Concerning court-based and school-based efforts to promote attendance and reduce truancy.

Creating a legislative page scholarship program.

Authorizes the secretary of the senate and the chief clerk of the house of representatives to administer and conduct a legislative page scholarship program to provide: (1) Resources for students who participate in the page programs of the senate or house; and

(2) Provide assistance to students, based on financial need, who qualify for a page program.

Concerning students who receive special education services who earn certificates of individual achievement.

Authorizes a student that receives special education services who, as a result of his or her academic performance, earns a certificate of individual achievement to: (1) Remain eligible to receive transition services from a school district between ages eighteen and twenty-one if his or her most recent evaluation and current individualized education program specify a continuing need for the services; and

Removing disincentives to the voluntary formation of regional fire protection service authorities by establishing parity, equalizing certain provisions with existing laws governing fire protection districts, and clarifying the formation process.

Revises regional fire protection service authority provisions as follows: (1) Removes disincentives to the voluntary formation of the authorities by establishing parity;

(2) Equalizes certain provisions with existing laws governing fire protection districts; and

Concerning federal funding programs requiring changes in state law.

Permitting the possession and application of topical sunscreen products at schools.

Establishes the student sun safety education act.

Allows the possession and application of topical sunscreen products to help prevent sunburn while on school property, at a school-related event or activity, or at summer camp.

Concerning the addition of services for long-term placement of mental health patients in community hospitals that voluntarily contract and are certified by the department of social and health services.

Revises the community mental health services act with regard to the insufficient capacity at eastern and western state hospitals to meet current and growing demand for services and patients.

Requires the department of social and health services and the entities identified in RCW 71.24.310 and 71.24.380 (sections 2 and 3 of this act) to: (1) Work with willing community hospitals to assess their capacity to become certified to provide long-term mental health placements and to meet the requirements of the community mental health services act; and

Specifying to whom information and records related to mental health services may be disclosed for the purposes of care coordination and treatment.

Authorizes information and records related to mental health services, other than those obtained through treatment under chapter 71.34 RCW (mental health services for minors), to be disclosed to a person who is: (1) Working in a care coordinator role for a health care facility or provider or is under an agreement under the federal health insurance portability and accountability act with a health care facility or provider and requires the information and records to assure coordinated care and treatment of the patient; and

Concerning fiscal notes.

Addresses fiscal notes and dynamic fiscal impact statements.

Requires fiscal notes dealing with corrections, child welfare, and mental health issues to include an estimate of the fiscal impact of expenditure reductions or increases on other state or local program expenditures as well as any return on investment as a result of the legislation if requested by a member of a legislative fiscal committee for legislation projected to result in an increase or decrease in state expenditures exceeding five million dollars.

Initiating proactive steps to address elk hoof disease.

Requires the rules of the department of fish and wildlife to prohibit a person from translocating a live elk from an area with elk affected by hoof disease to any other location except consistent with a process developed by the department for translocation for monitoring or hoof disease management purposes.

Concerning the review process of the citizen commission for performance measurement of tax preferences.

Requires the joint legislative audit and review committee, when reviewing tax preferences, to include the following: (1) The overall effective tax rate for the industry groups benefiting from the tax preference; and

Concerning the creation, extension, expansion, accountability, and transparency of state tax preferences.

Addresses state tax preferences with regard to: (1) Improving tax preference data collection;

(2) Incorporating department of revenue-led work group recommendations for improving department of revenue annual surveys and reports;

(3) Authorizing public disclosure of firm-specific tax savings from business tax incentives;

(4) Updating and modernizing the department of revenue tax exemption report; and

Addressing the need for veterans' services.

Requires the department of veterans affairs to offer training and support for volunteers interested in providing peer-to-peer support to other veterans.

Modifying the lodging excise tax to remove the exemption for premises with fewer than sixty lodging units and to tax certain vacation rentals, short-term home-sharing arrangements, and other compensated use or occupancy of dwellings.

Removes the lodging excise tax exemption for premises with fewer than sixty lodging units and imposes an excise tax on the sale of or charge made for the furnishing of a vacation rental, a home-sharing arrangement, or other compensated use or occupancy of all or a portion of a dwelling or dwelling unit, for a continuous period of less than one month, regardless of whether the dwelling or dwelling unit is also occupied by its owner.

-- 2017 REGULAR SESSION --
Feb 22	First reading, referred to Ways & Means.