Legislative privilege/PRA

AN ACT Relating to eliminating any legislative privilege 1
exemption from the public records act; and amending RCW 42.56.010.2
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:3
Sec. 1. RCW 42.56.010 and 2022 c 71 s 6 are each amended to read 4
as follows: 5
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter 6
unless the context clearly requires otherwise. 7
(1) "Agency" includes all state agencies and all local agencies. 8
"State agency" includes every state office, department, division, 9
bureau, board, commission, or other state agency. "Local agency" 10
includes every county, city, town, municipal corporation, quasi-11
municipal corporation, or special purpose district, or any office, 12
department, division, bureau, board, commission, or agency thereof, 13
or other local public agency. "Agency" does not include a 14
comprehensive cancer center participating in a collaborative 15
arrangement as defined in RCW 28B.10.930 that is operated in 16
conformance with RCW 28B.10.930. 17
(2) "Person in interest" means the person who is the subject of a 18
record or any representative designated by that person, except that 19
if that person is under a legal disability, "person in interest" 20
means and includes the parent or duly appointed legal representative.21
H-1207.1
HOUSE BILL 1885
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session
By Representatives Dufault, Mendoza, Manjarrez, and Corry
Read first time 02/07/25. Referred to Committee on State Government
& Tribal Relations.
p. 1 HB 1885
(3) "Public record" includes any writing containing information 1
relating to the conduct of government or the performance of any 2
governmental or proprietary function prepared, owned, used, or 3
retained by any state or local agency regardless of physical form or 4
characteristics. Public records include any writing containing 5
information relating to internal deliberations concerning bills 6
contemplated or introduced in either house of the legislature, 7
including preliminary drafts, recommendations, and internal 8
legislative and interbranch communication in which opinions are 9
expressed or policies formulated or recommended. For the office of 10
the secretary of the senate and the office of the chief clerk of the 11
house of representatives, public records means legislative records as 12
defined in RCW 40.14.100 and also means the following: All budget and 13
financial records; personnel leave, travel, and payroll records; 14
records of legislative sessions; reports submitted to the 15
legislature; and any other record designated a public record by any 16
official action of the senate or the house of representatives. This 17
definition does not include records that are not otherwise required 18
to be retained by the agency and are held by volunteers who:19
(a) Do not serve in an administrative capacity;20
(b) Have not been appointed by the agency to an agency board, 21
commission, or internship; and 22
(c) Do not have a supervisory role or delegated agency authority.23
(4) "Writing" means handwriting, typewriting, printing, 24
photostating, photographing, and every other means of recording any 25
form of communication or representation including, but not limited 26
to, letters, words, pictures, sounds, or symbols, or combination 27
thereof, and all papers, maps, magnetic or paper tapes, photographic 28
films and prints, motion picture, film and video recordings, magnetic 29
or punched cards, discs, drums, diskettes, sound recordings, and 30
other documents including existing data compilations from which 31
information may be obtained or translated. 32
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p. 2 HB 1885