AN ACT Relating to the Washington task force to promote self-esteem in governmental workers and the public; adding new sections to chapter 43.20A RCW; and making an appropriation.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. Existing law establishes programs and services to better the health and welfare of the people of this state. Each year the legislature and the governor support hundreds of programs and appropriate billions of dollars trying to prevent, cure, or clean up after, many intractable social problems including, but not limited to:

(1) Crime and violence;

(2) Alcoholism and drug abuse;

(3) Child and spousal abuse;

(4) Teenage pregnancy;

(5) Chronic welfare dependency;

(6) Children failing to learn and dropping out of school; and

(7) Recidivism.

It is to the benefit of the legislature and the taxpayers of the state to implement cost-effective measures which are preventative in nature and which offer the state the probability of significant cost savings relative to program costs through reduced need for services.

Most individual behavior is largely motivated by self-perception and self-image. Increased self-esteem tends to enable persons to become more confident, creative, productive, and successful which translates into a society which is healthier, safer, more productive, and less costly.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. To these ends the legislature mandates the secretary of the department of social and health services to develop the Washington task force to define a state policy which values and promotes self-esteem in all state operations. The task force is directed to seek out and promote the most cost-effective and humane solutions to our social problems, and to seek to discover, address, eradicate, and prevent the root causes of these problems.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. The task force will compile research regarding how healthy self-esteem is nurtured, harmed or reduced, and rehabilitated. The research will seek to discover the relationship between healthy self-esteem, personal and social responsibility, and the social problems identified in section 1 of this act.

The task force will consider how self-esteem is affected by relevant social institutions and practices, including, but not limited to:

(1) Prenatal care and birthing;

(2) Infant and child care;

(3) Parenting and parent education;

(4) Hunger and poverty;

(5) Physical development;

(6) Education;

(7) Family violence, including child and spousal abuse;

(8) Prejudice and discrimination;

(9) Justice and penal systems;

(10) Social service systems;

(11) Dependency-creating government programs;

(12) Media and advertising; and

(13) Institutionalized religion.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. The task force will survey government and other public agencies and institutions to determine whether the manner in which people are treated as service is provided tends to dehumanize clients and adversely affect their healthy self-esteem.

The task force will conduct a survey of successful, model self-esteem programs in Washington state and which have as their goal, the development of healthy self-esteem or the rehabilitation of healthy self-esteem. The task force will seek to identify policies and programs which support the development of healthy self-esteem and the development of personal and social responsibility. The task force will compile a list of the most effective programs.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. The task force is directed to identify measures to promote and improve self-esteem among governmental workers and the people of the state of Washington. It will be the responsibility of the task force to define the causal relationship of low self-esteem to social problems in individuals, and to promote public and personal awareness and understanding of the knowledge, policies, and programs most likely to be effective in the building of healthy self-esteem as a way of preventing social problems.

The task force will determine ways in which government and its institutions can be more supportive of the development and perpetuation of healthy self-esteem, either internally or externally. A model training program, personnel practices, and other programs for state workers will be developed to enhance their self-esteem, to increase their productivity, and to give them skills for enhancing the self-esteem of state clients.

The task force will identify, explore, enhance, and promote governmental policies, programs, and environments which are most conducive to the development of high self-esteem among clients, and to identify and eliminate policies, programs, and environments within state agencies which are detrimental to the development of high self-esteem.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. The task force will assist local governments and all Washington citizens to reduce many of the social problems in the state by translating information about self-esteem for implementation into existing local government operations.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. The task force will also determine ways in which nongovernmental institutions, including family, social, and religious organizations, can be more supportive of the development and perpetuation of healthy self-esteem. The task force will develop and promote programs which foster self-esteem in citizens of the state.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. (1) The task force to promote self-esteem shall be composed of twenty-five members who are broadly reflective of the general public, including ethnic minorities, women, and persons from varying economic levels. The membership of the task force shall include:

(a) The secretary of the department of social and health services who will serve as chairperson;

(b) The director of the department of corrections;

(d) The director of the department of personnel;

(e) The director of the higher education personnel board;

(f) The commissioner for the employment security department;

(g) The executive secretary of the human rights commission;

(h) The governor; and

(i) Two members of the house of representatives and two members of the senate, or individuals designated as their representatives.

(2) Other members will be appointed by the secretary of the department of social and health services and include representatives from the following:

(a) Law enforcement;

(b) Health care;

(d) Education;

(e) Religion;

(f) Organizational development;

(g) Mental health counseling;

(h) Media;

(i) Community-based service organizations;

(j) Juvenile justice; and

(k) An agency advocating for children.

(3) The task force will work closely and cooperatively with all state agencies. The task force is authorized to sponsor and conduct public hearings, conferences, training seminars, and other efforts. The task force will collect and disseminate information and issue a report to the legislature in January, 1989, making recommendations for improving the self-esteem of state employees and necessary program changes to implement practices by state agencies which will develop, increase, or rehabilitate the self-esteem of program clients.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. There is appropriated from the general fund to the department of social and health services for the biennium ending June 30, 1989, the sum of one hundred thousand dollars, or so much thereof as may be necessary, to carry out the purposes of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 10. Sections 1 through 8 of this act shall be added to chapter 43.20A RCW.