Friends Committee On Washington State Public Policy
Action Alert
March 2, 2006
 

Interest-Rate Reduction for Ex-offenders

Action: Please call or e-mail members of the Senate Rules Committee to pull HB-1359 out of rules and to the floor for a vote, and call or email members of the House Rules Committee to pull SB-5611 out of rules to the floor for a vote.  Each of these identical bills drafted by FCWPP has passed the other house, and one or the other simply needs to be brought to a vote in the second house in order to pass.  Friday is the deadline for passage of these bills.

Friends, FCWPP and you, as our supporters, have been working on this issue for several years.  It almost made it last year, so this year, with your calls and emails, may be the time.

See contact info for rules committee members below, as well as background on the bills below.

Senate Rules Members

Democrats
Brad Owen - Chair (D) [email protected]
Rosa Franklin - Vice Chair (D)
[email protected]
Lisa Brown (D) [email protected]
Mark Doumit (D) [email protected]
Tracey Eide (D) [email protected]
Karen Fraser (D) [email protected]
Mary Margaret Haugen (D) [email protected]
Adam Kline (D) [email protected]
Jeanne Kohl-Welles (D) [email protected]
Debbie Regala (D) [email protected]
Harriet Spanel (D) [email protected]
Pat Thibaudeau (D) [email protected]

Republicans

Mike Hewitt - Ranking Minority Member (R)
[email protected]
Luke Esser (R) [email protected]
Bill Finkbeiner (R) [email protected]
Jim Honeyford (R) [email protected]
Stephen Johnson (R) [email protected]
Linda Evans Parlette (R) [email protected]
Val Stevens (R) [email protected]
Joseph Zarelli (R) [email protected]

House Rules members

Democrats

Frank Chopp - Chair (D) [email protected]
Brian Blake (D) [email protected]
Judy Clibborn (D) [email protected]
Dennis Flannigan (D) [email protected]
Bill Grant (D) [email protected]
Zack Hudgins (D) [email protected]
Sam Hunt (D) [email protected]
Lynn Kessler (D) [email protected]
John Lovick (D) [email protected]
Dawn Morrell (D) [email protected]
Sharon Tomiko Santos (D) [email protected]

Republicans

Richard DeBolt - Ranking Minority Member (R)
[email protected]
Mike Armstrong - Asst Ranking Minority Member (R)
[email protected]
Glenn Anderson (R) [email protected]
Jan Shabro (R) [email protected]
Rodney Tom (R) [email protected]
Doug Ericksen (R) [email protected]
Joyce McDonald (R) [email protected]


All can be reached by phone through the legislative hot line during business hours: 
800-562-6000

In the Senate, special emphasis should be given to Senators Franklin, Kline, Regala who know the issue especially well and are strong supporters for the measure.

For GOP contacts it may do well to mention it is the Companion Bill to SB 5611 - Senator Esser's bill, also sponsored by GOP members :  Brandland, Hewitt, McCaslin, Stevens, Zarelli.

In the House, special emphasis should be given to representatives Flannigan,  who has committed in the past to help on this and Lovick, Kessler, and Grant who are sponsors for the House version of the measure.

Background: HB-1359 has passed the Washington State House and SB-5611 has passed the Senate.  Although the wording of these two interest rate reduction bills for ex-offenders is identical, state law requires that either the Senate must vote favorably on the House  bill or the House must vote favorably on the Senate bill.

Talking points:

The bills are intended to reduce the interest rate charged ex-offenders for legal financial obligations from 12% to a rate equal to the current Treasury bill rate plus 2%.

The bill lessens the debt burden on ex-offenders, making it easier for them to pay restitution, their share to the victim's assessment fund, and their financial sentence requirements.  Lowering their interest rate encourages them to pay and reduces the pressures and demoralization of debt that can lead to recidivism.

For details of HB-1359, see:
http://dlr.leg.wa.gov/billsummary/default.aspx?Bill=1359&year=2005

For details of SB-5611see:
http://dlr.leg.wa.gov/billsummary/default.aspx?Bill=5611&year=2005


Daniel Clark, Criminal Justice Working Group Chair
Roger Kluck, Lobbyist
Friends Committee on Washington Public Policy
206.856.4444
http://fcwpp.quaker.org