BP BHEAD INT S [atlas:bill]

AN ACT Relating to protection of persons placed in state-operated or state-funded boarding homes; creating new sections; and declaring an emergency.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that the placement of adults in state-operated or state-funded boarding homes must be done in such a manner as to protect persons who are vulnerable to sexual victimization from adults who are sexually aggressive. To achieve this purpose, the legislature intends that the department of social and health services develop a policy for assessing sexual aggressiveness and vulnerability to sexual victimization of persons who are placed in state-operated or state-funded boarding homes.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. (1) The department of social and health services shall implement a policy for protecting persons placed in state-operated or state-funded boarding homes who are vulnerable to sexual victimization by other adults placed in those facilities who are sexually aggressive. The policy shall include, at a minimum, the following elements:

(a) Development and use of an assessment process for identifying adults, prior to placement, who present a moderate or high risk of sexually aggressive behavior for the purposes of this section. The assessment process need not require that every person who is adjudicated or convicted of a sex offense as defined in RCW 9.94A.030 be determined to be sexually aggressive, nor shall a sex offense adjudication or conviction be required in order to determine that a person is sexually aggressive. Instead, the assessment process shall consider the individual circumstances of the person, including his or her age, physical size, sexual abuse history, mental and emotional condition, and other factors relevant to sexual aggressiveness;

(b) Development and use of an assessment process for identifying persons, prior to placement, who may be vulnerable to victimization by adults identified under (a) of this subsection as presenting a moderate or high risk of sexually aggressive behavior. The assessment process shall consider the individual circumstances of the person, including his or her age, physical size, sexual abuse history, mental and emotional condition, and other factors relevant to vulnerability;

(c) Development and use of placement criteria to avoid assigning adults who present a moderate or high risk of sexually aggressive behavior to the same sleeping quarters as persons assessed as vulnerable to sexual victimization, except that they may be assigned to the same multiple-person sleeping quarters if those sleeping quarters are regularly monitored by visual surveillance equipment or staff checks;

(d) Development and use of procedures for minimizing, within available funds, unsupervised contact in state-operated or state-funded boarding homes between adults presenting moderate to high risk of sexually aggressive behavior and persons assessed as vulnerable to sexual victimization. The procedures shall include taking reasonable steps to prohibit any person placed in a state-operated or state-funded boarding home who presents a moderate to high risk of sexually aggressive behavior from entering any sleeping quarters other than the one to which the person is assigned, unless accompanied by an authorized adult, and increased twenty-four hour supervision of sexually aggressive adults.

(2) For the purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings:

(a) "Sleeping quarters" means the bedrooms or other rooms within a boarding home designated for sleeping.

(b) "Unsupervised contact" means contact occurring outside the sight or hearing of a responsible adult for more than a reasonable period of time under the circumstances.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. The department of social and health services shall report to the legislature by December 1, 1999, on the following: (1) Development of the assessment process for identifying adults who present a moderate to high risk of sexually aggressive behavior for the purposes of sections 1 through 6 of this act; (2) development of the assessment process for determining when a person may be vulnerable to victimization by an adult who presents a moderate to high risk of sexually aggressive behavior for the purposes of sections 1 through 6 of this act; and (3) development of the placement criteria and procedures required under section 2 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. The policy developed under section 2 of this act shall be implemented within the department of social and health services by January 1, 2000.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. The department of social and health services shall provide an evaluation of the implementation of sections 1 through 6 of this act to the legislature by December 1, 2000. The evaluation shall identify: (1) The number of adults assessed as presenting a moderate to high risk of sexually aggressive behavior; (2) the number of adults assessed as being vulnerable to victimization; (3) the effectiveness of avoiding assigning adults who present a moderate or high risk of sexually aggressive behavior to the same sleeping quarters as adults assessed as being vulnerable to sexual victimization by utilizing the assessment and placement process set forth in section 2 of this act; (4) the effectiveness of minimizing, within available funds, unsupervised contact between adults who present a moderate or high risk of sexually aggressive behavior and adults assessed as being vulnerable to sexual victimization utilizing the procedures set forth in section 2 of this act; and (5) the number of adults identified as moderate to high risk of sexually aggressive behavior who were placed in state-operated or state-funded boarding homes with an adult who has been identified as sexually vulnerable. The department shall identify the resources necessary to provide separate placements for persons identified in this subsection and shall identify alternative administrative processes for managing the placement of these persons.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. For each person placed in a state-operated or state-funded boarding home the secretary of social and health services or the secretary's designee shall:

(1) Conduct assessments to determine the risk of: (a) Sexually aggressive behavior as provided in section 2 of this act; and (b) vulnerability to sexually aggressive behavior as provided in section 2 of this act;

(2) Develop placement criteria to avoid assigning persons who present a moderate or high risk of sexually aggressive behavior to the same sleeping quarters as persons assessed as vulnerable to sexual victimization.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. The policy developed under section 6 of this act shall be implemented by July 1, 2000.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and takes effect immediately.