BILL REQ. #:  H-4042.1 

Prefiled 01/04/08. Read first time 01/14/08.   Referred to Committee on Public Safety & Emergency Preparedness.

     AN ACT Relating to providing funding for a patrol vessel for public protection and emergencies; adding a new section to chapter 36.28 RCW; creating new sections; and making an appropriation.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   The legislature finds that the Island county sheriff's department and the Island county department of emergency management work in conjunction with the Washington state emergency management division of the military department as well as the counties of Snohomish, Skagit, Whatcom, and San Juan to provide surveillance and emergency management services on Puget Sound. The cooperativeness of these entities help in planning and coordinating actions for the mitigation, response to, and recovery from natural and artificially created emergencies and disasters.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   A new section is added to chapter 36.28 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) Island county shall provide a patrol vessel for coastal defense duties.
     (2) The patrol vessel shall be used to aid in providing border protection, antismuggling, antipiracy, fisheries patrol, surveillance, aiding in natural and artificially created emergencies and disasters, law enforcement, and other such public protection as needed for the waters of Puget Sound.
     (3) For the purposes of this section, Puget Sound is considered as extending north as far as the Canadian border and west as far as Port Angeles.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   The sum of five hundred thousand dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated for the biennium ending June 30, 2009, from the general fund to the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs for the purposes of section 2 of this act.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 4   If specific funding for the purposes of this act, referencing this act by bill or chapter number, is not provided by June 30, 2009, in the omnibus appropriations act, this act is null and void.