AN ACT Relating to ending homelessness; amending RCW 26.44.020, 26.44.030, 74.15.030, 43.330.700, 43.330.705, 43.330.706, 43.330.710, 43.185C.180, 43.185C.030, 43.185C.040, 43.185C.070, 43.185C.160, 43.185C.170, 36.22.178, 36.22.179, 36.22.1791, and 43.185C.240; reenacting and amending RCW 71.05.020 and 71.05.020; adding a new section to chapter 13.32A RCW; adding a new section to chapter 43.330 RCW; adding new sections to chapter 43.185C RCW; adding a new chapter to Title 9A RCW; creating new sections; prescribing penalties; making appropriations; providing an effective date; and providing an expiration date.

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

PART I

Sec. 102.  RCW 26.44.020 and 2012 c 259 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter unless the context clearly requires otherwise.

(1) "Abuse or neglect" means sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, or injury of a child by any person under circumstances which cause harm to the child's health, welfare, or safety, excluding conduct permitted under RCW 9A.16.100; or the negligent treatment or maltreatment of a child by a person responsible for or providing care to the child. "Neglect" includes a runaway or unaccompanied homeless child, as defined in RCW 43.330.702, as the child's lack of supervision may cause harm to the child's health, welfare, or safety. An abused child is a child who has been subjected to child abuse or neglect as defined in this section.

(2) "Child" or "children" means any person under the age of eighteen years of age.

(3) "Child protective services" means those services provided by the department designed to protect children from child abuse and neglect and safeguard such children from future abuse and neglect, and conduct investigations of child abuse and neglect reports. Investigations may be conducted regardless of the location of the alleged abuse or neglect. Child protective services includes referral to services to ameliorate conditions that endanger the welfare of children, the coordination of necessary programs and services relevant to the prevention, intervention, and treatment of child abuse and neglect, and services to children to ensure that each child has a permanent home. In determining whether protective services should be provided, the department shall not decline to provide such services solely because of the child's unwillingness or developmental inability to describe the nature and severity of the abuse or neglect.

(4) "Child protective services section" means the child protective services section of the department.

(5) "Children's advocacy center" means a child-focused facility in good standing with the state chapter for children's advocacy centers and that coordinates a multidisciplinary process for the investigation, prosecution, and treatment of sexual and other types of child abuse. Children's advocacy centers provide a location for forensic interviews and coordinate access to services such as, but not limited to, medical evaluations, advocacy, therapy, and case review by multidisciplinary teams within the context of county protocols as defined in RCW 26.44.180 and 26.44.185.

(6) "Clergy" means any regularly licensed or ordained minister, priest, or rabbi of any church or religious denomination, whether acting in an individual capacity or as an employee or agent of any public or private organization or institution.

(7) "Court" means the superior court of the state of Washington, juvenile department.

(8) "Department" means the state department of social and health services.

(9) "Family assessment" means a comprehensive assessment of child safety, risk of subsequent child abuse or neglect, and family strengths and needs that is applied to a child abuse or neglect report. Family assessment does not include a determination as to whether child abuse or neglect occurred, but does determine the need for services to address the safety of the child and the risk of subsequent maltreatment.

(10) "Family assessment response" means a way of responding to certain reports of child abuse or neglect made under this chapter using a differential response approach to child protective services. The family assessment response shall focus on the safety of the child, the integrity and preservation of the family, and shall assess the status of the child and the family in terms of risk of abuse and neglect including the parent's or guardian's or other caretaker's capacity and willingness to protect the child and, if necessary, plan and arrange the provision of services to reduce the risk and otherwise support the family. No one is named as a perpetrator, and no investigative finding is entered in the record as a result of a family assessment.

(11) "Founded" means the determination following an investigation by the department that, based on available information, it is more likely than not that child abuse or neglect did occur.

(12) "Inconclusive" means the determination following an investigation by the department, prior to October 1, 2008, that based on available information a decision cannot be made that more likely than not, child abuse or neglect did or did not occur.

(13) "Institution" means a private or public hospital or any other facility providing medical diagnosis, treatment, or care.

(14) "Law enforcement agency" means the police department, the prosecuting attorney, the state patrol, the director of public safety, or the office of the sheriff.

(15) "Malice" or "maliciously" means an intent, wish, or design to intimidate, annoy, or injure another person. Such malice may be inferred from an act done in willful disregard of the rights of another, or an act wrongfully done without just cause or excuse, or an act or omission of duty betraying a willful disregard of social duty.

(16) "Negligent treatment or maltreatment" means an act or a failure to act, or the cumulative effects of a pattern of conduct, behavior, or inaction, that evidences a serious disregard of consequences of such magnitude as to constitute a clear and present danger to a child's health, welfare, or safety, including but not limited to conduct prohibited under RCW 9A.42.100. When considering whether a clear and present danger exists, evidence of a parent's substance abuse as a contributing factor to negligent treatment or maltreatment shall be given great weight. The fact that siblings share a bedroom is not, in and of itself, negligent treatment or maltreatment. Poverty, homelessness, or exposure to domestic violence as defined in RCW 26.50.010 that is perpetrated against someone other than the child does not constitute negligent treatment or maltreatment in and of itself.

(17) "Pharmacist" means any registered pharmacist under chapter 18.64 RCW, whether acting in an individual capacity or as an employee or agent of any public or private organization or institution.

(18) "Practitioner of the healing arts" or "practitioner" means a person licensed by this state to practice podiatric medicine and surgery, optometry, chiropractic, nursing, dentistry, osteopathic medicine and surgery, or medicine and surgery or to provide other health services. The term "practitioner" includes a duly accredited Christian Science practitioner. A person who is being furnished Christian Science treatment by a duly accredited Christian Science practitioner will not be considered, for that reason alone, a neglected person for the purposes of this chapter.

(19) "Professional school personnel" include, but are not limited to, teachers, counselors, administrators, child care facility personnel, and school nurses.

(20) "Psychologist" means any person licensed to practice psychology under chapter 18.83 RCW, whether acting in an individual capacity or as an employee or agent of any public or private organization or institution.

(21) "Screened-out report" means a report of alleged child abuse or neglect that the department has determined does not rise to the level of a credible report of abuse or neglect and is not referred for investigation.

(22) "Sexual exploitation" includes: (a) Allowing, permitting, or encouraging a child to engage in prostitution by any person; or (b) allowing, permitting, encouraging, or engaging in the obscene or pornographic photographing, filming, or depicting of a child by any person.

(23) "Sexually aggressive youth" means a child who is defined in RCW 74.13.075(1)(b) as being a sexually aggressive youth.

(24) "Social service counselor" means anyone engaged in a professional capacity during the regular course of employment in encouraging or promoting the health, welfare, support, or education of children, or providing social services to adults or families, including mental health, drug and alcohol treatment, and domestic violence programs, whether in an individual capacity, or as an employee or agent of any public or private organization or institution.

(25) "Supervising agency" means an agency licensed by the state under RCW 74.15.090 or an Indian tribe under RCW 74.15.190 that has entered into a performance-based contract with the department to provide child welfare services.

(26) "Unfounded" means the determination following an investigation by the department that available information indicates that, more likely than not, child abuse or neglect did not occur, or that there is insufficient evidence for the department to determine whether the alleged child abuse did or did not occur.

Sec. 103.  RCW 26.44.030 and 2016 c 166 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:

(1)(a) When a person who works with children including, but not limited to, any practitioner, county coroner or medical examiner, law enforcement officer, professional school personnel, registered or licensed nurse, social service counselor, psychologist, pharmacist, employee of the department of early learning, licensed or certified child care providers or their employees, employee of the department, juvenile probation officer, placement and liaison specialist, responsible living skills program staff, HOPE center staff, street youth services staff, state family and children's ombuds or any volunteer in the ombuds's office, or host home program has reasonable cause to believe that a child has suffered abuse or neglect, he or she shall report such incident, or cause a report to be made, to the proper law enforcement agency or to the department as provided in RCW 26.44.040.

(b) When any person, in his or her official supervisory capacity with a nonprofit or for-profit organization, has reasonable cause to believe that a child has suffered abuse or neglect caused by a person over whom he or she regularly exercises supervisory authority, he or she shall report such incident, or cause a report to be made, to the proper law enforcement agency, provided that the person alleged to have caused the abuse or neglect is employed by, contracted by, or volunteers with the organization and coaches, trains, educates, or counsels a child or children or regularly has unsupervised access to a child or children as part of the employment, contract, or voluntary service. No one shall be required to report under this section when he or she obtains the information solely as a result of a privileged communication as provided in RCW 5.60.060.

Nothing in this subsection (1)(b) shall limit a person's duty to report under (a) of this subsection.

For the purposes of this subsection, the following definitions apply:

(i) "Official supervisory capacity" means a position, status, or role created, recognized, or designated by any nonprofit or for-profit organization, either for financial gain or without financial gain, whose scope includes, but is not limited to, overseeing, directing, or managing another person who is employed by, contracted by, or volunteers with the nonprofit or for-profit organization.

(ii) "Organization" includes a sole proprietor, partnership, corporation, limited liability company, trust, association, financial institution, governmental entity, other than the federal government, and any other individual or group engaged in a trade, occupation, enterprise, governmental function, charitable function, or similar activity in this state whether or not the entity is operated as a nonprofit or for-profit entity.

(iii) "Reasonable cause" means a person witnesses or receives a credible written or oral report alleging abuse, including sexual contact, or neglect of a child.

(iv) "Regularly exercises supervisory authority" means to act in his or her official supervisory capacity on an ongoing or continuing basis with regards to a particular person.

(v) "Sexual contact" has the same meaning as in RCW 9A.44.010.

(c) The reporting requirement also applies to department of corrections personnel who, in the course of their employment, observe offenders or the children with whom the offenders are in contact. If, as a result of observations or information received in the course of his or her employment, any department of corrections personnel has reasonable cause to believe that a child has suffered abuse or neglect, he or she shall report the incident, or cause a report to be made, to the proper law enforcement agency or to the department as provided in RCW 26.44.040.

(d) The reporting requirement shall also apply to any adult who has reasonable cause to believe that a child who resides with them, has suffered severe abuse, and is able or capable of making a report. For the purposes of this subsection, "severe abuse" means any of the following: Any single act of abuse that causes physical trauma of sufficient severity that, if left untreated, could cause death; any single act of sexual abuse that causes significant bleeding, deep bruising, or significant external or internal swelling; or more than one act of physical abuse, each of which causes bleeding, deep bruising, significant external or internal swelling, bone fracture, or unconsciousness.

(e) The reporting requirement also applies to guardians ad litem, including court-appointed special advocates, appointed under Titles 11 and 13 RCW and this title, who in the course of their representation of children in these actions have reasonable cause to believe a child has been abused or neglected.

(f) The reporting requirement in (a) of this subsection also applies to administrative and academic or athletic department employees, including student employees, of institutions of higher education, as defined in RCW 28B.10.016, and of private institutions of higher education.

(g) The report must be made at the first opportunity, but in no case longer than forty-eight hours after there is reasonable cause to believe that the child has suffered abuse or neglect. The report must include the identity of the accused if known.

(2) The reporting requirement of subsection (1) of this section does not apply to the discovery of abuse or neglect that occurred during childhood if it is discovered after the child has become an adult. However, if there is reasonable cause to believe other children are or may be at risk of abuse or neglect by the accused, the reporting requirement of subsection (1) of this section does apply.

(3) Any other person who has reasonable cause to believe that a child has suffered abuse or neglect may report such incident to the proper law enforcement agency or to the department of social and health services as provided in RCW 26.44.040.

(4) The department, upon receiving a report of an incident of alleged abuse or neglect pursuant to this chapter, involving a child who has died or has had physical injury or injuries inflicted upon him or her other than by accidental means or who has been subjected to alleged sexual abuse, shall report such incident to the proper law enforcement agency, including military law enforcement, if appropriate. In emergency cases, where the child's welfare is endangered, the department shall notify the proper law enforcement agency within twenty-four hours after a report is received by the department. In all other cases, the department shall notify the law enforcement agency within seventy-two hours after a report is received by the department. If the department makes an oral report, a written report must also be made to the proper law enforcement agency within five days thereafter.

