Washington State

House of Representatives

Office of Program Research

BILL

ANALYSIS

State Government & Tribal Affairs Committee

HB 2385

This analysis was prepared by non-partisan legislative staff for the use of legislative members in their deliberations. This analysis is not a part of the legislation nor does it constitute a statement of legislative intent.

Background:

Address Confidentiality Program.

The Address Confidentiality Program (ACP) allows victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking to have an alternative address designated as his or her substitute mailing address. The ACP also allows state and local agencies to comply with requests for public records without disclosing the confidential location of a victim. In order to become a participant in the ACP, a person must submit an application to the Secretary of State (Secretary). The Secretary must approve any application that includes:

a sworn statement from the applicant that he or she is a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking, and fears for his or her safety or the person's children's safety;
a designation of the Secretary as the applicant's agent for purposes of service of process and receipt of mail;
the mailing address and phone number where the applicant can be contacted by the Secretary;
the address that the applicant requests be kept confidential; and
the applicant's signature.

Applicants are certified as program participants for four years, subject to renewal, withdrawal, or invalidation.

The Secretary may not disclose any records in a program participant's file, other than the address designated by the Secretary, except under the following conditions:

if requested by a law enforcement agency, to the law enforcement agency; and the participant's application contains no indication that he or she has been a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking perpetrated by a law enforcement employee; and the request is in accordance with official law enforcement duties and is in writing on official law enforcement letterhead stationery and signed by the law enforcement agency's chief officer, or his or her designee; or
if directed by a court order, to a person identified in the order, and the request is made by a nonlaw enforcement agency or the participant's file indicates he or she has reason to believe he or she is a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking perpetrated by a law enforcement employee.

State Registered Domestic Partnership.

The Secretary is responsible for the registration of domestic partnerships. Upon receipt of a signed, notarized declaration and a filing fee, the Secretary must register the declaration and provide a certificate to each party named on the declaration. The Secretary is responsible for maintaining a record of each declaration and must update the records to reflect changes in the status of state registered domestic partnerships, including changes of address, name, dissolution, or death. The Secretary must provide records of declarations to the state registrar of vital statistics.

Summary of Bill:

The Secretary may not make available for inspection or copying the name and address of an ACP participant contained in state registered domestic partnership applications and records except if that information is requested by a law enforcement agency or directed by a court order, as long as there is no indication that the ACP participant has been a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking perpetrated by a law enforcement employee and, if the request is made by a law enforcement agency, the request is in accordance with official law enforcement duties and is in writing on official law enforcement letterhead stationery and signed by the agency's chief officer.