S-3698               _______________________________________________

                                                   SENATE BILL NO. 6746

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                               51st Legislature                              1990 Regular Session

By Senators Patrick, Madsen, Patterson, Nelson, Sutherland and Murray

Read first time 1/24/90 and referred to Committee on  Transportation.

AN ACT Relating to disposal of abandoned junk vehicles; and amending RCW 46.55.230.

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

        Sec. 1.  Section 23, chapter 377, Laws of 1985 as amended by section 19, chapter 311, Laws of 1987 and RCW 46.55.230 are each amended to read as follows:

          (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any law enforcement officer having jurisdiction or any person authorized by the director ((may)) shall inspect and ((certify that a vehicle meets the requirements of a)) may authorize the disposal of an abandoned junk vehicle.  The person making the ((certification)) inspection shall record the make and vehicle identification number or license number of the vehicle if available, and shall also ((describe in detail the damage or missing equipment to)) verify that the value of the junk vehicle is equivalent only to the value of the scrap in it.

          (2) The law enforcement officer or department representative shall provide information on the vehicle's registered and legal owner to the landowner.

          (3) Upon receiving information on the vehicle's registered and legal owner, the landowner shall ((obtain a junk vehicle notification form from the department.  The landowner shall send by certified mail, notification)) mail a notice to the registered and legal owners shown on the records of the department.  The notification shall describe the redemption procedure and the right to ((contest the sale of a junk vehicle in a district court hearing)) arrange for the removal of the vehicle.

          (4) If the vehicle remains unclaimed more than fifteen days after the landowner has mailed notification to the registered and legal owner, the landowner may dispose of the vehicle or sign an affidavit of sale to be used as a title document.

          (5) If no information on the vehicle's registered and legal owner is found in the records of the department, the landowner ((shall place a legal notice of custody and sale in a newspaper of general circulation in the county.  The newspaper notice shall include (a) the description of the vehicle; (b) the address of the location of the junk vehicle; (c) the date by which the registered or legal owner must redeem the vehicle; and (d) a telephone number where the landowner can be reached.  If the vehicle remains unclaimed more than twenty days after publication of the notice, the landowner)) may immediately dispose of the vehicle or sign an affidavit of sale to be used as a title document.

          (6) The landowner of the property upon which the junk vehicle is located is entitled to recover from the vehicle's registered owner any costs incurred in the removal of the junk vehicle.

          (7) For the purposes of this section, the term "landowner" includes a legal owner of private property, a person with possession or control of private property, or a public official having jurisdiction over public property.