(5) Any law enforcement agency receiving a report of an incident of alleged abuse or neglect pursuant to this chapter, involving a child who has died or has had physical injury or injuries inflicted upon him or her other than by accidental means, or who has been subjected to alleged sexual abuse, shall report such incident in writing as provided in RCW 26.44.040 to the proper county prosecutor or city attorney for appropriate action whenever the law enforcement agency's investigation reveals that a crime may have been committed. The law enforcement agency shall also notify the department of all reports received and the law enforcement agency's disposition of them. In emergency cases, where the child's welfare is endangered, the law enforcement agency shall notify the department within twenty-four hours. In all other cases, the law enforcement agency shall notify the department within seventy-two hours after a report is received by the law enforcement agency.

(6) Any county prosecutor or city attorney receiving a report under subsection (5) of this section shall notify the victim, any persons the victim requests, and the local office of the department, of the decision to charge or decline to charge a crime, within five days of making the decision.

(7) The department may conduct ongoing case planning and consultation with those persons or agencies required to report under this section, with consultants designated by the department, and with designated representatives of Washington Indian tribes if the client information exchanged is pertinent to cases currently receiving child protective services. Upon request, the department shall conduct such planning and consultation with those persons required to report under this section if the department determines it is in the best interests of the child. Information considered privileged by statute and not directly related to reports required by this section must not be divulged without a valid written waiver of the privilege.

(8) Any case referred to the department by a physician licensed under chapter 18.57 or 18.71 RCW on the basis of an expert medical opinion that child abuse, neglect, or sexual assault has occurred and that the child's safety will be seriously endangered if returned home, the department shall file a dependency petition unless a second licensed physician of the parents' choice believes that such expert medical opinion is incorrect. If the parents fail to designate a second physician, the department may make the selection. If a physician finds that a child has suffered abuse or neglect but that such abuse or neglect does not constitute imminent danger to the child's health or safety, and the department agrees with the physician's assessment, the child may be left in the parents' home while the department proceeds with reasonable efforts to remedy parenting deficiencies.

(9) Persons or agencies exchanging information under subsection (7) of this section shall not further disseminate or release the information except as authorized by state or federal statute. Violation of this subsection is a misdemeanor.

(10) Upon receiving a report of alleged abuse or neglect, the department shall make reasonable efforts to learn the name, address, and telephone number of each person making a report of abuse or neglect under this section. The department shall provide assurances of appropriate confidentiality of the identification of persons reporting under this section. If the department is unable to learn the information required under this subsection, the department shall only investigate cases in which:

(a) The department believes there is a serious threat of substantial harm to the child;

(b) The report indicates conduct involving a criminal offense that has, or is about to occur, in which the child is the victim; or

(c) The department has a prior founded report of abuse or neglect with regard to a member of the household that is within three years of receipt of the referral.

(11)(a) Upon receiving a report of alleged abuse or neglect, including a report of a runaway or unaccompanied homeless child, the department shall use one of the following discrete responses to reports of child abuse or neglect that are screened in and accepted for departmental response:

(i) Investigation; or

(ii) Family assessment.

(b) In making the response in (a) of this subsection the department shall:

(i) Use a method by which to assign cases to investigation or family assessment which are based on an array of factors that may include the presence of: Imminent danger, level of risk, number of previous child abuse or neglect reports, or other presenting case characteristics, such as the type of alleged maltreatment and the age of the alleged victim. Age of the alleged victim shall not be used as the sole criterion for determining case assignment;

(ii) Allow for a change in response assignment based on new information that alters risk or safety level;

(iii) Allow families assigned to family assessment to choose to receive an investigation rather than a family assessment;

(iv) Provide a full investigation if a family refuses the initial family assessment;

(v) Provide voluntary services to families based on the results of the initial family assessment. If a family refuses voluntary services, and the department cannot identify specific facts related to risk or safety that warrant assignment to investigation under this chapter, and there is not a history of reports of child abuse or neglect related to the family, then the department must close the family assessment response case. However, if at any time the department identifies risk or safety factors that warrant an investigation under this chapter, then the family assessment response case must be reassigned to investigation;

(vi) Conduct an investigation, and not a family assessment, in response to an allegation that, the department determines based on the intake assessment:

(A) Poses a risk of "imminent harm" consistent with the definition provided in RCW 13.34.050, which includes, but is not limited to, sexual abuse and sexual exploitation as defined in this chapter;

(B) Poses a serious threat of substantial harm to a child;

(C) Constitutes conduct involving a criminal offense that has, or is about to occur, in which the child is the victim;

(D) The child is an abandoned child as defined in RCW 13.34.030;

(E) The child is an adjudicated dependent child as defined in RCW 13.34.030, or the child is in a facility that is licensed, operated, or certified for care of children by the department under chapter 74.15 RCW, or by the department of early learning.

(c) The department may not be held civilly liable for the decision to respond to an allegation of child abuse or neglect by using the family assessment response under this section unless the state or its officers, agents, or employees acted with reckless disregard.

(12)(a) For reports of alleged abuse or neglect that are accepted for investigation by the department, the investigation shall be conducted within time frames established by the department in rule. In no case shall the investigation extend longer than ninety days from the date the report is received, unless the investigation is being conducted under a written protocol pursuant to RCW 26.44.180 and a law enforcement agency or prosecuting attorney has determined that a longer investigation period is necessary. At the completion of the investigation, the department shall make a finding that the report of child abuse or neglect is founded or unfounded.

(b) If a court in a civil or criminal proceeding, considering the same facts or circumstances as are contained in the report being investigated by the department, makes a judicial finding by a preponderance of the evidence or higher that the subject of the pending investigation has abused or neglected the child, the department shall adopt the finding in its investigation.

(13) For reports of alleged abuse or neglect that are responded to through family assessment response, the department shall:

(a) Provide the family with a written explanation of the procedure for assessment of the child and the family and its purposes;

(b) Collaborate with the family to identify family strengths, resources, and service needs, and develop a service plan with the goal of reducing risk of harm to the child and improving or restoring family well-being;

(c) Complete the family assessment response within forty-five days of receiving the report; however, upon parental agreement, the family assessment response period may be extended up to ninety days;

(d) Offer services to the family in a manner that makes it clear that acceptance of the services is voluntary;

(e) Implement the family assessment response in a consistent and cooperative manner;

(f) Have the parent or guardian sign an agreement to participate in services before services are initiated that informs the parents of their rights under family assessment response, all of their options, and the options the department has if the parents do not sign the consent form.

(14)(a) In conducting an investigation or family assessment of alleged abuse or neglect, the department or law enforcement agency:

(i) May interview children. If the department determines that the response to the allegation will be family assessment response, the preferred practice is to request a parent's, guardian's, or custodian's permission to interview the child before conducting the child interview unless doing so would compromise the safety of the child or the integrity of the assessment. The interviews may be conducted on school premises, at day-care facilities, at the child's home, or at other suitable locations outside of the presence of parents. If the allegation is investigated, parental notification of the interview must occur at the earliest possible point in the investigation that will not jeopardize the safety or protection of the child or the course of the investigation. Prior to commencing the interview the department or law enforcement agency shall determine whether the child wishes a third party to be present for the interview and, if so, shall make reasonable efforts to accommodate the child's wishes. Unless the child objects, the department or law enforcement agency shall make reasonable efforts to include a third party in any interview so long as the presence of the third party will not jeopardize the course of the investigation; and

(ii) Shall have access to all relevant records of the child in the possession of mandated reporters and their employees.

(b) The Washington state school directors' association shall adopt a model policy addressing protocols when an interview, as authorized by this subsection, is conducted on school premises. In formulating its policy, the association shall consult with the department and the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs.

(15) If a report of alleged abuse or neglect is founded and constitutes the third founded report received by the department within the last twelve months involving the same child or family, the department shall promptly notify the office of the family and children's ombuds of the contents of the report. The department shall also notify the ombuds of the disposition of the report.

(16) In investigating and responding to allegations of child abuse and neglect, the department may conduct background checks as authorized by state and federal law.

(17)(a) The department shall maintain investigation records and conduct timely and periodic reviews of all founded cases of abuse and neglect. The department shall maintain a log of screened-out nonabusive cases.

(b) In the family assessment response, the department shall not make a finding as to whether child abuse or neglect occurred. No one shall be named as a perpetrator and no investigative finding shall be entered in the department's child abuse or neglect database.

(18) The department shall use a risk assessment process when investigating alleged child abuse and neglect referrals. The department shall present the risk factors at all hearings in which the placement of a dependent child is an issue. Substance abuse must be a risk factor.

(19) Upon receipt of a report of alleged abuse or neglect the law enforcement agency may arrange to interview the person making the report and any collateral sources to determine if any malice is involved in the reporting.

(20) Upon receiving a report of alleged abuse or neglect involving a child under the court's jurisdiction under chapter 13.34 RCW, the department shall promptly notify the child's guardian ad litem of the report's contents. The department shall also notify the guardian ad litem of the disposition of the report. For purposes of this subsection, "guardian ad litem" has the meaning provided in RCW 13.34.030.

(21) The department shall make efforts as soon as practicable to determine the military status of parents whose children are subject to abuse or neglect allegations. If the department determines that a parent or guardian is in the military, the department shall notify a department of defense family advocacy program that there is an allegation of abuse and neglect that is screened in and open for investigation that relates to that military parent or guardian.

Sec. 104.  RCW 74.15.030 and 2014 c 104 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:

The secretary shall have the power and it shall be the secretary's duty:

(1) In consultation with the children's services advisory committee, and with the advice and assistance of persons representative of the various type agencies to be licensed, to designate categories of facilities for which separate or different requirements shall be developed as may be appropriate whether because of variations in the ages, sex and other characteristics of persons served, variations in the purposes and services offered or size or structure of the agencies to be licensed hereunder, or because of any other factor relevant thereto;

(2) In consultation with the children's services advisory committee, and with the advice and assistance of persons representative of the various type agencies to be licensed, to adopt and publish minimum requirements for licensing applicable to each of the various categories of agencies to be licensed.

