Washington State

House of Representatives

Office of Program Research

BILL

ANALYSIS

Transportation Committee

HB 1281

This analysis was prepared by non-partisan legislative staff for the use of legislative members in their deliberations. This analysis is not a part of the legislation nor does it constitute a statement of legislative intent.

Brief Summary of Bill

Authorizes homeowners' associations with at least 1,000 residences access to a vehicle owner's name and address.

Requires that the homeowners' association is located in an unincorporated area of a county with a population of less than one million.
Requires homeowners' associations requesting the information to have certain speed limits stated in their governing documents and restricts access to residents and visitors through gates or other means of access control.

Requires individuals of the association requesting the information to have passed a fingerprint-based background check.

Background:

Currently, the Department of Licensing (DOL) may furnish lists of registered and legal owners of motor vehicles to the following entities for the indicated purposes:

motor vehicle manufacturers, for safety recalls;
United States and Canadian governmental agencies, for use in enforcement of vehicle or traffic laws;
commercial parking companies, to notify owners of outstanding parking violations;
authorized agents or contractors of the DOL, to provide tax, licensing, title, and registration information to motor vehicle dealers;
businesses making loans for the purchase of motor vehicles, to assist in determining whether to provide financing;
toll facilities, to identify toll violators; and
business entities that request the information for use in the normal course of business. The request is a written request and the requesting party will enter into a disclosure agreement with the DOL.

When both a residential and a mailing address are on file with the DOL, only the mailing address may be disclosed unless the request for information is from: the courts, a law enforcement agency, or a government entity with enforcement, investigative, or taxing authority and only for use in the normal course of conducting their business.

If a list of registered and legal owners of motor vehicles are used for any other purpose not authorized, the manufacturer, governmental agency, commercial parking company, authorized agent, contractor, financial institution, toll facility operator, or their authorized agents or contractors responsible for the unauthorized use will be denied further access to that information.

Summary of Bill:

The bill authorizes a homeowners' association to request information regarding the name and address of an individual vehicle owner in connection with driver and pedestrian safety. The requirements are that the homeowners' association:

needs to contain at least 1,000 residences as of the effective date of the Act;
restricts access to residents and visitors through gates or other means of access control;
is located in the unincorporated area of a county with a population of less than one million as of the effective date of this Act;
requires certain speed limits on roads within the boundaries of the association be stated in the association governing documents; and
has an individual of the requesting association with access to the disclosed information complete a fingerprint-based background check through the Washington State Patrol (WSP) criminal identification system and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The requesting party must submit the fingerprints and required background fees to the DOL for payment to the WSP. The DOL is prohibited from releasing the information to any individual who does not pass the background check.