Court unification task force

AN ACT Relating to establishing the court unification task force; 1
adding a new chapter to Title 2 RCW; creating a new section; and 2
providing an expiration date. 3
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:4
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) The legislature finds that:5
(a) Washingtonians seeking legal help encounter barriers 6
navigating disparate local court rules or incur increased costs for 7
legal practitioners to navigate these systems; 8
(b) Specific groups of Washingtonians, such as those living in 9
rural areas or in poverty, may be inequitably impacted by courts' 10
disparate adoption of technology to create remote filing, record 11
sharing, processes, procedures, and hearings; 12
(c) Disparate local rules and adoption of technology make it 13
difficult for lawyers, including those engaging in pro bono and legal 14
aid work, to practice in multiple jurisdictions, exacerbating 15
Washington's "legal deserts"; 16
(d) Washingtonians seeking legal help may encounter inequitable 17
outcomes due to disparate funding levels and standards from 18
jurisdiction to jurisdiction; 19
(e) City and county leaders have expressed significant and urgent 20
concerns with their ability to fund and implement the Washington 21
H-1139.1
HOUSE BILL 1909
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2025 Regular Session
By Representatives Taylor, Goodman, Hill, Bernbaum, Farivar, Simmons,
Peterson, Macri, Ortiz-Self, Walen, Ramel, Ryu, Thomas, Salahuddin,
Duerr, Reed, Zahn, Entenman, Fey, Wylie, Richards, Cortes, Berry,
Tharinger, Parshley, Berg, Santos, Ormsby, Pollet, and Davis
Read first time 02/10/25. Referred to Committee on Civil Rights &
Judiciary.
p. 1 HB 1909
state bar association's new standards for indigent defense, which 1
derive from a constitutional mandate; and 2
(f) Disparate funding between the state's court systems can cause 3
inequitable and inconsistent means for jurisdictions to implement and 4
uphold best legal practices and standards. 5
(2) The legislature further finds that potential solutions to 6
these issues warrant further study, including data collection to 7
better understand the impact to the public and the legal profession 8
of disparate local rules, technology, and funding between 9
Washington's court systems. 10
(3) Therefore, the legislature intends to convene and 11
meaningfully engage stakeholders across Washington state, especially 12
those in rural areas, and to study the inefficiencies and inequities 13
resulting from disparate local court rules, funding, and technology.14
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. The court unification task force is 15
established to conduct a comprehensive analysis of the current 16
Washington state court system, including the review of the structure, 17
policies, practices, and procedures of the state courts, and identify 18
areas where a more unified or centralized approach to court 19
operations may improve efficiency and uniformity in the delivery of 20
court and judicial services, as well as consistency in outcomes and 21
ease of access for those who use the court system, including victims, 22
defendants, litigants, and counsel.23
NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. (1) The court unification task force must 24
include the following voting members:25
(a) Two legislative members, one from each of the two largest 26
caucuses of the house of representatives, appointed by the speaker of 27
the house of representatives. Of the members appointed under this 28
subsection (1)(a), one member must be the current chair of the civil 29
rights and judiciary committee of the house of representatives;30
(b) Two legislative members, one from each of the two largest 31
caucuses of the senate, appointed by the president of the senate. Of 32
the members appointed under this subsection (1)(b), one must be the 33
current chair of the law and justice committee of the senate;34
(c) One person representing the governor's office, appointed by 35
the governor; 36
(d) One person representing the attorney general's office, 37
appointed by the attorney general; 38
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(e) One person representing cities, appointed by the association 1
of Washington cities; 2
(f) One person who is an elected county councilmember 3
representing counties, appointed by the Washington state association 4
of counties; 5
(g) One person representing court clerks, appointed by the 6
Washington state association of county clerks; 7
(h) 12 members from the judicial branch, appointed by the chief 8
justice in consultation with the board of judicial administration, 9
supreme court, court of appeals, superior court judges association, 10
association of Washington superior court administrators, Washington 11
association of juvenile court administrators, district and municipal 12
court judges association, district and municipal court management 13
association, misdemeanant probation association, and access to 14
justice board. Of the members appointed under this subsection (1)(h): 15
(i) Two members must be appointed to represent the superior court 16
judges association, with one member representing western Washington 17
and the other member representing eastern Washington; and (ii) two 18
