HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                      Olympia, Washington

Bill Analysis      Bill No.  HB 1197

Establishing residency requirements

for elections

Brief Title                              Hearing Date: 1/29/99

Reps. Pennington and Hurst                Staff:  Steve Lundin

Sponsor(s)                          State Government Committee

                                              Phone:  786-7127

BACKGROUND:

1. Residency requirements to file and hold office.

The standard requirement for a person to file a declaration and affidavit of candidacy for an elective office is that the person must, at the time of filing, possess the qualifications to be elected to the office.  For most elective offices this means that the person must be a registered voter in the geographic area represented by the office that for which the declaration and affidavit is filed.

Additional residency requirements do not exist for a person to be a candidate for most elected offices.  However, a person is not eligible to hold an elective office of a code city unless he or she is a registered voter of the city at the time of filing a declaration and affidavit of candidacy and has been a resident of the code city for at period of at least one year preceding election to office.  The state constitution requires that candidates for the temporary office of city freeholder must have been residents of the city for a period of at least two years prior to being elected and that candidates for the temporary office of county freeholder must have been residents of the county for a period of at least five years prior to being elected.

A person may run for, and hold office as a, municipal court judge who resides in the county in which the city is located.

2. Law enforcement powers.

The sheriff, deputy sheriffs, the police chief, police officers, town marshals, and deputy town marshals are authorized to enforce criminal laws within their jurisdictions.

SUMMARY:

A person may not file a declaration of candidacy for an office, and may not hold an elective office, unless he or she has been a properly registered voter of the geographic area represented by the office for at least one year before the date of filing the declaration of candidacy.  These requirements do not apply to municipal court judges.

For purposes registering and voting, the definition of the term Aresidency@ is expanded to include domicile, as well as abode.

The more complete term of "declaration and affidavit of candidacy" is used in lieu of the term "declaration or candidacy" in a statute providing for election-related crimes.

It is clarified that regular law enforcement officers of a jurisdiction are responsible for investigating alleged crimes.

FISCAL NOTE:  Not requested.

EFFECTIVE DATE:  Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.