls in an institution of higher education he or she must register that enrollment with the sheriff in his or her county of residence within ten days of enrolling at the institution or by the first business day after arriving.

Summary of Bill: Persons required to register as sex or kidnapping offenders who accept employment with a public or private institution of higher education must register that employment with the sheriff of their county of residence within ten days of accepting employment or by the first business day of commencing work at the institution, whichever is earlier.

A person who is required to register and who works or is enrolled at an institution of higher education must also register the termination of that employment or enrollment within ten days of the termination.

Appropriation: None.

Fiscal Note: Requested on February 24, 2003.

Effective Date: Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For: The legislation is needed to retain full Byrne Grant funding. It does not add any new people to the list of those who must register.

Testimony Against: None.

Testified: Tom McBride, Department of Community, Trade, and Economic Development.