The minimum requirements shall be limited to:

(a) The size and suitability of a facility and the plan of operation for carrying out the purpose for which an applicant seeks a license;

(b) Obtaining background information and any out-of-state equivalent, to determine whether the applicant or service provider is disqualified and to determine the character, competence, and suitability of an agency, the agency's employees, volunteers, and other persons associated with an agency;

(c) Conducting background checks for those who will or may have unsupervised access to children, expectant mothers, or individuals with a developmental disability; however, a background check is not required if a caregiver approves an activity pursuant to the prudent parent standard contained in RCW 74.13.710;

(d) Obtaining child protective services information or records maintained in the department case management information system. No unfounded allegation of child abuse or neglect as defined in RCW 26.44.020 may be disclosed to a child-placing agency, private adoption agency, or any other provider licensed under this chapter;

(e) Submitting a fingerprint-based background check through the Washington state patrol under chapter 10.97 RCW and through the federal bureau of investigation for:

(i) Agencies and their staff, volunteers, students, and interns when the agency is seeking license or relicense;

(ii) Foster care and adoption placements; and

(iii) Any adult living in a home where a child may be placed;

(f) If any adult living in the home has not resided in the state of Washington for the preceding five years, the department shall review any child abuse and neglect registries maintained by any state where the adult has resided over the preceding five years;

(g) The cost of fingerprint background check fees will be paid as required in RCW 43.43.837;

(h) National and state background information must be used solely for the purpose of determining eligibility for a license and for determining the character, suitability, and competence of those persons or agencies, excluding parents, not required to be licensed who are authorized to care for children or expectant mothers;

(i) The number of qualified persons required to render the type of care and treatment for which an agency seeks a license;

(j) The safety, cleanliness, and general adequacy of the premises to provide for the comfort, care and well-being of children, expectant mothers or developmentally disabled persons;

(k) The provision of necessary care, including food, clothing, supervision and discipline; physical, mental and social well-being; and educational, recreational and spiritual opportunities for those served;

(l) The financial ability of an agency to comply with minimum requirements established pursuant to this chapter (( 74.15 RCW)) and RCW 74.13.031; and

(m) The maintenance of records pertaining to the admission, progress, health and discharge of persons served;

(3) To investigate any person, including relatives by blood or marriage except for parents, for character, suitability, and competence in the care and treatment of children, expectant mothers, and developmentally disabled persons prior to authorizing that person to care for children, expectant mothers, and developmentally disabled persons. However, if a child is placed with a relative under RCW 13.34.065 or 13.34.130, and if such relative appears otherwise suitable and competent to provide care and treatment the criminal history background check required by this section need not be completed before placement, but shall be completed as soon as possible after placement;

(4) On reports of alleged child abuse and neglect, to investigate agencies in accordance with chapter 26.44 RCW, including child day-care centers and family day-care homes, to determine whether the alleged abuse or neglect has occurred, and whether child protective services or referral to a law enforcement agency is appropriate;

(5) To issue, revoke, or deny licenses to agencies pursuant to this chapter (( 74.15 RCW)) and RCW 74.13.031. Licenses shall specify the category of care which an agency is authorized to render and the ages, sex and number of persons to be served;

(6) To prescribe the procedures and the form and contents of reports necessary for the administration of this chapter (( 74.15 RCW)) and RCW 74.13.031 and to require regular reports from each licensee;

(7) To inspect agencies periodically to determine whether or not there is compliance with this chapter (( 74.15 RCW)) and RCW 74.13.031 and the requirements adopted hereunder, including annual inspections of facilities licensed under this chapter that provide shelter to unaccompanied homeless youth as defined in RCW 43.330.702, with the results of the annual inspections provided to the office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs and the legislature;

(8) To review requirements adopted hereunder at least every two years and to adopt appropriate changes after consultation with affected groups for child day-care requirements and with the children's services advisory committee for requirements for other agencies; and

(9) To consult with public and private agencies in order to help them improve their methods and facilities for the care of children, expectant mothers and developmentally disabled persons.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 105.  A new section is added to chapter 13.32A RCW to read as follows:

The department must develop a process to locate unaccompanied homeless children, as defined in RCW 43.330.702, with the primary goal of returning the child to his or her parent(s) or legal guardian(s). This process must include locating dependent children, as defined in RCW 13.34.030, missing from care. The department must, at a minimum:

(1) Develop a process to track reports of unaccompanied homeless children on a daily basis;

(2) Develop a process for tracking the daily living situation of homeless children. "Living situation" includes, but is not limited to: Living with a parent(s), guardian(s), other relative(s), or next of kin. The tracking process must include whether the department has screened in and accepted the child for services and whether the child is a dependent;

(3) Track the length of time it takes from identifying an unaccompanied homeless youth to the time that the child is returned home or placed in safe long-term care through the dependency process;

(4) Include information from the child as to why the child ran away from home;

(5) Include information from the child's parent(s) or legal guardian(s) as to why he or she believes the child ran away from home;

(6) Track whether a parent or legal guardian refuses to maintain custody of the child;

(7) Ensure that data collected is sortable by city and county;

(8) Make a determination as to why a child ran away from home or how a child became an unaccompanied homeless youth; and

(9) Make such data available to the legislature on a monthly basis.

PART II

Sec. 201.  RCW 43.330.700 and 2015 c 69 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) The legislature finds that every night thousands of homeless youth in Washington go to sleep without the safety, stability, and support of a family or a home. This population is exposed to an increased level of violence, human trafficking, and exploitation resulting in a higher incidence of substance abuse, illness, and death. The prevention and reduction of youth and young adult homelessness and protection of homeless youth is of key concern to the state. Nothing in chapter 69, Laws of 2015 is meant to diminish the work accomplished by the implementation of Becca legislation but rather, the intent of the legislature is to further enhance the state's efforts in working with unaccompanied homeless youth and runaways to encourage family reconciliation or permanent housing and support through dependency when family reconciliation is not a viable alternative.

(2) Successfully addressing youth and young adult homelessness ensures that homeless youth and young adults in our state have the support they need to thrive and avoid involvement in the justice system, human trafficking, long-term, avoidable use of public benefits, and extended adult homelessness.

(3) Providing appropriate, relevant, and readily accessible services is critical for addressing one-time, episodic, or longer-term homelessness among youth and young adults, and keeping homeless youth and young adults safe, housed, and connected to family.

(4) The coordination of statewide programs to combat youth and young adult homelessness should include programs addressing both youth and young adults. However, the legislature acknowledges that current law and best practices mandate that youth programs and young adult programs be segregated in their implementation. The legislature further finds that the differing needs of these populations should be considered when assessing which programs are relevant and appropriate.

(5) To successfully reduce and prevent youth and young adult homelessness, it is the goal of the legislature to have the following key components available and accessible:

(a) Stable housing: It is the goal of the legislature to provide a safe and healthy place for homeless youth to sleep each night until permanency can be reached. Every homeless young adult in our state deserves access to housing that gives them a safe, healthy, and supported launching pad to adulthood. Every family in crisis should have appropriate support as they work to keep their children housed and safe. It is the goal of the legislature that by July 1, 2018, every homeless youth discharged from a public system of care in our state ((will)) must not be discharged into homelessness.

(b) Family reconciliation: All homeless youth should have access to services that support reunification with immediate family. When reunification is not possible for homeless youth, youth should be placed in the custody of the department of social and health services.

(c) ((Permanent connections: Every homeless young adult should have opportunities to establish positive, healthy relationships with adults, including family members, employers, landlords, teachers, and community members, with whom they can maintain connections and from whom they can receive ongoing, long-term support to help them develop the skills and experiences necessary to achieve a successful transition to adulthood.

(e))) Social and emotional well-being: Every homeless youth and young adult in our state should have access to both behavioral health care and physical health care. Every state-funded program for homeless youth and young adults must endeavor to identify, encourage, and nurture each youth's strengths and abilities and demonstrate a commitment to youth-centered programming.

Sec. 202.  RCW 43.330.705 and 2015 c 69 s 5 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) There is created the office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs within the department.

(2) Activities of the office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs must be carried out by a director of the office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs, supervised by the director of the department or his or her designee.

(3) The office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs is responsible for leading efforts under this subchapter to coordinate a spectrum of ongoing and future funding, policy, and practice efforts related to homeless youth and improving the safety, health, and welfare of homeless youth in this state.

(4) The measurable goals of the office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs are to: (a) Measurably decrease the number of homeless youth and young adults by identifying programs that address the initial causes of homelessness, and (b) measurably increase permanency rates among homeless youth by decreasing the length and occurrences of youth homelessness caused by a youth's separation from family or a legal guardian. By December 1, 2017, and monthly thereafter, the office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs shall report to the legislature the status of these goals.

(5) The office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs shall (a) gather data and outcome measures, (b) initiate data-sharing agreements, (c) develop specific recommendations and timelines to address funding, policy, and practice gaps within the state system for addressing the ((five priority service areas)) three key components identified in RCW 43.330.700, (d) make reports, (e) increase system integration and coordinate efforts to prevent state systems from discharging youth and young adults into homelessness, (f) develop measures to include by county and statewide the number of homeless youth, dependency status, family reunification status, housing status, program participation, and runaway status, ((and)) (g) develop a comprehensive plan to encourage identification of youth experiencing homelessness, promote family stability, and eliminate youth and young adult homelessness, (h) by July 1, 2018, ensure that all services for minors are provided in a location separate from adults, including young adults, (i) work with the department of social and health services and law enforcement to develop a process to identify unaccompanied homeless youth and ensure unaccompanied homeless youth are taken into custody and brought to the nearest HOPE center, (j) work with social services providers throughout the state, to ensure all minors receiving state-funded services are identified and part of the office's database, and (k) by December 1, 2018, work with the three most populous cities in the state to develop a plan to end youth homelessness within two years, with the cities providing a quarterly progress report on the status of meeting this goal, posted on the office's web site.

(6)(a) The office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs shall regularly consult with an advisory committee, comprised of ((advocates, at least two legislators, at least two parent advocates, at least one representative from law enforcement, service providers, and other stakeholders knowledgeable in the provision of services to homeless youth and young adults, including the prevention of youth and young adult homelessness, the dependency system, and family reunification)) four legislators and eight additional members as appointed by the legislature, for a total of twelve members. The advisory committee shall provide guidance and recommendations to the office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs and to the legislature regarding funding, policy, and practice gaps within and among state programs.

(b) The advisory committee must be staffed by the department.

(c) The members of the advisory committee must be appointed by the ((governor, except for the legislators who must be appointed by)) legislature. The speaker of the house of representatives and the president of the senate must each appoint one legislator from each caucus to the advisory committee. Each caucus of each chamber of the legislature must appoint two additional advisory committee members.

(d) The advisory committee must have its initial meeting no later than March 1, 2016.

(7) The office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs must be operational no later than January 1, 2016. Transfer of powers, duties, and functions of the department of social and health services to the department of commerce pertaining to youth homeless services and programs identified in RCW 43.330.710(2) may occur before this date.

Sec. 203.  RCW 43.330.706 and 2015 c 69 s 6 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) The office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs shall identify data and outcomes measures from which to evaluate future public investment in homeless youth services.

(2) By December 1, 2016, and annually thereafter, and in compliance with RCW 43.01.036, the office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs must submit a report to the governor and the legislature to inform recommendations for funding, policy, and best practices in the ((five priority service areas)) three key components identified in RCW 43.330.700 and present recommendations to address funding, policy, and practice gaps in the state system.

(3) Recommendations must include, but are not limited to: Strategies to enhance coordination between providers of youth homelessness programs and the child welfare system, and strategies for communities to identify homeless youth and ensure their protection and referral to appropriate services, including family reconciliation and transition to dependent status for minors.

Sec. 204.  RCW 43.330.710 and 2015 c 69 s 7 are each amended to read as follows:

(1)(a) The office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs shall report to the director or the director's designee.

(b)(i) The office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs may distribute grants to providers who serve homeless youth and young adults throughout the state.

(ii) The grants must fund ((services in the five priority service areas identified in RCW 43.330.700)) housing or family reconciliation. Funds may not be used for street youth services. Effective August 1, 2017, all grant recipients must demonstrate that the services provided either reduces unaccompanied youth homelessness or increases family reunification, or both. Effective August 1, 2017, all grants made by the office must require outcome measures that demonstrate that the services provided either reduces unaccompanied youth homelessness or increases family reunification, or both. After August 1, 2017, a grant recipient that is unable to demonstrate that the services provided either reduces unaccompanied youth homelessness or increases family reunification, or both, is not eligible to receive a grant through the office.

(iii) The grants must be expended on a statewide basis and may be used to support direct services as provided for in (b)(ii) of this subsection, as well as technical assistance, evaluation, and capacity building.

(2) The office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs shall provide management ((and)), oversight guidance, and direction, including recommendations for increasing capacity, funding, and expanding locations across the state by county, to the following programs:

(a) HOPE centers as described in RCW 43.185C.315; and

(b) Crisis residential centers as described in RCW 43.185C.295((;

(d) Independent youth housing programs as described in RCW 43.63A.305)).

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 205.  A new section is added to chapter 43.330 RCW to read as follows:

(1) By January 1, 2018, the office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs must develop a runaway and abandoned youth database. At a minimum, the database must include the following information:

(a) Personally identifying information regarding youth that access social services updated by the social services providers on a daily basis that includes information regarding a youth's location, mental health, chemical dependency and physical abuse status, updated daily. For youth for which there is no personally identifying information, the social services provider shall enter as much information as is known;

(b) Youth whose parent(s) or guardian(s) have been notified of the youth's presence at a social services provider, updated daily;

(c) Youth who have returned to his or her parent(s) or guardian(s), updated daily; and

(d) Youth who have been reported to child protective services, updated daily.

