S-0502.1

SENATE BILL 5101

BySenator Sheldon

AN ACT Relating to requiring a state resident preference on competitive examinations for public employment; adding new sections to chapter 41.06 RCW; and creating new sections.

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

(1) Unemployment and underemployment among state residents is unacceptably high;

(2) Recruitment and advertisement normally attract an abundance of qualified applicants who are state residents;

(3) State jobs are funded by taxpayer money;

(4) Washington state has an excellent system of universities, colleges, community colleges, and technical schools;

(5) Immigration to the state of Washington is environmentally damaging because the state is already overpopulated, creating dangerous levels of water pollution, especially in Puget Sound, and will further stress an increasingly dysfunctional transportation system;

(6) The current hiring system does not have any type of state resident preference; and

(7) The state of Washington has the opportunity to be a model employer in terms of using and developing local people to fill most job openings.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 41.06 RCW to read as follows:

(1) Beginning January 31, 2020, and each December 31st thereafter, state agencies employing one hundred or more people must submit a report to the director of the office of financial management, with copies to the superintendent of public instruction and state university and college administrators.

(2) The report must include the following information:

(a) The number of employees hired during the previous calendar year;

(b) The number of employees hired from outside Washington state;

(c) A list of reasons why the jobs could not be filled by a resident of Washington state;

(d) The number of planned hires for the current year; and

(e) Opportunities for internships for job types with a history of being filled by out-of-state residents.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 41.06 RCW to read as follows:

In all competitive examinations to determine the qualifications of applicants for public offices, positions, or employment, either the state, and all of its political subdivisions and all municipal corporations, or private companies or agencies contracted with by the state to give the competitive examinations, shall give a scoring criteria status to all residents as defined in RCW 73.16.031 by adding two points to the passing mark, grade, or rating only, based upon a possible rating of one hundred points as perfect.

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