AN ACT Relating to community service; amending RCW 43.150.010, 43.150.040, 43.150.050, and 43.150.060; adding a new section to chapter 43.150 RCW; and creating new sections.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that community pride and citizen participation in volunteer activities can be enhanced by (1) the organization of volunteer activities on a community-wide basis to satisfy goals established by the community and (2) by the state's recognition of communities with especially active and effective volunteer programs.

Sec. 2. Section 1, chapter 11, Laws of 1982 1st ex. sess. and RCW 43.150.010 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) The legislature finds that:

(a) Large numbers of Washington's citizens are actively engaged in voluntary activities that benefit ((~~their~~)) other citizens, their communities, and the entire state;

(b) Volunteers, working on their own and with agencies and organizations, are involved in the development and enhancement of all areas of community service and activity;

(c) The contribution thus made provides the equivalent of hundreds of millions of dollars in services that might otherwise create a need for additional tax collections;

(d) Citizen service engineers a change of heart, resulting in more consciously responsible citizens, an increased capacity for leadership, and a greater sense of collective responsibility;

(e) Instilling in youth a sense of community and an ethic of service to the community is an integral part of the educational process. For example, service learning can motivate the discouraged learner and provide training in skill areas that open future career options;

(f) The state itself, through the programs and services of its agencies as well as through the provisions of law and rule-making, has a substantial impact on ((~~volunteer~~)) citizen service efforts and programs and the state can take a leadership role in bringing government, schools, community organizations, private initiatives, institutions of higher education, and businesses together to intentionally foster ways to encourage citizen service and to coordinate existing part-time and full-time citizen service programs;

((~~(e)~~)) (g) Public and private agencies depend in large measure on the efforts of volunteers for the accomplishment of their missions and actively seek to increase these efforts;

((~~(f)~~)) (h) Business, industry, and labor in Washington state are increasingly interested in opportunities for community service;

((~~(g)~~)) (i) Many needs remain which could and should be met by volunteers working on their own and through local and state-wide organizations, both governmental and private, nonprofit agencies;

((~~(h)~~)) (j) Many Washington citizens have yet to become fully involved in the life of their communities;

((~~(i)~~)) (k) The opportunity exists to encourage greater and more effective involvement of volunteers in the provision of needed community services, and the creativity, idealism, and experience of citizens who serve their communities can be resources for new public policies to address social problems; and

((~~(j)~~)) (l) Planned and coordinated recognition, information, training, and technical assistance for volunteer and service efforts through a state-wide center for voluntary action have been proven to be effective means of multiplying the resources volunteers bring to the needs of their communities.

(2) Therefore, the legislature, in recognition of these findings, enacts the Center for Voluntary Action Act to ensure that the state of Washington makes every appropriate effort to encourage effective involvement of individuals in their communities and of volunteers who supplement the services of private, nonprofit community agencies and organizations, agencies of local government throughout the state, and the state government.

Sec. 3. Section 4, chapter 11, Laws of 1982 1st ex. sess. as amended by section 11, chapter 6, Laws of 1985 and RCW 43.150.040 are each amended to read as follows:

The governor may establish a state-wide center for voluntary action within the department of community development and appoint a coordinator((~~, who may employ such staff as necessary~~)). The director of the department of community development shall appoint at least one additional professional staff person for the center to carry out the purposes of this chapter. The provisions of chapter 41.06 RCW do not apply to the coordinator and the staff.

Sec. 4. Section 5, chapter 11, Laws of 1982 1st ex. sess. as amended by section 301, chapter 206, Laws of 1988 and RCW 43.150.050 are each amended to read as follows:

The center, working in cooperation with individuals, local groups, and organizations throughout the state, may undertake any program or activity for which funds are available which furthers the goals of this chapter. These programs and activities may include, but are not limited to:

(1) Serving as a liaison and a networking resource between community organizations, schools, institutions of higher education, businesses, and government service programs to link volunteers with service opportunities and to coordinate collaborative efforts between these organizations;

(2) Developing a strategic plan to foster citizen service. A strategic plan shall include:

(a) Establishing overall mission and belief statements;

(b) Developing goals and objectives that include expected programmatic outcomes;

(c) Assessing the capabilities and constraints, both internal and external to state government, that may affect plan implementation;

(d) Formulating, evaluating, and selecting strategies; and

(e) Implementing and controlling the plan;

(3) Providing information about programs, activities, and resources of value to volunteers and to organizations operating or planning volunteer programs;

((~~(2)~~)) (4) Developing ways to recognize and reward citizens who serve their communities and the state in both a part-time and full-time capacity and sponsoring recognition events for outstanding individuals ((~~and~~)), organizations, and communities;

((~~(3) Facilitating the involvement of business, industry, government, and labor in community service and betterment;~~