(2) The database must be shared with and be accessible by local governments and the department of social and health services with the terms of use and confidentiality as determined by the office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs.

(3) The office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs must determine when it anticipates that there will be no unsheltered, unaccompanied homeless youth and provide a weekly status update on its web site.

Sec. 206.  RCW 43.185C.180 and 2011 c 239 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) In order to improve services for the homeless, the department, within amounts appropriated by the legislature for this specific purpose, shall implement the Washington homeless client management information system for the ongoing collection and updates of information about all homeless individuals in the state.

(2) Information about homeless individuals for the Washington homeless client management information system shall come from the Washington homeless census and from state agencies and community organizations providing services to homeless individuals and families.

(a) ((Personally identifying information about homeless individuals for the Washington homeless client management information system may only be collected after having obtained informed, reasonably time limited (i) written consent from the homeless individual to whom the information relates, or (ii) telephonic consent from the homeless individual, provided that written consent is obtained at the first time the individual is physically present at an organization with access to the Washington homeless client management information system. Safeguards consistent with federal requirements on data collection must be in place to protect homeless individuals' rights regarding their personally identifying information.

(c))) Any person, including a minor, seeking services from a service provider that utilizes the Washington homeless client management information system must provide his or her personally identifying information to the service provider. For a service provider that receives public funds including, but not limited to, federal, state, and local funding, a person seeking services must provide his or her personally identifying information to receive any services from the service provider. The department must develop a system to share such information with the department of social and health services and local law enforcement.

(b) The department must adopt policies governing the appropriate process for destroying Washington homeless client management information system paper documents containing personally identifying information when the paper documents are no longer needed. The policies must not conflict with any federal data requirements.

(3) The Washington homeless client management information system shall serve as an online information and referral system to enable local governments and providers to connect homeless persons in the database with available housing and other support services. Local governments shall develop a capacity for continuous case management, including independent living plans, when appropriate, to assist homeless persons.

(4) The information in the Washington homeless client management information system will also provide the department with the information to consolidate and analyze data about the extent and nature of homelessness in Washington state, giving emphasis to information about the extent and nature of homelessness in Washington state among families with children.

(5) The system may be merged with other data gathering and reporting systems and shall:

(a) Protect the right of privacy of individuals;

(b) Provide for consultation and collaboration with all relevant state agencies including the department of social and health services, experts, and community organizations involved in the delivery of services to homeless persons; and

(c) Include related information held or gathered by other state agencies.

(6) Within amounts appropriated by the legislature, for this specific purpose, the department shall evaluate the information gathered and disseminate the analysis and the evaluation broadly, using appropriate computer networks as well as written reports.

(7) The Washington homeless client management information system shall be implemented by December 31, 2009, and updated with new homeless client information at least annually.

PART III

Sec. 301.  RCW 71.05.020 and 2016 c 155 s 1 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:

The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter unless the context clearly requires otherwise.

(1) "Admission" or "admit" means a decision by a physician, physician assistant, or psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioner that a person should be examined or treated as a patient in a hospital;

(2) "Antipsychotic medications" means that class of drugs primarily used to treat serious manifestations of mental illness associated with thought disorders, which includes, but is not limited to atypical antipsychotic medications;

(3) "Attending staff" means any person on the staff of a public or private agency having responsibility for the care and treatment of a patient;

(4) "Commitment" means the determination by a court that a person should be detained for a period of either evaluation or treatment, or both, in an inpatient or a less restrictive setting;

(5) "Conditional release" means a revocable modification of a commitment, which may be revoked upon violation of any of its terms;

(6) "Crisis stabilization unit" means a short-term facility or a portion of a facility licensed by the department of health and certified by the department of social and health services under RCW 71.24.035, such as an evaluation and treatment facility or a hospital, which has been designed to assess, diagnose, and treat individuals experiencing an acute crisis without the use of long-term hospitalization;

(7) "Custody" means involuntary detention under the provisions of this chapter or chapter 10.77 RCW, uninterrupted by any period of unconditional release from commitment from a facility providing involuntary care and treatment;

(8) "Department" means the department of social and health services;

(9) "Designated chemical dependency specialist" means a person designated by the county alcoholism and other drug addiction program coordinator designated under RCW 70.96A.310 to perform the commitment duties described in chapters 70.96A and 70.96B RCW;

(10) "Designated crisis responder" means a mental health professional appointed by the county or the behavioral health organization to perform the duties specified in this chapter;

(11) "Designated mental health professional" means a mental health professional designated by the county or other authority authorized in rule to perform the duties specified in this chapter;

(12) "Detention" or "detain" means the lawful confinement of a person, under the provisions of this chapter;

(13) "Developmental disabilities professional" means a person who has specialized training and three years of experience in directly treating or working with persons with developmental disabilities and is a psychiatrist, physician assistant working with a supervising psychiatrist, psychologist, psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioner, or social worker, and such other developmental disabilities professionals as may be defined by rules adopted by the secretary;

(14) "Developmental disability" means that condition defined in RCW 71A.10.020(5);

(15) "Discharge" means the termination of hospital medical authority. The commitment may remain in place, be terminated, or be amended by court order;

(16) "Evaluation and treatment facility" means any facility which can provide directly, or by direct arrangement with other public or private agencies, emergency evaluation and treatment, outpatient care, and timely and appropriate inpatient care to persons suffering from a mental disorder, and which is certified as such by the department. The department may certify single beds as temporary evaluation and treatment beds under RCW 71.05.745. A physically separate and separately operated portion of a state hospital may be designated as an evaluation and treatment facility. A facility which is part of, or operated by, the department or any federal agency will not require certification. No correctional institution or facility, or jail, shall be an evaluation and treatment facility within the meaning of this chapter;

(17) "Gravely disabled" means a condition in which a person, as a result of a mental disorder or a substance use disorder: (a) Is in danger of serious physical harm resulting from a failure to provide for his or her essential human needs of health or safety; or (b) manifests severe deterioration in routine functioning evidenced by repeated and escalating loss of cognitive or volitional control over his or her actions and is not receiving such care as is essential for his or her health or safety. A person is presumed to be gravely disabled as a result of a substance use disorder if the person has an opioid use disorder characterized by active heroin use and has been a homeless person as defined under RCW 43.185C.010 for at least one year;

(18) "Habilitative services" means those services provided by program personnel to assist persons in acquiring and maintaining life skills and in raising their levels of physical, mental, social, and vocational functioning. Habilitative services include education, training for employment, and therapy. The habilitative process shall be undertaken with recognition of the risk to the public safety presented by the person being assisted as manifested by prior charged criminal conduct;

(19) "History of one or more violent acts" refers to the period of time ten years prior to the filing of a petition under this chapter, excluding any time spent, but not any violent acts committed, in a mental health facility or in confinement as a result of a criminal conviction;

(20) "Imminent" means the state or condition of being likely to occur at any moment or near at hand, rather than distant or remote;

(21) "In need of assisted outpatient mental health treatment" means that a person, as a result of a mental disorder: (a) Has been committed by a court to detention for involuntary mental health treatment at least twice during the preceding thirty-six months, or, if the person is currently committed for involuntary mental health treatment, the person has been committed to detention for involuntary mental health treatment at least once during the thirty-six months preceding the date of initial detention of the current commitment cycle; (b) is unlikely to voluntarily participate in outpatient treatment without an order for less restrictive alternative treatment, in view of the person's treatment history or current behavior; (c) is unlikely to survive safely in the community without supervision; (d) is likely to benefit from less restrictive alternative treatment; and (e) requires less restrictive alternative treatment to prevent a relapse, decompensation, or deterioration that is likely to result in the person presenting a likelihood of serious harm or the person becoming gravely disabled within a reasonably short period of time. For purposes of (a) of this subsection, time spent in a mental health facility or in confinement as a result of a criminal conviction is excluded from the thirty-six month calculation;

(22) "Individualized service plan" means a plan prepared by a developmental disabilities professional with other professionals as a team, for a person with developmental disabilities, which shall state:

(a) The nature of the person's specific problems, prior charged criminal behavior, and habilitation needs;

(b) The conditions and strategies necessary to achieve the purposes of habilitation;

(c) The intermediate and long-range goals of the habilitation program, with a projected timetable for the attainment;

(d) The rationale for using this plan of habilitation to achieve those intermediate and long-range goals;

(e) The staff responsible for carrying out the plan;

(f) Where relevant in light of past criminal behavior and due consideration for public safety, the criteria for proposed movement to less-restrictive settings, criteria for proposed eventual discharge or release, and a projected possible date for discharge or release; and

(g) The type of residence immediately anticipated for the person and possible future types of residences;

(23) "Information related to mental health services" means all information and records compiled, obtained, or maintained in the course of providing services to either voluntary or involuntary recipients of services by a mental health service provider. This may include documents of legal proceedings under this chapter or chapter 71.34 or 10.77 RCW, or somatic health care information;

(24) "Judicial commitment" means a commitment by a court pursuant to the provisions of this chapter;

(25) "Legal counsel" means attorneys and staff employed by county prosecutor offices or the state attorney general acting in their capacity as legal representatives of public mental health service providers under RCW 71.05.130;

(26) "Less restrictive alternative treatment" means a program of individualized treatment in a less restrictive setting than inpatient treatment that includes the services described in RCW 71.05.585;

(27) "Likelihood of serious harm" means:

(a) A substantial risk that: (i) Physical harm will be inflicted by a person upon his or her own person, as evidenced by threats or attempts to commit suicide or inflict physical harm on oneself; (ii) physical harm will be inflicted by a person upon another, as evidenced by behavior which has caused such harm or which places another person or persons in reasonable fear of sustaining such harm; or (iii) physical harm will be inflicted by a person upon the property of others, as evidenced by behavior which has caused substantial loss or damage to the property of others; or

(b) The person has threatened the physical safety of another and has a history of one or more violent acts;

(28) "Medical clearance" means a physician or other health care provider has determined that a person is medically stable and ready for referral to the designated mental health professional;

(29) "Mental disorder" means any organic, mental, or emotional impairment which has substantial adverse effects on a person's cognitive or volitional functions;

(30) "Mental health professional" means a psychiatrist, psychologist, physician assistant working with a supervising psychiatrist, psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioner, psychiatric nurse, or social worker, and such other mental health professionals as may be defined by rules adopted by the secretary pursuant to the provisions of this chapter;

(31) "Mental health service provider" means a public or private agency that provides mental health services to persons with mental disorders as defined under this section and receives funding from public sources. This includes, but is not limited to, hospitals licensed under chapter 70.41 RCW, evaluation and treatment facilities as defined in this section, community mental health service delivery systems or community mental health programs as defined in RCW 71.24.025, facilities conducting competency evaluations and restoration under chapter 10.77 RCW, and correctional facilities operated by state and local governments;

(32) "Peace officer" means a law enforcement official of a public agency or governmental unit, and includes persons specifically given peace officer powers by any state law, local ordinance, or judicial order of appointment;

(33) "Physician assistant" means a person licensed as a physician assistant under chapter 18.57A or 18.71A RCW;

(34) "Private agency" means any person, partnership, corporation, or association that is not a public agency, whether or not financed in whole or in part by public funds, which constitutes an evaluation and treatment facility or private institution, or hospital, which is conducted for, or includes a department or ward conducted for, the care and treatment of persons who are mentally ill;

(35) "Professional person" means a mental health professional and shall also mean a physician, physician assistant, psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioner, registered nurse, and such others as may be defined by rules adopted by the secretary pursuant to the provisions of this chapter;

(36) "Psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioner" means a person who is licensed as an advanced registered nurse practitioner pursuant to chapter 18.79 RCW; and who is board certified in advanced practice psychiatric and mental health nursing;

