S-0809.2  _______________________________________________

 

                         SENATE BILL 5652

          _______________________________________________

 

State of Washington      54th Legislature     1995 Regular Session

 

By Senators Gaspard, McDonald, Smith, Quigley, Wojahn, Hargrove, Heavey, Winsley, Sheldon, Fraser, Loveland, Fairley, Oke, McAuliffe, Spanel, Kohl, Franklin, Drew, Haugen, Owen, Bauer, Snyder, Deccio and Rasmussen

 

Read first time 01/30/95.  Referred to Committee on Health & Long‑Term Care.

 

Temporarily prohibiting public assistance payments for willful violators of public assistance eligibility provisions.



    AN ACT Relating to welfare fraud; amending RCW 74.08.290; and creating a new section.

 

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

 

    NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1.  Welfare fraud damages the state's ability to use its limited resources to help those who legitimately qualify for assistance.  In addition, it affects the credibility and integrity of the system, promoting disdain for the law.

    Persons convicted of committing such fraud should be barred, for a period of time, from receiving additional public assistance.

 

    Sec. 2.  RCW 74.08.290 and 1959 c 26 s 74.08.290 are each amended to read as follows:

    The department is hereby authorized to suspend temporarily the public assistance granted to any person for any period during which such person is not in need thereof.

    If a recipient is convicted of any crime or offense, and punished by imprisonment, no payment shall be made during the period of imprisonment.

    If a recipient is convicted of unlawful practices under RCW 74.08.331, no payment shall be made for a period to be determined by the court, but in no event less than six months.  This suspension of public assistance shall apply regardless of whether the recipient is subject to complete or partial confinement upon conviction, or incurs some lesser penalty.

 


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