Sec. 1. RCW 7.105.352 and 2023 c 308 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:Order in scannable electronic format—Hope card program. (Effective January 1, 2025.)
(1) The administrative office of the courts shall develop a program for the issuance of protection order hope cards in scannable electronic format by superior and district courts. The administrative office of the courts shall develop and implement the program in collaboration with the Washington state superior court judges' association, the Washington state district and municipal court judges' association, the Washington state association of county clerks, association of Washington superior court administrators, district and municipal court management association, and the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs, and shall make reasonably feasible efforts to solicit and incorporate input from appropriate stakeholder groups, including representatives from victim advocacy groups, the Washington supreme court gender and justice commission, representatives from gender-based violence survivor advocacy and legal assistance organizations, law enforcement agencies, and the department of licensing. The card design and program implementation must use a trauma-informed approach and prioritize protection from harm.
(2)(a) A Where the clerk of the court or administrative office of the courts providing a hope card has the means and information available, a hope card must be in a scannable electronic format including, but not limited to, a barcode, data matrix code, or a quick response code, and must contain, without limitations, the following:
(i) The restrained person's name, and date of birth, sex, race, eye color, hair color, height, weight, and other distinguishing features;
(ii) The protected person's or persons' name and date of birth and the names and dates of birth of any minor children protected under the order; and
(iii) Information about the protection order including, but not limited to, the issuing court, the case number, and the date of issuance and date of expiration of the order, and the relevant details of the order, including any locations from which the person is restrained; and
(iv) To reduce risk of lethality and other harm for the petitioner, any other protected persons, and responding law enforcement officers, information about any orders prohibiting the restrained person from accessing, having custody or control, possessing, purchasing, receiving, or attempting to purchase or receive any firearms, other dangerous weapons, or concealed pistol license, including any orders to surrender and prohibit weapons or extreme risk protection orders. The information shall include, but is not limited to, the issuing court, case number, date of issuance, date of expiration, and status of compliance for each order.
(b) If feasible, Where the clerk of the court or administrative office of the courts providing a hope card has the means and information available, the information stored in a scannable electronic format and accessible through a barcode, data matrix code, or a quick response code must include a digital record of the protection order as entered and provide access to the entire case history, including the petition for protection order, petition attachments, petitioner statement, declaration, temporary order, hearing notice, and protections and restraints ordered, including firearm prohibitions, proof of service, proof of compliance with any order to relinquish firearms, and any violations of the order.
(3) Commencing on January 1, 2025, a person who has been issued a valid full protection order may request a hope card from the clerk of the issuing court at the time the order is entered or, so that there is not a waiting period to receive the card, there are not additional steps the petitioner must later take, and so that the petitioner may be assisted by an interpreter if one was assisting the petitioner at the hearing. After the time the order is entered, a hope card may be requested at any time prior to the expiration of the order from the administrative office of the courts.
(4) A person requesting a hope card may not be charged a fee for the issuance of an original and one duplicate a hope card.
(5) A hope card has the same effect as the underlying protection order.
(6) For the purposes of this section, "full protection order" means has the meaning defined in RCW 7.105.010, and includes a domestic violence protection order, a sexual assault protection order, a stalking protection order, a vulnerable adult protection order, or an antiharassment protection order, or an extreme risk protection order, as defined in this chapter.
2023 c 308 s 2.
Findings—2023 c 308: "The legislature finds that:(1) Washington state has been a national leader in adopting legal protections to prevent and respond to abuse, violence, harassment, stalking, neglect, and other threatening behaviors, through the enactment of different types of civil protection orders, which are intended to provide an efficient means to obtain protection against perpetrators of these harms. Protection orders are essential tools that can increase safety for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, abuse of vulnerable adults, and unlawful harassment, by empowering them to obtain immediate protection for themselves without having to rely on the criminal legal system. From 2018 through 2021, more than 83,000 full protection order cases were filed in Washington courts, with domestic violence protection order cases making up nearly 58 percent of that total.(2) Washingtonians who receive protection orders, however, are often confronted by a difficult choice—always carry a paper copy of the order with them, an inconvenient option that could result in the document being damaged or lost, or risk not having access to proper documentation should assistance from law enforcement or emergency services become necessary.(3) Numerous other states including Oregon, Idaho, and Montana have successfully implemented a solution by establishing hope card programs. Hope cards are durable, laminated cards, similar in construction to a driver's license, that contain the vital information about a protection order that first responders need to quickly verify its existence.(4) Establishing a hope card program in Washington will not only relieve protection order recipients of an unnecessary source of frustration and stress, but also increase the effectiveness of these crucial sources of safety and security for thousands of Washingtonians." [2023 c 308 s 1.]
Effective date—2023 c 308: "This act takes effect January 1, 2025." [2023 c 308 s 3.]