(37) "Psychiatrist" means a person having a license as a physician and surgeon in this state who has in addition completed three years of graduate training in psychiatry in a program approved by the American medical association or the American osteopathic association and is certified or eligible to be certified by the American board of psychiatry and neurology;

(38) "Psychologist" means a person who has been licensed as a psychologist pursuant to chapter 18.83 RCW;

(39) "Public agency" means any evaluation and treatment facility or institution, or hospital which is conducted for, or includes a department or ward conducted for, the care and treatment of persons with mental illness, if the agency is operated directly by, federal, state, county, or municipal government, or a combination of such governments;

(40) "Registration records" include all the records of the department, behavioral health organizations, treatment facilities, and other persons providing services to the department, county departments, or facilities which identify persons who are receiving or who at any time have received services for mental illness;

(41) "Release" means legal termination of the commitment under the provisions of this chapter;

(42) "Resource management services" has the meaning given in chapter 71.24 RCW;

(43) "Secretary" means the secretary of the department of social and health services, or his or her designee;

(44) "Serious violent offense" has the same meaning as provided in RCW 9.94A.030;

(45) "Social worker" means a person with a master's or further advanced degree from a social work educational program accredited and approved as provided in RCW 18.320.010;

(46) "Therapeutic court personnel" means the staff of a mental health court or other therapeutic court which has jurisdiction over defendants who are dually diagnosed with mental disorders, including court personnel, probation officers, a court monitor, prosecuting attorney, or defense counsel acting within the scope of therapeutic court duties;

(47) "Treatment records" include registration and all other records concerning persons who are receiving or who at any time have received services for mental illness, which are maintained by the department, by behavioral health organizations and their staffs, and by treatment facilities. Treatment records include mental health information contained in a medical bill including but not limited to mental health drugs, a mental health diagnosis, provider name, and dates of service stemming from a medical service. Treatment records do not include notes or records maintained for personal use by a person providing treatment services for the department, behavioral health organizations, or a treatment facility if the notes or records are not available to others;

(48) "Triage facility" means a short-term facility or a portion of a facility licensed by the department of health and certified by the department of social and health services under RCW 71.24.035, which is designed as a facility to assess and stabilize an individual or determine the need for involuntary commitment of an individual, and must meet department of health residential treatment facility standards. A triage facility may be structured as a voluntary or involuntary placement facility;

(49) "Violent act" means behavior that resulted in homicide, attempted suicide, nonfatal injuries, or substantial damage to property.

Sec. 302.  RCW 71.05.020 and 2016 sp.s. c 29 s 204 and 2016 c 155 s 1 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:

The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter unless the context clearly requires otherwise.

(1) "Admission" or "admit" means a decision by a physician, physician assistant, or psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioner that a person should be examined or treated as a patient in a hospital;

(2) "Alcoholism" means a disease, characterized by a dependency on alcoholic beverages, loss of control over the amount and circumstances of use, symptoms of tolerance, physiological or psychological withdrawal, or both, if use is reduced or discontinued, and impairment of health or disruption of social or economic functioning;

(3) "Antipsychotic medications" means that class of drugs primarily used to treat serious manifestations of mental illness associated with thought disorders, which includes, but is not limited to atypical antipsychotic medications;

(4) "Approved substance use disorder treatment program" means a program for persons with a substance use disorder provided by a treatment program certified by the department as meeting standards adopted under chapter 71.24 RCW;

(5) "Attending staff" means any person on the staff of a public or private agency having responsibility for the care and treatment of a patient;

(6) "Chemical dependency" means:

(a) Alcoholism;

(b) Drug addiction; or

(c) Dependence on alcohol and one or more psychoactive chemicals, as the context requires;

(7) "Chemical dependency professional" means a person certified as a chemical dependency professional by the department of health under chapter 18.205 RCW;

(8) "Commitment" means the determination by a court that a person should be detained for a period of either evaluation or treatment, or both, in an inpatient or a less restrictive setting;

(9) "Conditional release" means a revocable modification of a commitment, which may be revoked upon violation of any of its terms;

(10) "Crisis stabilization unit" means a short-term facility or a portion of a facility licensed by the department of health and certified by the department of social and health services under RCW 71.24.035, such as an evaluation and treatment facility or a hospital, which has been designed to assess, diagnose, and treat individuals experiencing an acute crisis without the use of long-term hospitalization;

(11) "Custody" means involuntary detention under the provisions of this chapter or chapter 10.77 RCW, uninterrupted by any period of unconditional release from commitment from a facility providing involuntary care and treatment;

(12) "Department" means the department of social and health services;

(13) "Designated crisis responder" means a mental health professional appointed by the behavioral health organization to perform the duties specified in this chapter;

(14) "Detention" or "detain" means the lawful confinement of a person, under the provisions of this chapter;

(15) "Developmental disabilities professional" means a person who has specialized training and three years of experience in directly treating or working with persons with developmental disabilities and is a psychiatrist, physician assistant working with a supervising psychiatrist, psychologist, psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioner, or social worker, and such other developmental disabilities professionals as may be defined by rules adopted by the secretary;

(16) "Developmental disability" means that condition defined in RCW 71A.10.020(5);

(17) "Discharge" means the termination of hospital medical authority. The commitment may remain in place, be terminated, or be amended by court order;

(18) "Drug addiction" means a disease, characterized by a dependency on psychoactive chemicals, loss of control over the amount and circumstances of use, symptoms of tolerance, physiological or psychological withdrawal, or both, if use is reduced or discontinued, and impairment of health or disruption of social or economic functioning;

(19) "Evaluation and treatment facility" means any facility which can provide directly, or by direct arrangement with other public or private agencies, emergency evaluation and treatment, outpatient care, and timely and appropriate inpatient care to persons suffering from a mental disorder, and which is certified as such by the department. The department may certify single beds as temporary evaluation and treatment beds under RCW 71.05.745. A physically separate and separately operated portion of a state hospital may be designated as an evaluation and treatment facility. A facility which is part of, or operated by, the department or any federal agency will not require certification. No correctional institution or facility, or jail, shall be an evaluation and treatment facility within the meaning of this chapter;

(20) "Gravely disabled" means a condition in which a person, as a result of a mental disorder((, or as a result of the use of alcohol or other psychoactive chemicals)) or a substance use disorder: (a) Is in danger of serious physical harm resulting from a failure to provide for his or her essential human needs of health or safety; or (b) manifests severe deterioration in routine functioning evidenced by repeated and escalating loss of cognitive or volitional control over his or her actions and is not receiving such care as is essential for his or her health or safety. A person is presumed to be gravely disabled as a result of a substance use disorder if the person has an opioid use disorder characterized by active heroin use and has been a homeless person as defined under RCW 43.185C.010 for at least one year;

(21) "Habilitative services" means those services provided by program personnel to assist persons in acquiring and maintaining life skills and in raising their levels of physical, mental, social, and vocational functioning. Habilitative services include education, training for employment, and therapy. The habilitative process shall be undertaken with recognition of the risk to the public safety presented by the person being assisted as manifested by prior charged criminal conduct;

(22) "History of one or more violent acts" refers to the period of time ten years prior to the filing of a petition under this chapter, excluding any time spent, but not any violent acts committed, in a mental health facility, a long-term alcoholism or drug treatment facility, or in confinement as a result of a criminal conviction;

(23) "Imminent" means the state or condition of being likely to occur at any moment or near at hand, rather than distant or remote;

(24) "Individualized service plan" means a plan prepared by a developmental disabilities professional with other professionals as a team, for a person with developmental disabilities, which shall state:

(a) The nature of the person's specific problems, prior charged criminal behavior, and habilitation needs;

(b) The conditions and strategies necessary to achieve the purposes of habilitation;

(c) The intermediate and long-range goals of the habilitation program, with a projected timetable for the attainment;

(d) The rationale for using this plan of habilitation to achieve those intermediate and long-range goals;

(e) The staff responsible for carrying out the plan;

(f) Where relevant in light of past criminal behavior and due consideration for public safety, the criteria for proposed movement to less-restrictive settings, criteria for proposed eventual discharge or release, and a projected possible date for discharge or release; and

(g) The type of residence immediately anticipated for the person and possible future types of residences;

(25) "Information related to mental health services" means all information and records compiled, obtained, or maintained in the course of providing services to either voluntary or involuntary recipients of services by a mental health service provider. This may include documents of legal proceedings under this chapter or chapter 71.34 or 10.77 RCW, or somatic health care information;

(26) "Intoxicated person" means a person whose mental or physical functioning is substantially impaired as a result of the use of alcohol or other psychoactive chemicals;

(27) "In need of assisted outpatient mental health treatment" means that a person, as a result of a mental disorder: (a) Has been committed by a court to detention for involuntary mental health treatment at least twice during the preceding thirty-six months, or, if the person is currently committed for involuntary mental health treatment, the person has been committed to detention for involuntary mental health treatment at least once during the thirty-six months preceding the date of initial detention of the current commitment cycle; (b) is unlikely to voluntarily participate in outpatient treatment without an order for less restrictive alternative treatment, in view of the person's treatment history or current behavior; (c) is unlikely to survive safely in the community without supervision; (d) is likely to benefit from less restrictive alternative treatment; and (e) requires less restrictive alternative treatment to prevent a relapse, decompensation, or deterioration that is likely to result in the person presenting a likelihood of serious harm or the person becoming gravely disabled within a reasonably short period of time. For purposes of (a) of this subsection, time spent in a mental health facility or in confinement as a result of a criminal conviction is excluded from the thirty-six month calculation;

(28) "Judicial commitment" means a commitment by a court pursuant to the provisions of this chapter;

(29) "Legal counsel" means attorneys and staff employed by county prosecutor offices or the state attorney general acting in their capacity as legal representatives of public mental health and substance use disorder service providers under RCW 71.05.130;

(30) "Less restrictive alternative treatment" means a program of individualized treatment in a less restrictive setting than inpatient treatment that includes the services described in RCW 71.05.585;

(31) "Licensed physician" means a person licensed to practice medicine or osteopathic medicine and surgery in the state of Washington;

(32) "Likelihood of serious harm" means:

(a) A substantial risk that: (i) Physical harm will be inflicted by a person upon his or her own person, as evidenced by threats or attempts to commit suicide or inflict physical harm on oneself; (ii) physical harm will be inflicted by a person upon another, as evidenced by behavior which has caused such harm or which places another person or persons in reasonable fear of sustaining such harm; or (iii) physical harm will be inflicted by a person upon the property of others, as evidenced by behavior which has caused substantial loss or damage to the property of others; or

(b) The person has threatened the physical safety of another and has a history of one or more violent acts;

(33) "Medical clearance" means a physician or other health care provider has determined that a person is medically stable and ready for referral to the designated crisis responder;

(34) "Mental disorder" means any organic, mental, or emotional impairment which has substantial adverse effects on a person's cognitive or volitional functions;

(35) "Mental health professional" means a psychiatrist, psychologist, physician assistant working with a supervising psychiatrist, psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioner, psychiatric nurse, or social worker, and such other mental health professionals as may be defined by rules adopted by the secretary pursuant to the provisions of this chapter;

(36) "Mental health service provider" means a public or private agency that provides mental health services to persons with mental disorders or substance use disorders as defined under this section and receives funding from public sources. This includes, but is not limited to, hospitals licensed under chapter 70.41 RCW, evaluation and treatment facilities as defined in this section, community mental health service delivery systems or behavioral health programs as defined in RCW 71.24.025, facilities conducting competency evaluations and restoration under chapter 10.77 RCW, approved substance use disorder treatment programs as defined in this section, secure detoxification facilities as defined in this section, and correctional facilities operated by state and local governments;

(37) "Peace officer" means a law enforcement official of a public agency or governmental unit, and includes persons specifically given peace officer powers by any state law, local ordinance, or judicial order of appointment;

(38) "Physician assistant" means a person licensed as a physician assistant under chapter 18.57A or 18.71A RCW;

