AN ACT Relating to a governor's commission on children; adding a new chapter to Title 43 RCW; providing an effective date; providing an expiration date; and declaring an emergency.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) There is hereby established the governor's commission on children, referred to in this chapter as the commission. The commission is charged with the responsibility for creating a long-term strategy/plan for the development of an effective, coordinated children's services delivery system that meets the needs of the children in the state.

(2) The commission shall have a maximum of twenty members, including the following:

(a) Eight members of the legislature, including two members from each of the four largest caucuses in the legislature.

(b) One business representative.

(c) A maximum of nine members equally representing children and family service providers from the public sector; the private nonprofit sector; and the private for profit sector, actively engaged in the provision of services in Washington state. In appointing these members, the governor shall consider representation from providers with expertise in children's mental health, health care including prenatal care, adolescent drug and alcohol treatment, education including early childhood education, nonprofit funding sources, child abuse and neglect, child care, dependency, delinquency and the juvenile justice system, family support services, and representatives from minority communities including the migrant worker community, the black community, the native American community, and the Asian community.

(d) Two citizens at large including a recipient of services.

(e) One representative from the department of social and health services management information system responsible for data on children and family services as an ex officio member of the commission.

In addition to the twenty commission members, the governor, the director of revenue, the director of financial management, the director of community development, the superintendent of public instruction, and the assistant secretary of the department of social and health services shall serve as ex officio members of the commission.

(3) The governor shall appoint all members of the commission, except those in subsection (2)(a) of this section who shall be appointed by the chair of their respective caucuses.

(4) The governor shall serve as the chair and shall designate a citizen member to serve as vice-chair of the commission. Members are subject to dismissal by the governor due to the lack of attendance or contribution. The position of a legislative member shall become vacant if the member ceases to be a member of the legislature. Vacancies shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment.

(5) The commission shall include a balanced geographical representation.

(6) The commission shall meet regularly and shall create subcommittees as needed to deal with specific issues and concerns.

(7) Members shall receive no compensation but shall be reimbursed for travel expenses under RCW 43.03.050 and 43.03.060 except legislative members shall be reimbursed under RCW 44.04.120.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. (1) The commission shall develop a long-term plan for the development of an effective, coordinated children's services delivery system that will meet the needs of children in the state. The objective of the plan shall be to (a) define existing needs of children in Washington state, including utilizing existing studies and data sources, (b) identify the kinds of services needed by children and families to meet a minimum standard and level of physical and mental health and safety, (c) identify the current level of services available and gaps or overlapping services, and (d) recommend methods to implement an effective service delivery system. The commission shall submit an initial plan to the appropriate committees of the legislature by January 10, 1988, and shall submit revisions to the plan based on continuing analysis and oversight on implementation on October 1, 1988.

(2) The commission in its plan shall include but not be limited to addressing the following issues:

(a) The development of a management system for providing necessary services which includes maximizing the use of effective existing services and programs through management and operational coordination among service providers;

(b) The identification of ways to reduce overlapping services and to fill in service gaps through shared service provisions;

(c) Methods to increase the effectiveness, participation, and communication among city, county, state, private nonprofit, and private for profit funding sources in defining and funding the service delivery system; and

(d) The identification and recommendation of state funding priorities for prevention and early intervention activities to meet the needs of children and families.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. The commission has the following responsibilities and powers:

(1) To secure and encourage substantial private sector, community, and citizen support in the analysis of children's needs and existing service system, and in the development of specific recommendations for the improvement of that system;

(2) To identify and analyze key service program areas to determine the need for expansion of services;

(3) To propose an appropriate state role in the provision of services to children and families;

(4) To utilize and examine existing evaluations of programs and services within the state as to consistency and coordination in the protection and treatment of children and long-term benefits to children of these efforts, as well as reviewing those program areas that have not been recently evaluated for their effect in prevention of children's problems;

(5) To propose, along with other state, local, and private groups, new methods to increase public and private partnerships in service provision;

(6) To develop a long-term children's services strategy based on consensus of goals and principles, and in-depth analysis of the needs of children and the services available, existing public and private funding sources, and the development of new funding sources;

(7) To study the key components of the children's services delivery system as they relate to the long-term development strategy including, but not limited to, prevention, education and training, physical health care, mental health care and counseling for abuse and neglect, child care, substance abuse intervention and treatment, out-of-home placement services, juvenile justice intervention and placement programs, and family intervention programs including parent education and family counseling;

(8) To review the various service delivery systems and policy change recommendations made by other agencies or organizations and recommend to the legislature those strategies, policies, and programs it considers to be in the best interest of the children of the state;

(9) To make specific recommendations for the establishment of public-private cooperative efforts in children's services delivery and state-local cooperative efforts, including but not limited to the need for establishing formal working relationships, whether by contract or otherwise, for the purposes of engaging in joint, cooperative delivery of children's services;

(10) To cooperate with and secure the cooperation of any department, agency, or instrumentality in state, county, and city government, and other associations affected by or concerned with the business of the commission; and

(11) To accept gifts and grants upon such terms as the commission may consider proper.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. The governor and the legislature may provide staff and facilities as may be reasonably required to assist the commission in carrying out its duties and responsibilities.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. The commission shall implement this chapter only to the extent that funds are available.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. The commission shall be dissolved and this chapter shall expire on November 1, 1988, after presentation of the final report evaluating the implementation of the children's service delivery system to the legislature unless significant need for its continuation is demonstrated and the legislature acts to extend its operation.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. Sections 1 through 6 of this act shall constitute a new chapter in Title 43 RCW.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. 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 July 1, 1987.