H-3921              _______________________________________________

                                                   HOUSE BILL NO. 1389

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                              50th Legislature                              1988 Regular Session

By Representatives Nutley, J. Williams, Leonard, Sanders, Wineberry, Heavey, Anderson, Jacobsen, Valle, Nelson, Todd, Lux, Unsoeld and Ferguson

Read first time 1/15/88 and referred to Committee on Housing. Referred to Ways & Means 1/20/88.

AN ACT Relating to the federal emergency management agency's emergency food and shelter program; adding a new chapter to Title 43 RCW; making appropriations; and providing an expiration date.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.     The legislature finds that the federal emergency management agency's emergency food and shelter program assists poor and needy persons in the state of Washington by distributing funds to local public and private organizations for the purpose of delivering emergency food and shelter to those persons.  The legislature finds that there exists an annual gap of approximately three months beginning with the federal fiscal year in November.  This gap is the period of time between when the grants are approved and when the funds are actually distributed, and occurs during the winter months when the need is greatest.

          The legislature also finds that the state of Washington can assist the poor and needy with little risk to state funds by lending funds to fill this gap and being repaid when the federal funds are distributed.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.     Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter.

          (1) "Account" means the emergency food and shelter program revolving loan account created pursuant to section 3 of this act.

          (2) "Department" means the department of community development.

          (3) "Recipient" means a county, city, town, administrative organization, or local public agency or board that accounts for or distributes funds for the emergency food and shelter program.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3.     The emergency food and shelter program revolving loan account is hereby established in the custody of the state treasurer.  Moneys in this account are not subject to legislative appropriation.  The purpose of this account is to provide loans according  to the provisions of this chapter.  The account shall include appropriations, loan repayments, and any other money made available to the state for the purposes of this chapter.  There shall be no interest required of recipients of loans.  All interest earned by the account shall go to the general fund.  At the time the account is discontinued, if ever, the moneys in the account shall go to the general fund.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4.     Subject to money available in the account, the department shall make loans to recipients for the purpose of providing food and shelter to the poor and needy from November through March of the next year.  The recipient shall be approved to receive grants or moneys under the federal emergency management agency's emergency food and shelter program prior to the department making the loan to the recipient.  The loan from the department to the recipient shall be repaid to the department from the federal grant or moneys within ten days of the receipt by the recipient of the federal grant or moneys.  In making the loans, the department shall consider, but is not limited to consideration of, the following:

          (1) The stability of the recipient and the recipient's ability to repay the loan to the department; and

          (2) The need of the requesting recipient relative to the needs of other requesting recipients throughout the state, including a fair allocation of the funds.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5.     The department shall adopt rules for the administration and implementation of this chapter.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6.     Sections 1 through 5 of this act shall constitute a new chapter in Title 43 RCW.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7.     This act shall expire July 1, 1991.  The department shall use all legal means reasonably available to collect the loans in full, and shall continue to collect repayments on the loans after July 1, 1991.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8.     (1) The sum of two hundred fifty thousand dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated for the biennium ending June 30, 1989, from the general fund to the department of community development for the purposes of this act.

          (2) The sum of fifty thousand dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated for the biennium ending June 30, 1989, from the general fund to the department of community development to be used for initiating and administering this chapter.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9.     If any provision of this act or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the act or the application of the provision to other persons or circumstances is not affected.