~~(4)~~)) (5) Providing information and training to community leaders for identifying community goals that may be achieved in whole or in part through the activities of volunteers and for organizing volunteer activities to achieve those goals;

(6) Organizing, or assisting in the organization of, training workshops and conferences, and serving as a broker for information resources, technical assistance, and expertise in training and facilitating citizen service;

((~~(5)~~)) (7) Publishing schedules of significant events, lists of published materials, accounts of successful programs and programming techniques, and other information concerning the field of volunteerism, and distributing this information broadly;

((~~(6)~~)) (8) Initiating pilot projects and develop and support models for citizen service which:

(a) Work with the higher education coordinating board to provide service opportunities at every campus for students who wish to serve and incorporate citizen service by students enrolled in institutions of higher education into the students' courses of study on a credit or noncredit basis;

(b) Integrate citizen service by students in public or private schools into the schools' curricula as an experiential learning tool or as an integral part of the school curriculum; and

(9) Actively seeking funding from the federal government and private foundations to initiate, continue, or expand citizen service programs or pilot projects throughout the state;

(10) If funds are made available, administering grant programs to initiate, continue, or expand citizen service programs run by community organizations, schools, institutions of higher education, or government agencies;

(11) Fostering and promoting service-based private initiatives;

(12) Promoting the institutionalization of service components among existing organizations and agencies;

(13) Reviewing the laws and rules of the state of Washington, and proposed changes therein, to determine their impact on the success of volunteer activities and programs, and recommending ((~~such changes as seem appropriate to ensure the achievement of the goals of this chapter~~)) to the governor and the legislature additional policies that encourage and facilitate citizen service throughout the state;

((~~(7)~~)) (14) Providing information about agencies and individuals who are working to prevent the spread of the human immunodeficiency virus, as defined in chapter 70.24 RCW, and to agencies and individuals who are working to provide health and social services to persons with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, as defined in chapter 70.24 RCW; and

(15) Reporting to the legislature and the governor each biennium on the progress of the center, including an assessment of the activities accomplished to meet the goals of the center.

Sec. 5. Section 6, chapter 11, Laws of 1982 1st ex. sess. as last amended by section 39, chapter 505, Laws of 1987 and RCW 43.150.060 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) There is created the Washington state council on voluntary action to assist the governor and the center in the accomplishment of its mission.

(2) ((~~Giving due consideration to geographic representation, the governor shall appoint the members of the council as provided in this section.~~

~~(3)~~)) The governor shall appoint a chair for the council.

((~~(4)~~)) (3) The advisory council shall have ((~~an odd number of~~)) twenty-five members, including its chair, appointed or reappointed for three-year terms((~~, with a total membership of no less than fifteen and no more than twenty-one.~~

~~(5)~~)) as follows:

(a) One representative from each of the following state agencies shall be appointed by the head of the appropriate agency:

(i) The office of the superintendent of public instruction;

(ii) The higher education coordinating board;

(iii) The employment security department; and

(iv) The department of social and health services.

(b) The governor shall appoint a representative of the governor's office;

(c) The speaker of the house of representatives and the president of the senate shall jointly appoint a member of the legislature; and

(d) The governor shall appoint the remaining members of the council, giving due consideration to geographic representation.

(4) Members of the council shall upon request be reimbursed for travel expenses as provided in RCW 43.03.050 and 43.03.060.

((~~(6)~~)) (5) The council and its members shall:

(a) Advise the governor as the governor may request and direct;

(b) Propose, review, and evaluate activities and programs of the center and, to the degree practical, advocate decentralization of the center's activities, facilitate but not require or hinder existing local volunteer services, and not advocate the replacement of needed paid staff with volunteers; and

(c) Represent the governor and the center on such occasions and in such manner as the governor may from time to time provide.

(6) The representatives of state agencies appointed under subsection (3)(a) of this section shall each be assigned to assist in the work of the office for an amount of time not less than two-tenths of a full-time equivalent employee.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. A new section is added to chapter 43.150 RCW to read as follows:

Annually, at least one recognition event sponsored by the center under RCW 43.150.050 shall include achievement awards for communities with particularly active and effective volunteer programs. Communities shall be grouped by population in competing for the awards. Emblems suitable for display on highways signs shall accompany the awards as a means of identifying for motorists the communities so honored.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. 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.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. In view of the expanded activities and responsibilities assigned to the center for voluntary action under the provisions of this act, the council for voluntary action shall consider renaming the center and the council in order to more accurately reflect their expanded mission and shall make a recommendation to the 1991 legislature on whether or not the names should be changed.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. If specific funding for this act, referencing this act by bill number, is not provided by June 30, 1990, in the omnibus appropriations act the amendments to RCW 43.150.040 in section 3 of this act shall be null and void.