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SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL NO. 1952
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AS AMENDED BY THE SENATE
C 078 L 88
State of Washington 50th Legislature 1988 Regular Session
By House Committee on Trade & Economic Development (originally sponsored by Representatives Pruitt, Vekich, Heavey, Holm, Sanders and Doty)
Read first time 2/5/88.
AN ACT Relating to the conservation corps; and amending RCW 43.220.070.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
Sec. 1. Section 48, chapter 266, Laws of 1986 and RCW 43.220.070 are each amended to read as follows:
(1) Conservation corps members shall be unemployed residents of the state between eighteen and twenty-five years of age at the time of enrollment who are citizens or lawful permanent residents of the United States. The age requirements may be waived for corps leaders and specialists with special leadership or occupational skills; such members shall be given special responsibility for providing leadership, character development, and sense of community responsibility to the corps members, groups, and work crews to which they are assigned. The upper age requirement may be waived for residents who have a sensory or mental handicap. Special effort shall be made to recruit minority and disadvantaged youth who meet selection criteria of the conservation corps. Preference shall be given to youths residing in areas, both urban and rural, in which there exists substantial unemployment exceeding the state average unemployment rate.
(2) Corps members shall not be considered state employees. Other provisions of law relating to civil service, hours of work, rate of compensation, sick leave, unemployment compensation, state retirement plans, and vacation leave do not apply to the Washington conservation corps except for the crew leaders, who shall be project employees, and the administrative and supervisory personnel.
(3) Enrollment shall be for a period of six months which may be extended for an additional six months by mutual agreement of the corps and the corps member. Corps members shall be reimbursed at the minimum wage rate established by federal law: PROVIDED, That if agencies elect to run a residential program, the appropriate costs for room and board shall be deducted from the corps member's paycheck as provided in chapter 43.220 RCW.
(4) Corps members are to be available at all times for emergency response services coordinated through the department of community development or other public agency. Duties may include sandbagging and flood cleanup, search and rescue, and other functions in response to emergencies.