(39) "Private agency" means any person, partnership, corporation, or association that is not a public agency, whether or not financed in whole or in part by public funds, which constitutes an evaluation and treatment facility or private institution, or hospital, or approved substance use disorder treatment program, which is conducted for, or includes a department or ward conducted for, the care and treatment of persons with mental illness, substance use disorders, or both mental illness and substance use disorders;

(40) "Professional person" means a mental health professional or designated crisis responder and shall also mean a physician, physician assistant, psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioner, registered nurse, and such others as may be defined by rules adopted by the secretary pursuant to the provisions of this chapter;

(41) "Psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioner" means a person who is licensed as an advanced registered nurse practitioner pursuant to chapter 18.79 RCW; and who is board certified in advanced practice psychiatric and mental health nursing;

(42) "Psychiatrist" means a person having a license as a physician and surgeon in this state who has in addition completed three years of graduate training in psychiatry in a program approved by the American medical association or the American osteopathic association and is certified or eligible to be certified by the American board of psychiatry and neurology;

(43) "Psychologist" means a person who has been licensed as a psychologist pursuant to chapter 18.83 RCW;

(44) "Public agency" means any evaluation and treatment facility or institution, secure detoxification facility, approved substance use disorder treatment program, or hospital which is conducted for, or includes a department or ward conducted for, the care and treatment of persons with mental illness, substance use disorders, or both mental illness and substance use disorders, if the agency is operated directly by federal, state, county, or municipal government, or a combination of such governments;

(45) "Registration records" include all the records of the department, behavioral health organizations, treatment facilities, and other persons providing services to the department, county departments, or facilities which identify persons who are receiving or who at any time have received services for mental illness or substance use disorders;

(46) "Release" means legal termination of the commitment under the provisions of this chapter;

(47) "Resource management services" has the meaning given in chapter 71.24 RCW;

(48) "Secretary" means the secretary of the department of social and health services, or his or her designee;

(49) "Secure detoxification facility" means a facility operated by either a public or private agency or by the program of an agency that:

(a) Provides for intoxicated persons:

(i) Evaluation and assessment, provided by certified chemical dependency professionals;

(ii) Acute or subacute detoxification services; and

(iii) Discharge assistance provided by certified chemical dependency professionals, including facilitating transitions to appropriate voluntary or involuntary inpatient services or to less restrictive alternatives as appropriate for the individual;

(b) Includes security measures sufficient to protect the patients, staff, and community; and

(c) Is certified as such by the department;

(50) "Serious violent offense" has the same meaning as provided in RCW 9.94A.030;

(51) "Social worker" means a person with a master's or further advanced degree from a social work educational program accredited and approved as provided in RCW 18.320.010;

(52) "Substance use disorder" means a cluster of cognitive, behavioral, and physiological symptoms indicating that an individual continues using the substance despite significant substance-related problems. The diagnosis of a substance use disorder is based on a pathological pattern of behaviors related to the use of the substances;

(53) "Therapeutic court personnel" means the staff of a mental health court or other therapeutic court which has jurisdiction over defendants who are dually diagnosed with mental disorders, including court personnel, probation officers, a court monitor, prosecuting attorney, or defense counsel acting within the scope of therapeutic court duties;

(54) "Treatment records" include registration and all other records concerning persons who are receiving or who at any time have received services for mental illness, which are maintained by the department, by behavioral health organizations and their staffs, and by treatment facilities. Treatment records include mental health information contained in a medical bill including but not limited to mental health drugs, a mental health diagnosis, provider name, and dates of service stemming from a medical service. Treatment records do not include notes or records maintained for personal use by a person providing treatment services for the department, behavioral health organizations, or a treatment facility if the notes or records are not available to others;

(55) "Triage facility" means a short-term facility or a portion of a facility licensed by the department of health and certified by the department of social and health services under RCW 71.24.035, which is designed as a facility to assess and stabilize an individual or determine the need for involuntary commitment of an individual, and must meet department of health residential treatment facility standards. A triage facility may be structured as a voluntary or involuntary placement facility;

(56) "Violent act" means behavior that resulted in homicide, attempted suicide, nonfatal injuries, or substantial damage to property.

PART IV

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 402.  A new section is added to chapter 43.185C RCW to read as follows:

(1) It is unlawful for any person to camp upon any private property without the express written consent of the property owner or the owner's agent, and only in such locations where camping may be conducted in accordance with any other applicable state law.

(2) It is unlawful for any person to camp upon any public property except in any location where camping has been expressly allowed by the officer or agency having the control, management, and supervision of the public property in question.

(3) The prohibition in subsections (1) and (2) of this section does not apply to any person:

(a) Sitting or lying down due to a medical emergency or due to a sensory, mental, or physical disability;

(b) Who, as the result of a sensory, mental, or physical disability, utilizes a wheelchair, walker, or similar device to move about a public sidewalk;

(c) Operating or patronizing a business with permission to occupy the sidewalk;

(d) Participating in or attending a parade, festival, performance, rally, demonstration, meeting, or similar event conducted on the public sidewalk pursuant to a special event or other applicable permit;

(e) Sitting on a chair or bench supplied by a public agency or by the abutting private property owner pursuant to the appropriate permit or license;

(f) Sitting within a bus stop zone while waiting for public or private transportation;

(g) Sitting on a privately owned sidewalk fixture with the permission of the owner;

(h) Engaging in constitutionally protected expressive activities that would otherwise be restricted by the limitations in subsections (1) and (2) of this section; or

(i) Who is homeless during a time frame when local homeless shelter space or homeless encampment space is unavailable.

(4) A law enforcement officer may not issue a citation, make an arrest, or otherwise enforce this section against any person unless the officer orally requests or orders the person to refrain from the alleged violation of this section and, if the person fails to comply after receiving the oral request or order, the officer tenders a written request or order to the person warning that if the person fails to comply the person may be cited or arrested for a violation of this section.

(5) For purposes of this section:

(a) "Camp" means to reside or dwell temporarily in a place for the purpose of seeking shelter. "Shelter" includes, without limitation, any recreational vehicle, tent, tarpaulin, lean-to, sleeping bag, bedroll, blankets, or any form of cover or protection from the elements other than clothing. "Reside or dwell" includes, without limitation, conducting such activities as eating, sleeping, or the storage of personal possessions.

(b) "Public property" means any street, alley, sidewalk, parking space, pedestrian or transit mall, bike path, greenway, or any other structure or area encompassed within the public right-of-way; any park, parkway, mountain park, or other recreation facility; or any other grounds, buildings, fixtures, or other facilities owned or leased by the state or by any other public owner, regardless of whether such public property is vacant or occupied and actively used for any public purpose.

(6) A violation of this section is a misdemeanor.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 403.  A new section is added to chapter 43.185C RCW to read as follows:

Any public and privately owned homeless shelter housing homeless individuals must provide a daily report on the number of beds available that must be inputted into a central information system to be created by the department and that may be used by law enforcement officials and local governments searching for homeless shelter space or homeless encampments. The department must maintain the central information system and provide annual reports beginning December 1, 2017, and annually thereafter, to the legislature providing recommendations for improvement to the central information system.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 404.  A new section is added to chapter 43.185C RCW to read as follows:

(1) The state of Washington hereby fully occupies and preempts the entire field of homeless encampment guidelines and regulations, within the boundaries of the state, from setting guidelines for homeless encampments below new state standards of health and safety set by the department for authorized homeless encampments. Any city, town, county, park district, or other local jurisdiction may enact only those laws and ordinances relating to homeless encampments that are specifically authorized by state law and are consistent with this section. Such local ordinances must have the same penalty as provided for by state law. Local laws and ordinances that are inconsistent with, more restrictive than, or exceed the requirements of state law must not be enacted and are preempted and repealed, regardless of the nature of the code, charter, or home rule status of such city, town, county, park district, or local jurisdiction.

(2) An encampment of any kind, not specially authorized by the department, is prohibited. Before authorizing an encampment, the department must provide neighborhood notification and local public hearings must be completed in conjunction with at least one representative from a local neighborhood group, the local city council, and the local county council. Encampments in public parks and other critical areas may be allowed only after a countywide public vote.

(3) By January 1, 2018, the ten largest cities in the state, as determined by the department, must identify on a map all unauthorized campsites in that jurisdiction. That map must be posted on that jurisdiction's web site and the department's web site, to be updated monthly.

(4) By July 1, 2018, the largest cities in each of the state's two most populous counties must authorize as many encampment spaces as necessary to house all of that city's homeless population and enforce unauthorized camping statutes.

(5) By January 1, 2019, all unauthorized encampments must be closed down or that jurisdiction must not receive any state funding for homeless programs.

(6) By July 1, 2019, all cities in the state's most populous county must authorize as many encampment spaces as necessary to house all of the city's homeless population.

(7) By July 1, 2020, the largest city in the state's third most populous county must authorize as many encampment spaces as necessary to house all of that city's homeless population.

(8) By July 1, 2021, any local government that duly enacts laws or ordinances permitting homeless encampments must authorize as many encampment spaces as necessary to house all of that local government's homeless population.

(9) All available encampment spaces must be listed on that local government's web site and be reported daily to the department. A local government that fails to provide adequate homeless encampment spaces must not receive any state funding for homeless programs.

(10) The state auditor must provide an annual certification to the state legislature and state board of health that the department is compliant with the requirements set forth in this section.

PART V

During the past decade, the state has experienced an overall decline in homelessness with some counties meeting or exceeding its reduction goal. However, some counties have not only failed to achieve reductions, but have experienced an increase in the number of homeless families and individuals. Additionally, the number of unsheltered and chronic homeless has increased in areas of the state despite significant federal, state, and local financial resources that have been invested in homelessness assistance. The dichotomy between the resources expended and the results achieved warrants a more frequent review of state and local homelessness strategies and more transparent reporting of expenditures, performance, and outcomes at the local level. Therefore, the legislature intends to review state and local homelessness prevention, assistance, and housing efforts on a more frequent basis to improve the development of cost-effective programs and identification of best practices to expand housing security across the state.

Sec. 502.  RCW 43.185C.030 and 2013 c 200 s 25 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) The department shall annually conduct a Washington homeless census or count consistent with the requirements of RCW 43.185C.180. The census shall make every effort to count all homeless individuals living outdoors, in shelters, and in transitional housing, coordinated, when reasonably feasible, with already existing homeless census projects including those funded in part by the United States department of housing and urban development under the McKinney-Vento homeless assistance program. The department shall determine, in consultation with local governments, the data to be collected. Data on subpopulations and other characteristics of the homeless must, at a minimum, be consistent with United States department of housing and urban development requirements and include the following:

(2) All personal information collected in the census is confidential, and the department and each local government shall take all necessary steps to protect the identity and confidentiality of each person counted.

(3) The department and each local government are prohibited from disclosing any personally identifying information about any homeless individual when there is reason to believe or evidence indicating that the homeless individual is an adult or minor victim of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking or is the parent or guardian of a child victim of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking; or revealing other confidential information regarding HIV/AIDS status, as found in RCW 70.02.220. The department and each local government shall not ask any homeless housing provider to disclose personally identifying information about any homeless individuals when the providers implementing those programs have reason to believe or evidence indicating that those clients are adult or minor victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking or are the parents or guardians of child victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking. Summary data for the provider's facility or program may be substituted.

(4) The Washington homeless census shall be conducted annually on a schedule created by the department. The department shall make summary data by county available to the public each year. This data, and its analysis, shall be included in the department's annual updated homeless housing program strategic plan.

(5) Based on the annual census and provider information from the local government plans, the department shall, by the end of year four, implement an online information and referral system to enable local governments and providers to identify available housing for a homeless person. The department shall work with local governments and their providers to develop a capacity for continuous case management to assist homeless persons.

(6) By the end of year four, the department shall implement an organizational quality management system.

