AN ACT Relating to the homeless; adding a new chapter to Title 70 RCW; making an appropriation; and declaring an emergency.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that the homeless population in the state has reached crisis proportions; that over fifty thousand persons were provided shelter through homeless assistance programs in the state; that the problems of the homeless exist in rural and urban areas of the state; that the number of homeless due to mental illness and drug and alcohol addiction has increased; that homelessness caused by job loss is an increasing segment of the homeless population; that existing federal, state, and local programs and activities for homeless individuals are sometimes provided in an uncoordinated manner, and that the provision of existing programs and activities in a coordinated manner would be a benefit to the homeless population.

The legislature further finds that the provision of services to homeless individuals would be enhanced if federal, state, and local resources were coordinated in an effective manner; that programs to assist persons who have become homeless due to loss of employment have prior job skills and are not hampered by debilitating addictions; that this group of homeless have the greatest potential to become self-sustaining members of our society; that by providing existing federal, state, and local services in a coordinated, comprehensive manner this segment of the homeless population could once again become self-sustaining members of society; and that access to existing federal resources for program development to assist homeless individuals would increase if technical assistance and grants were available to local service providers to be used as local matching funds.

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

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

(2) "Director" means the director of community development.

(3) "Advisory committee" means the state advisory committee on the homeless.

(4) "Nonprofit organization" means a public housing authority created under RCW 35.82.030 or a not-for-profit corporation as defined in RCW 24.03.005.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. (1) The state advisory committee on the homeless is hereby created to consist of sixteen members, or their designees, as follows:

(a) The director of community development, the secretary of social and health services, the director of employment security, the director of veterans affairs, the director of general administration, the executive director of the state board for community colleges, the director of the office of financial management, and the superintendent of public instruction; and

(b) Eight representatives appointed by the governor from the public and private sector that represent emergency shelter, transitional housing, and support services to the homeless.

(2) The governor shall, within thirty days of the effective date of this section, appoint members of the advisory committee. In making appointments, the governor shall consider obtaining a geographic distribution and balance throughout the state. The first meeting of the advisory committee shall occur within forty-five days of the effective date of this section.

(3) The director of community development shall serve as chairperson of the advisory committee.

(4) The department shall provide the necessary administrative and clerical assistance to the advisory committee for the purposes of carrying out its powers and duties.

(5) Members of the advisory committee shall be reimbursed for travel expenses under RCW 43.03.050 and 43.03.060.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. The advisory committee shall provide information and advice to the department so that the department can conduct a comprehensive examination of the issue of federal, state, and local services to homeless individuals. In conducting the examination, the department in consultation with the department of employment security shall:

(1) Review existing federal, state, and local activities and programs to assist homeless individuals;

(2) Study the need for a coordinated approach for services to assist homeless individuals within the state;

(3) Review data on the extent of the homeless population within the state of Washington with attention to the identification of unduplicated caseload levels; and

(4) Monitor and evaluate programs and activities by federal, state, and local agencies to assist homeless individuals.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. The department, based on its consultations with the advisory committee and on its review and evaluation of the collected data, shall:

(1) Recommend to the governor and appropriate state agencies such immediate actions as may be necessary to reduce duplication among programs and activities by state agencies to assist homeless individuals;

(2) Produce a report, for the governor and the appropriate legislative committees, on the extent and nature of homelessness in Washington state and recommend specific actions to be undertaken by the public and private sectors to address the problems of the homeless. The advisory committee shall produce a final report by December 1, 1988;

(3) Advise the governor and the legislature on critical issues which confront the homeless within the state and on proposed legislation pertaining to homeless programs and activities; and

(4) Recommend to the governor and the appropriate legislative committees a method for allocating state funds currently appropriated to the department that would best match resources to the needs of the homeless as identified in the advisory committee report. To the extent this new method results in funds being reprogrammed from current allocations to areas of highest need, recommendations on how to best match these funds to available federal funds shall be provided.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. The advisory committee on the homeless shall cease to exist on June 30, 1991, unless extended by law for an additional fixed period of time.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. The department may receive such gifts, grants, and endowments from public or private sources as may be made from time to time, in trust or otherwise, for the use and benefit of the purposes of this chapter and expend the same or any income therefrom according to the terms of the gifts, grants, or endowments.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. This act may be known and cited as the homeless self-sufficiency act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. The sum of fifty thousand dollars, or so much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated from the general fund to the department of community development for the biennium ending June 30, 1989, to carry out the purposes of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 10. Sections 1 through 8 of this act shall constitute a new chapter in Title 70 RCW.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 11. This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, and safety, the support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and shall take effect immediately.