BILL REQ. #:  S-3923.1 

Read first time 01/26/2004.   Referred to Committee on Children & Family Services & Corrections.

     AN ACT Relating to reporting requirements for community action agencies; creating a new section; and providing an expiration date.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   The legislature recognizes the valuable role community action agencies play in delivering human services to low-income families and individuals of all ages in rural and urban areas of the state. The legislature also recognizes that uncoordinated and duplicative electronic reporting requirements are placing extraordinary burdens on community action agencies. To alleviate these burdens, the legislature finds that state agencies must coordinate and standardize the data collection and reporting systems that are used in the administration and distribution of contracts with community action agencies.
     The joint legislative audit and review committee shall study the feasibility of establishing common data collection, grant distribution, accountability requirements, and management standards for state agencies that work with community action agencies. The study shall include the identification and potential uses of common data elements across state agencies. The committee shall review the policies and practices of those state agencies that work with and provide funding to local community action agencies, including, but not limited to, the department of community, trade, and economic development, the department of social and health services, and the employment security department. State agencies that work with community action agencies shall cooperate with the joint legislative audit and review committee in this study.
     The committee shall submit a progress report to the appropriate policy committees of the legislature by September 1, 2004, and a final report to the same committees by September 1, 2005.
     This section expires December 31, 2005.