Sec. 503.  RCW 43.185C.040 and 2015 c 69 s 25 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) ((Six months after the first Washington homeless census,)) The department shall, in consultation with the interagency council on homelessness and the affordable housing advisory board, prepare and publish a ((ten-year)) five-year homeless housing strategic plan which ((shall)) must outline statewide goals and performance measures and ((shall)) must be coordinated with the plan for homeless families with children required under RCW 43.63A.650. The state homeless housing strategic plan must be submitted to the legislature by July 1, 2018, and updated every five years thereafter. The plan must include at least the following information:

(3) To guide local governments in preparation of ((their first)) local homeless housing plans due December ((31, 2005)) 1, 2018, and updated every five years thereafter, the department shall issue by ((October 15, 2005)) December 1, 2017, ((temporary)) guidelines consistent with this chapter and including the best available data on each community's homeless population. ((Local governments' ten-year homeless housing plans shall not be substantially inconsistent with the goals and program recommendations of the temporary guidelines and, when amended after 2005, the state strategic plan.

(2))) Program outcomes ((and)), performance measures, and goals ((shall)) must be created by the department ((and reflected in the department's homeless housing strategic plan as well as interim goals)) in collaboration with local governments against which ((state and)) local governments' performance ((may)) will be measured((, including:

(c) By July 1, 2015, reduction of the homeless population statewide and in each county by fifty percent)).

(((3))) (4) The department shall develop a consistent statewide data gathering instrument to monitor the performance of cities and counties receiving grants in order to determine compliance with the terms and conditions set forth in the grant application or required by the department.

(4))) (5) Based on the performance of local homeless housing programs in meeting their ((interim)) goals, on general population changes and on changes in the homeless population recorded in the annual census, the department may ((revise the performance measures and goals of the state homeless housing strategic plan, set goals for years following the initial ten-year period, and recommend)) require changes in local governments' plans to be eligible for state funding appropriated to the department for homeless programs.

Sec. 504.  RCW 43.185C.070 and 2005 c 484 s 11 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) During each calendar year in which moneys from the ((homeless housing)) home security fund account are available for use by the department for the homeless housing grant program, the department shall announce to all Washington counties, participating cities, and through major media throughout the state, a grant application period of at least ninety days' duration. Grants may only be awarded for programs directly related to addressing the root causes of homelessness, preventing homelessness, and collecting data and information on homeless individuals. This announcement will be made as often as the director deems appropriate for proper utilization of resources. The department shall then promptly grant as many applications as will utilize available funds, less appropriate administrative costs of the department as described in RCW 36.22.179.

(2) The department will develop, with advice and input from the affordable housing advisory board established in RCW 43.185B.020, criteria to evaluate grant applications.

(3) The department may approve applications only if they are consistent with the local and state homeless housing program strategic plans. The department may give preference to applications based on some or all of the following criteria:

(a) The total homeless population in the applicant local government service area, as reported by the most recent annual Washington homeless census;

(b) Current local expenditures to provide housing for the homeless and to address the underlying causes of homelessness as described in RCW 43.185C.005;

(c) Local government and private contributions pledged to the program in the form of matching funds, property, infrastructure improvements, and other contributions; and the degree of leveraging of other funds from local government or private sources for the program for which funds are being requested, to include recipient contributions to total project costs, including allied contributions from other sources such as professional, craft and trade services, and lender interest rate subsidies;

(d) Construction projects or rehabilitation that will serve homeless individuals or families for a period of at least twenty-five years;

(e) Projects which demonstrate serving homeless populations with the greatest needs, including projects that serve special needs populations;

(f) The degree to which the applicant project represents a collaboration between local governments, nonprofit community-based organizations, local and state agencies, and the private sector, especially through its integration with the coordinated and comprehensive plan for homeless families with children required under RCW 43.63A.650;

(g) The cooperation of the local government in the annual Washington homeless census project;

(h) The commitment of the local government and any subcontracting local governments, nonprofit organizations, and for-profit entities to employ a diverse workforce;

(i) The extent, if any, that the local homeless population is disproportionate to the revenues collected under this chapter and RCW 36.22.178 and 36.22.179; and

(j) Other elements shown by the applicant to be directly related to the goal and the department's state strategic plan.

Sec. 505.  RCW 43.185C.160 and 2005 c 485 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Each county shall create a homeless housing task force to develop a ((ten-year)) five-year homeless housing plan addressing short-term and long-term housing for homeless persons. The plan is due to the department on December 1, 2018, and must be updated every five years thereafter. The plan must include a local homelessness reduction goal for the county and an implementation plan to achieve the goal over the five-year plan period. The plan must also have a specific and more aggressive goal and implementation plan to reduce youth homelessness in the county that is consistent with state reduction strategies developed by the office of homeless youth prevention and protection programs.

Membership on the task force may include representatives of the counties, cities, towns, housing authorities, civic and faith organizations, schools, community networks, human services providers, law enforcement personnel, criminal justice personnel, including prosecutors, probation officers, and jail administrators, substance abuse treatment providers, mental health care providers, emergency health care providers, businesses, at large representatives of the community, and a homeless or formerly homeless individual.

In lieu of creating a new task force, a local government may designate an existing governmental or nonprofit body which substantially conforms to this section and which includes at least one homeless or formerly homeless individual to serve as its homeless representative. As an alternative to a separate plan, two or more local governments may work in concert to develop and execute a joint homeless housing plan, or to contract with another entity to do so according to the requirements of this chapter. While a local government has the authority to subcontract with other entities, the local government continues to maintain the ultimate responsibility for the homeless housing program within its borders.

A county may decline to participate in the program authorized in this chapter by forwarding to the department a resolution adopted by the county legislative authority stating the intention not to participate. A copy of the resolution shall also be transmitted to the county auditor and treasurer. If a county declines to participate, the department shall create and execute a local homeless housing plan for the county meeting the requirements of this chapter.

(2) In addition to developing a ((ten-year)) five-year homeless housing plan, each task force shall establish guidelines consistent with the statewide homeless housing strategic plan, as needed, for the following:

(a) Emergency shelters;

(b) Short-term housing needs;

(c) Temporary encampments;

(d) Supportive housing for chronically homeless persons; and

(e) Long-term housing.

Guidelines must include, when appropriate, standards for health and safety and notifying the public of proposed facilities to house the homeless.

(3) Each county, including counties exempted from creating a new task force under subsection (1) of this section, shall report to the department ((of community, trade, and economic development)) such information as may be needed to ensure compliance with this chapter, including the annual report required in section 507 of this act.

Sec. 506.  RCW 43.185C.170 and 2006 c 349 s 7 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) The interagency council on homelessness, as defined in RCW 43.185C.010, shall be convened not later than August 31, 2006, and shall meet at least two times each year and report to the appropriate committees of the legislature annually by December 31st on its activities.

(2) The interagency council on homelessness shall work to create greater levels of interagency coordination and to coordinate state agency efforts with the efforts of state and local entities addressing homelessness.

(3) The interagency council on homelessness must respond to all state and local legislative and policy recommendations included in the state and local ending homeless plans. The interagency council must annually present its strategy for addressing the issue raised to the appropriate committees of the legislature and must also include a report on the actions taken to date that address these issues.

(4) The interagency council shall seek to:

(a) Align homeless-related housing and supportive service policies among state agencies;

(b) Identify ways in which providing housing with appropriate services can contribute to cost savings for state agencies;

(c) Identify policies and actions that may contribute to homelessness or interfere with its reduction;

(d) Review and improve strategies for discharge from state institutions that contribute to homelessness;

(e) Recommend policies to either improve practices or align resources, or both, including those policies requested by the affordable housing advisory board or through state and local housing plans; and

(f) Ensure that the housing status of people served by state programs is collected in consistent formats available for analysis.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 507.  A new section is added to chapter 43.185C RCW to read as follows:

(1) By February 1st of each year, the department must provide an update on the state's homeless housing strategic plan and its activities for the prior fiscal year. The report must include, but not be limited to, the following information:

(a) An assessment of the current condition of homelessness in Washington state and the state's performance in meeting the goals in the state homeless housing strategic plan;

(b) A report on the results of the annual homeless point-in-time census conducted statewide under RCW 43.185C.030;

(c) The amount of federal, state, local, and private funds spent on homelessness assistance, categorized by funding source and the following major assistance types:

(i) Emergency shelter;

(ii) Homelessness prevention and rapid rehousing;

(iii) Permanent housing;

(iv) Permanent supportive housing;

(v) Transitional housing;

(vi) Services only; and

(vii) Any other activity in which more than five hundred thousand dollars of category funds were expended;

(d) A report on the expenditures, performance, and outcomes of state funds distributed through the consolidated homeless grant program, including the grant recipient, award amount expended, use of the funds, counties served, and households served;

(e) A report on state and local homelessness document recording fee expenditure by county, including the total amount of fee spending, percentage of total spending from fees, number of people served by major assistance type, and amount of expenditures for private rental payments required in RCW 36.22.179;

(f) A report on the expenditures, performance, and outcomes of the essential needs and housing support program meeting the requirements of RCW 43.185C.220; and

(g) A report on the expenditures, performance, and outcomes of the independent youth housing program meeting the requirements of RCW 43.63A.311.

(2) The report required in subsection (1) of this section must be posted to the department's web site and may include links to updated or revised information contained in the report.

(3) By February 1st of each year, any local government receiving state funds for homelessness assistance or state or local homelessness document recording fees under RCW 36.22.178, 36.22.179, or 36.22.1791 must provide an annual report on the current condition of homelessness in its jurisdiction, its performance in meeting the goals in its local homeless housing plan, and any significant changes made to the plan. The annual report must be posted on the department's web site. Along with each local government annual report, the department must produce and post information on the local government's homelessness spending from all sources by project during the prior state fiscal year in a format similar to the department's report under subsection (1)(c) of this section. If a local government fails to report or provides an inadequate or incomplete report, the department must take corrective action, which may include withholding state funding for homelessness assistance to the local government to enable the department to use such funds to contract with other public or nonprofit entities to provide homelessness assistance within the jurisdiction.

Sec. 508.  RCW 36.22.178 and 2011 c 110 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

The surcharge provided for in this section shall be named the affordable housing for all surcharge.

(1) Except as provided in subsection (3) of this section, a surcharge of ten dollars per instrument shall be charged by the county auditor for each document recorded, which will be in addition to any other charge authorized by law. ((The county may retain up to five percent of these funds collected solely for the collection, administration, and local distribution of these funds. Of the remaining funds,)) Forty percent of the revenue generated through this surcharge will be transmitted monthly to the state treasurer who will deposit the funds into the affordable housing for all account created in RCW 43.185C.190. The department of commerce must use these funds to provide housing and shelter for extremely low-income households, including but not limited to housing for victims of human trafficking and their families and grants for building operation and maintenance costs of housing projects or units within housing projects that are affordable to extremely low-income households with incomes at or below thirty percent of the area median income, and that require a supplement to rent income to cover ongoing operating expenses.

(2) All of the remaining funds generated by this surcharge will be retained by the county and be deposited into a fund that must be used by the county and its cities and towns for eligible housing activities as described in this subsection that serve very low-income households with incomes at or below fifty percent of the area median income. Up to six percent of the funds may be used by the county for the collection and local distribution of these funds and administrative costs related to its homeless housing plan. The portion of the surcharge retained by a county shall be allocated to eligible housing activities that serve extremely low and very low-income households in the county and the cities within a county according to an interlocal agreement between the county and the cities within the county consistent with countywide and local housing needs and policies. A priority must be given to eligible housing activities that serve extremely low-income households with incomes at or below thirty percent of the area median income. Eligible housing activities to be funded by these county funds are limited to:

(a) Acquisition, construction, or rehabilitation of housing projects or units within housing projects that are affordable to very low-income households with incomes at or below fifty percent of the area median income, including units for homeownership, rental units, seasonal and permanent farmworker housing units, units reserved for victims of human trafficking and their families, and single room occupancy units;

(b) Supporting building operation and maintenance costs of housing projects or units within housing projects eligible to receive housing trust funds, that are affordable to very low-income households with incomes at or below fifty percent of the area median income, and that require a supplement to rent income to cover ongoing operating expenses;

(c) Rental assistance vouchers for housing units that are affordable to very low-income households with incomes at or below fifty percent of the area median income, including rental housing vouchers for victims of human trafficking and their families, to be administered by a local public housing authority or other local organization that has an existing rental assistance voucher program, consistent with or similar to the United States department of housing and urban development's section 8 rental assistance voucher program standards; and

(d) Operating costs for emergency shelters and licensed overnight youth shelters.