members must be appointed to represent the district and municipal 19
court judges association, with one member representing western 20
Washington and the other member representing eastern Washington;21
(i) One person appointed by and representing the tribal state 22
court consortium; 23
(j) One person appointed by and representing the office of public 24
defense; 25
(k) One person appointed by and representing the office of civil 26
legal aid; 27
(l) One person appointed by and representing the administrative 28
office of the courts; 29
(m) One person appointed by and representing the Washington state 30
bar association; 31
(n) One person appointed by and representing the Washington 32
association of prosecuting attorneys; 33
(o) One person appointed by and representing the Washington state 34
paralegal association; 35
(p) One person employed by and representing a community-based 36
nonprofit organization that provides advocacy and support services, 37
but not including legal representation, to court-involved 38
individuals; 39
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(q) One person appointed by and representing the Washington 1
association of sheriffs and police chiefs; 2
(r) One person appointed by and representing an organization that 3
represents survivors of gender-based violence; 4
(s) Two people who have lived experience as a litigant in a civil 5
court matter and who are appointed by the office of civil legal aid. 6
Of the members appointed under this subsection (1)(s): (i) One person 7
must be from one of the five largest counties; and (ii) the other 8
person must be someone who was unrepresented in their civil legal 9
matter; and 10
(t) One formerly incarcerated person appointed by the office of 11
public defense. 12
(2) The task force shall have two cochairs. One cochair must be 13
the chair of the civil rights and judicial committee of the house of 14
representatives and the other cochair must be the chief justice of 15
the supreme court. The cochairs shall set the agenda and provide 16
leadership and direction for the task force. 17
(3) Members of the task force shall be reimbursed for travel 18
expenses. Legislative members of the task force shall be reimbursed 19
for travel expenses in accordance with RCW 44.04.120. Reimbursement 20
for nonlegislative members is subject to chapter 43.03 RCW. To ensure 21
that the task force has diverse and inclusive representation of those 22
affected by its work, task force members, including work group 23
members, whose participation in the task force may be hampered by 24
financial hardship may be compensated as provided in RCW 43.03.220.25
NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. The court unification task force has the 26
following powers:27
(1)(a) The task force may form issue-specific subcommittees to 28
focus on issues relevant to the work of the task force including, but 29
not limited to: Information technology in courts; court capacity and 30
funding; small and rural courts; facilities and personnel; court 31
provided services; and the impact of legislative changes on court 32
resources and processes. 33
(b) The task force shall define the scope of activity and subject 34
matter focus required of each subcommittee. 35
(c) A subcommittee may set its own agenda and terminate upon 36
completion of the subcommittee's work. Subcommittee meetings may 37
occur in person or in a virtual or hybrid format. 38
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(2) The voting membership of each subcommittee is composed of a 1
subset of members appointed to the task force, as determined by 2
majority vote of the task force. A subcommittee may invite persons 3
with relevant expertise to participate in the subcommittee's work as 4
nonvoting members on an ongoing, recurring, or one-time basis.5
(3) Consistent with funds appropriated specifically for this 6
purpose, the task force may hire staff or contract for professional 7
assistance. 8
NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. (1) The court unification task force shall 9
hold its first meeting by October 1, 2025, and shall complete its 10
work by December 31, 2028. The task force shall hold no fewer than 11
two meetings of the full membership of the task force each calendar 12
year.13
(2) By June 30, 2026, the task force shall submit a preliminary 14
report to the interbranch advisory committee created in chapter 2.76 15
RCW and to the relevant committees of the legislature.16
(3) By June 30, 2027, the task force shall submit its final 17
report to the interbranch advisory committee created in chapter 2.76 18
RCW and to the relevant committees of the legislature. The final 19
report must propose specific solutions for the efficient use of 20
resources, including harmonizing any conflicting court policies, 21
practices, and procedures, and include a long-term strategic plan to 22
implement the proposed solutions. 23
(4) After the task force submits its final report and before June 24
30, 2028, the task force shall hold at least one meeting of the full 25
membership of the task force. 26
NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. This chapter expires December 31, 2028.27
NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. Sections 2 through 6 of this act 28
constitute a new chapter in Title 2 RCW.29
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