S-2216.1  _______________________________________________

                    SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 5827

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      55th Legislature     1997 Regular Session

By Senate Committee on Government Operations (originally sponsored by Senators Roach, Haugen and Long)

Read first time 03/05/97.

Collecting the cost of governmental entities using collection agencies.

    AN ACT Relating to fees for judicial and nonjudicial collection of governmental debt by collection agencies; and amending RCW 19.16.500.

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

    Sec. 1.  RCW 19.16.500 and 1982 c 65 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

    (1)(a) Agencies, departments, taxing districts, political subdivisions of the state, counties, and incorporated cities may retain, by written contract, collection agencies licensed under this chapter for the purpose of collecting public debts owed by any person or restitution owed to victims of crime.

(b) Any governmental entity as described in (a) of this subsection using a collection agency may add a reasonable fee, payable by the debtor, to the outstanding debt for the collection agency fee incurred or to be incurred.  The amount to be paid for collection services is left to the agreement of the governmental entity and its collection agency or agencies, but a contingent fee of up to fifty percent of the unpaid debt is reasonable, and a minimum fee of the full amount of the debt up to one hundred dollars per account is reasonable.  Any fee agreement entered into by a governmental entity is presumptively reasonable.

    (2) No debt may be assigned to a collection agency unless (a) there has been an attempt to advise the debtor (i) of the existence of the debt and (ii) that the debt may be assigned to a collection agency for collection if the debt is not paid, and (b) at least thirty days have elapsed from the time ((the)) notice was ((sent)) attempted.

    (3) Collection agencies assigned debts under this section shall have only those remedies and powers which would be available to them as assignees of private creditors.

    (4) For purposes of this section, the term debt shall include fines and other debts, including the fee allowed under subsection (1)(b) of this section.

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