(3) The surcharge imposed in this section does not apply to assignments or substitutions of previously recorded deeds of trust.

Sec. 509.  RCW 36.22.179 and 2014 c 200 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) In addition to the surcharge authorized in RCW 36.22.178, and except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, an additional surcharge of ten dollars shall be charged by the county auditor for each document recorded, which will be in addition to any other charge allowed by law. From September 1, 2012, through June 30, ((2019)) 2022, the surcharge shall be forty dollars. The funds collected pursuant to this section are to be distributed and used as follows:

(a) The auditor shall ((retain two percent for collection of the fee, and of the remainder shall)) remit sixty percent to the county to be deposited into a fund that must be used by the county and its cities and towns to accomplish the purposes of chapter 484, Laws of 2005, six percent of which may be used by the county for the collection and local distribution of these funds and administrative costs related to its homeless housing plan, and the remainder for programs which directly accomplish the goals of the county's local homeless housing plan, except that for each city in the county which elects as authorized in RCW 43.185C.080 to operate its own local homeless housing program, a percentage of the surcharge assessed under this section equal to the percentage of the city's local portion of the real estate excise tax collected by the county shall be transmitted at least quarterly to the city treasurer, without any deduction for county administrative costs, for use by the city for program costs which directly contribute to the goals of the city's local homeless housing plan; of the funds received by the city, it may use six percent for administrative costs for its homeless housing program.

(b) The auditor shall remit the remaining funds to the state treasurer for deposit in the home security fund account. The department may use twelve and one-half percent of this amount for administration of the program established in RCW 43.185C.020, including the costs of creating the statewide homeless housing strategic plan, measuring performance, providing technical assistance to local governments, and managing the homeless housing grant program. Of the remaining eighty-seven and one-half percent, at least forty-five percent must be set aside for the use of private rental housing payments, and the remainder is to be used by the department to:

(i) Provide housing and shelter for homeless people including, but not limited to: Grants to operate, repair, and staff shelters; grants to operate transitional housing; partial payments for rental assistance; consolidated emergency assistance; overnight youth shelters; grants and vouchers designated for victims of human trafficking and their families; and emergency shelter assistance; and

(ii) Fund the homeless housing grant program.

(2) The surcharge imposed in this section does not apply to (a) assignments or substitutions of previously recorded deeds of trust, (b) documents recording a birth, marriage, divorce, or death, (c) any recorded documents otherwise exempted from a recording fee or additional surcharges under state law, (d) marriage licenses issued by the county auditor, or (e) documents recording a state, county, or city lien or satisfaction of lien.

Sec. 510.  RCW 36.22.1791 and 2011 c 110 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) In addition to the surcharges authorized in RCW 36.22.178 and 36.22.179, and except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, the county auditor shall charge an additional surcharge of eight dollars for each document recorded, which is in addition to any other charge allowed by law. The funds collected under this section are to be distributed and used as follows:

(a) The auditor shall remit ninety percent to the county to be deposited into a fund six percent of which may be used by the county for the collection and local distribution of these funds and administrative costs related to its homeless housing plan, and the remainder for programs that directly accomplish the goals of the county's local homeless housing plan, except that for each city in the county that elects, as authorized in RCW 43.185C.080, to operate its own local homeless housing program, a percentage of the surcharge assessed under this section equal to the percentage of the city's local portion of the real estate excise tax collected by the county must be transmitted at least quarterly to the city treasurer for use by the city for program costs that directly contribute to the goals of the city's local homeless housing plan.

(b) The auditor shall remit the remaining funds to the state treasurer for deposit in the home security fund account. The department may use the funds for administering the program established in RCW 43.185C.020, including the costs of creating and updating the statewide homeless housing strategic plan, measuring performance, providing technical assistance to local governments, and managing the homeless housing grant program. Remaining funds may also be used to:

(i) Provide housing and shelter for homeless people including, but not limited to: Grants to operate, repair, and staff shelters; grants to operate transitional housing; partial payments for rental assistance; consolidated emergency assistance; overnight youth shelters; grants and vouchers designated for victims of human trafficking and their families; and emergency shelter assistance; and

(ii) Fund the homeless housing grant program.

(2) The surcharge imposed in this section does not apply to assignments or substitutions of previously recorded deeds of trust.

Sec. 511.  RCW 43.185C.240 and 2015 c 69 s 26 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) As a means of efficiently and cost-effectively providing housing assistance to very-low income and homeless households:

(a) Any local government that has the authority to issue housing vouchers, directly or through a contractor, using document recording surcharge funds collected pursuant to RCW 36.22.178, 36.22.179, or 36.22.1791 must:

(i)(A) Maintain an interested landlord list, which at a minimum, includes information on rental properties in buildings with fewer than fifty units;

(B) Update the list at least once per quarter;

(C) Distribute the list to agencies providing services to individuals and households receiving housing vouchers;

(D) Ensure that a copy of the list or information for accessing the list online is provided with voucher paperwork; and

(E) Communicate and interact with landlord and tenant associations located within its jurisdiction to facilitate development, maintenance, and distribution of the list to private rental housing landlords. The department must make reasonable efforts to ensure that local providers conduct outreach to private rental housing landlords each calendar quarter regarding opportunities to provide rental housing to the homeless and the availability of funds;

(ii) Using cost-effective methods of communication, convene, on a semiannual or more frequent basis, landlords represented on the interested landlord list and agencies providing services to individuals and households receiving housing vouchers to identify successes, barriers, and process improvements. The local government is not required to reimburse any participants for expenses related to attendance;

(iii) Produce data, limited to document recording fee uses and expenditures, on a ((calendar)) fiscal year basis in consultation with landlords represented on the interested landlord list and agencies providing services to individuals and households receiving housing vouchers, that include the following: Total amount expended from document recording fees; amount expended on, number of households that received, and number of housing vouchers issued in each of the private, public, and nonprofit markets; amount expended on, number of households that received, and number of housing placement payments provided in each of the private, public, and nonprofit markets; amount expended on and number of eviction prevention services provided in the private market; amount expended on and number of other tenant-based rent assistance services provided in the private market; and amount expended on and number of services provided to unaccompanied homeless youth. If these data elements are not readily available, the reporting government may request the department to use the sampling methodology established pursuant to (c)(iii) of this subsection to obtain the data; and

(iv) Annually submit the ((calendar)) fiscal year data to the department ((by October 1st, with preliminary data submitted by October 1, 2012, and full calendar year data submitted beginning October 1, 2013)).

(b) Any local government receiving more than ((three million)) five hundred thousand dollars during the previous ((calendar)) fiscal year from document recording surcharge funds collected pursuant to RCW 36.22.178, 36.22.179, and 36.22.1791, must apply to the Washington state quality award program, or similar Baldrige assessment organization, for an independent assessment of its quality management, accountability, and performance system. The first assessment may be a lite assessment. After submitting an application, a local government is required to reapply at least every two years.

(c) The department must:

(i) Require contractors that provide housing vouchers to distribute the interested landlord list created by the appropriate local government to individuals and households receiving the housing vouchers;

(ii) Convene a stakeholder group by March 1, 2017, consisting of landlords, homeless housing advocates, real estate industry representatives, cities, counties, and the department to meet to discuss long-term funding strategies for homeless housing programs that do not include a surcharge on document recording fees. The stakeholder group must provide a report of its findings to the legislature by December 1, 2017;

(iii) Develop a sampling methodology to obtain data required under this section when a local government or contractor does not have such information readily available. The process for developing the sampling methodology must include providing notification to and the opportunity for public comment by local governments issuing housing vouchers, landlord association representatives, and agencies providing services to individuals and households receiving housing vouchers;

(iv) Develop a report, limited to document recording fee uses and expenditures, on a ((calendar)) fiscal year basis that may include consultation with local governments, landlord association representatives, and agencies providing services to individuals and households receiving housing vouchers, that includes the following: Total amount expended from document recording fees; amount expended on, number of households that received, and number of housing vouchers issued in each of the private, public, and nonprofit markets; amount expended on, number of households that received, and number of housing placement payments provided in each of the private, public, and nonprofit markets; amount expended on and number of eviction prevention services provided in the private market; the total amount of funds set aside for private rental housing payments as required in RCW 36.22.179(1)(b); and amount expended on and number of other tenant-based rent assistance services provided in the private market. The information in the report must include data submitted by local governments and data on all additional document recording fee activities for which the department contracted that were not otherwise reported. The data, samples, and sampling methodology used to develop the report must be made available upon request and for the audits required in this section;

(v) Annually submit the ((calendar)) fiscal year report to the legislature by ((December 15th, with a preliminary report submitted by December 15, 2012, and full calendar year reports submitted beginning December 15, 2013)) February 1st of each year; and

(vi) Work with the Washington state quality award program, local governments, and any other organizations to ensure the appropriate scheduling of assessments for all local governments meeting the criteria described in subsection (1)(b) of this section.

(d) The office of financial management must secure an independent audit of the department's data and expenditures of state funds received under RCW 36.22.179(1)(b) on an annual basis. The independent audit must review a random sample of local governments, contractors, and housing providers that is geographically and demographically diverse. The independent auditor must meet with the department and a landlord representative to review the preliminary audit and provide the department and the landlord representative with the opportunity to include written comments regarding the findings that must be included with the audit. The first audit of the department's data and expenditures will be for calendar year 2014 and is due July 1, 2015. Each audit thereafter will be due July 1st following the department's submission of the report to the legislature. If the independent audit finds that the department has failed to set aside at least forty-five percent of the funds received under RCW 36.22.179(1)(b) after June 12, 2014, for private rental housing payments, the independent auditor must notify the department and the office of financial management of its finding. In addition, the independent auditor must make recommendations to the office of financial management and the legislature on alternative means of distributing the funds to meet the requirements of RCW 36.22.179(1)(b).

(e) The office of financial management must contract with an independent auditor to conduct a performance audit of the programs funded by document recording surcharge funds collected pursuant to RCW 36.22.178, 36.22.179, and 36.22.1791. The audit must provide findings to determine if the funds are being used effectively, efficiently, and for their intended purpose. The audit must review the department's performance in meeting all statutory requirements related to document recording surcharge funds including, but not limited to, the data the department collects, the timeliness and quality of required reports, and whether the data and required reports provide adequate information and accountability for the use of the document recording surcharge funds. The audit must include recommendations for policy and operational improvements to the use of document recording surcharges by counties and the department. The performance audit must be submitted to the legislature by December 1, 2016.

(2) For purposes of this section:

(a) "Housing placement payments" means one-time payments, such as first and last month's rent and move-in costs, funded by document recording surcharges collected pursuant to RCW 36.22.178, 36.22.179, or 36.22.1791 that are made to secure a unit on behalf of a tenant.

(b) "Housing vouchers" means payments, including private rental housing payments, funded by document recording surcharges collected pursuant to RCW 36.22.178, 36.22.179, or 36.22.1791 that are made by a local government or contractor to secure: (i) A rental unit on behalf of an individual tenant; or (ii) a block of units on behalf of multiple tenants.

(c) "Interested landlord list" means a list of landlords who have indicated to a local government or contractor interest in renting to individuals or households receiving a housing voucher funded by document recording surcharges.

(d) "Private rental housing" means housing owned by a private landlord and does not include housing owned by a nonprofit housing entity or government entity.

(3) This section expires June 30, 2019.

PART VI

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