VETO MESSAGE ON HB 1841-S2

May 20, 2003

To the Honorable Speaker and Members,

The House of Representatives of the State of Washington

Ladies and Gentlemen:

I am returning herewith, without my approval, Second Substitute House Bill No. 1841 entitled:

"AN ACT Relating to the funding of prevention and early intervention services;"

The primary purpose of this bill is to ensure that the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) establishes funding criteria and outcomes measures for the Children's Administration's state-operated and community-contracted prevention and early intervention services for children and families. It is not necessary to establish this requirement in statute. The implementation of outcomes measurement is a basic management tool that I expect all executive branch agencies to implement, including DSHS.

This bill creates a role for the Family Policy Council to consult with DSHS regarding the development of funding criteria, and to analyze and report on the outcomes data collected by DSHS. Although the Family Policy Council does have experience in this area as it performs these functions for each of the community public health and safety networks that it funds, it is my expectation that each executive agency, including DSHS, be able to perform these management functions on its own. The involvement of the Family Policy Council in these activities, in addition to DSHS, would therefore be duplicative and an unwise use of limited staff resources. Therefore, I have vetoed this bill.

However, I am directing DSHS to develop, by March 1, 2004, criteria for funding state-operated or contracted prevention and early intervention services, including, at a minimum, those services outlined in this bill. DSHS should incorporate the funding criteria into contracts and operating procedures, beginning no later than January 1, 2005. The criteria should include those outlined in section 2 of this bill. Finally, DSHS shall collect and analyze the program data to ensure accountability in delivering effective services.

For these reasons, I have vetoed Second Substitute House Bill No. 1841 in its entirety.

Respectfully submitted,

Gary Locke

Governor