S-4514               _______________________________________________

                                                   SENATE BILL NO. 6658

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                              50th Legislature                              1988 Regular Session

By Senator Talmadge

Read first time 1/29/88 and referred to Committee on Ways & Means.

AN ACT Relating to child protective services; creating a new section; and making an appropriation.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.     The legislature recognizes the need for adequate child protective services and the importance of child protective services in the social services delivery system.  The legislature also recognizes the corresponding need for providing a range of services to prevent children from needing the intervention of child protective services.  These services include but are not limited to, programs such as the home builders program and parenting education programs.  The legislature also recognizes the specific needs for child protective services for minorities.

          The legislature further recognizes the need for adequate funding for child protective services and to lower the average caseloads of child protective service workers so as to improve the services to each individual client.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.     The sum of two million dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated for the biennium ending June 30, 1989, from the general fund to the department of social and health services for the purposes of providing child protective services with special emphasis on lowering the caseloads of child protective service workers.