CERTIFICATION OF ENROLLMENT
SECOND SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 1877
Chapter 209, Laws of 2024
68th Legislature
2024 Regular Session
BEHAVIORAL HEALTH—COORDINATION AND RECOGNITION WITH INDIAN BEHAVIORAL
HEALTH SYSTEM
EFFECTIVE DATE: June 6, 2024—Except for sections 6, 8, and 18, which
are contingent; and sections 12, 14, 24, and 27, which take effect
July 1, 2026.
Passed by the House March 5, 2024 CERTIFICATE
Yeas 96 Nays 0
I, Bernard Dean, Chief Clerk of the
House of Representatives of the
LAURIE JINKINS State of Washington, do hereby
Speaker of the House of certify that the attached is SECOND
Representatives SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 1877 as
passed by the House of
Representatives and the Senate on
the dates hereon set forth.
Passed by the Senate March 1, 2024
Yeas 49 Nays 0
BERNARD DEAN
DENNY HECK Chief Clerk
President of the Senate
Approved March 19, 2024 3:08 PM FILED
March 21, 2024
Secretary of State
JAY INSLEE State of Washington
Governor of the State of Washington
 SECOND SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 1877
AS AMENDED BY THE SENATE
Passed Legislature - 2024 Regular Session
State of Washington 68th Legislature 2024 Regular Session
By House Appropriations (originally sponsored by Representatives
Lekanoff, Stearns, Ortiz-Self, Ramel, Ramos, Cortes, Reed, Ormsby,
Macri, Street, Paul, Gregerson, Doglio, Callan, Orwall, Mena, Wylie,
Reeves, Pollet, Davis, and Shavers)
READ FIRST TIME 02/05/24.
1 AN ACT Relating to improving the Washington state behavioral
2 health system for better coordination and recognition with the Indian
3 behavioral health system; amending RCW 71.34.020, 71.34.020,
4 71.05.148, 71.34.815, 71.05.150, 71.05.150, 71.34.710, 71.34.710,
5 71.05.195, 71.05.201, 71.05.212, 71.05.212, 71.05.214, 71.05.217,
6 71.05.435, 71.05.458, 71.05.590, 71.05.590, 71.05.620, 71.34.780,
7 71.34.780, 71.05.730, 71.24.030, 71.24.045, 70.02.230, 70.02.240, and
8 70.02.260; reenacting and amending RCW 71.05.020, 71.05.020, and
9 70.02.010; adding new sections to chapter 71.05 RCW; adding new
10 sections to chapter 71.34 RCW; creating a new section; providing an
11 effective date; providing contingent effective dates; providing an
12 expiration date; and providing contingent expiration dates.
13 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
14 NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 71.05
15 RCW to read as follows:
16 (1) An attorney representing a tribe has the right to intervene
17 at any point in any court proceeding under this chapter involving a
18 member of the tribe.
19 (a) For purposes of this section, "right to intervene" means the
20 right of a tribal attorney to:
21 (i) Attend court proceedings;
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 1 (ii) Speak in court;
2 (iii) Request copies of orders issued by the court and petitions
3 filed;
4 (iv) Submit information to the court including, but not limited
5 to, information about available tribal resources to coordinate
6 services; and
7 (v) Petition the court under RCW 71.05.201.
8 (b) Information provided to the tribal attorney under this
9 section is subject to any federal and state laws and regulations
10 including the requirements in RCW 70.02.230 (2)(ee) and (3).
11 (2) Behavioral health service providers shall accept tribal court
12 orders from tribes located within the state on the same basis as
13 state court orders issued under this chapter.
14 (3) The administrative office of the courts, in consultation with
15 the authority, shall develop and update court forms as needed in
16 proceedings under this chapter for use by designated crisis
17 responders and make them available by December 1, 2024. After January
18 1, 2025, superior courts must allow tribal designated crisis
19 responders to use court forms developed by the administrative office
20 of the courts.
21 NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 71.34
22 RCW to read as follows:
23 (1) An attorney representing a federally recognized Indian tribe
24 has the right to intervene at any point in any court proceeding under
25 this chapter involving a member of the tribe.
26 (a) For purposes of this section, "right to intervene" means the
27 right of a tribal attorney to:
28 (i) Attend court proceedings;
29 (ii) Speak in court;
30 (iii) Request copies of orders issued by the court and petitions
31 filed;
32 (iv) Submit information to the court including, but not limited
33 to, information about available tribal resources to coordinate
34 services; and
35 (v) Petition the court under RCW 71.05.201.
36 (b) Information provided to the tribal attorney under this
37 section is subject to any federal and state laws and regulations
38 including the requirements in RCW 70.02.240.
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 1 (2) Behavioral health service providers shall accept tribal court
2 orders from tribes located within the state on the same basis as
3 state court orders issued under this chapter.
4 (3) The administrative office of the courts, in consultation with
5 the authority, shall develop and update court forms as needed in
6 proceedings under this chapter for use by designated crisis
7 responders and make them available by December 1, 2024. After January
8 1, 2025, superior courts must allow tribal designated crisis
9 responders to use court forms developed by the administrative office
10 of the courts.
11 NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 71.05
12 RCW to read as follows:
13 Nothing in this chapter may be read as an assertion of state
14 jurisdiction or regulatory authority over a tribe.
15 NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. A new section is added to chapter 71.34
16 RCW to read as follows:
17 Nothing in this chapter may be read as an assertion of state
18 jurisdiction or regulatory authority over a tribe.
19 Sec. 5. RCW 71.05.020 and 2023 c 433 s 3 and 2023 c 425 s 20 are
20 each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
21 The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter
22 unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
23 (1) "23-hour crisis relief center" has the same meaning as under
24 RCW 71.24.025;
25 (2) "Admission" or "admit" means a decision by a physician,
26 physician assistant, or psychiatric advanced registered nurse
27 practitioner that a person should be examined or treated as a patient
28 in a hospital;
29 (3) "Alcoholism" means a disease, characterized by a dependency
30 on alcoholic beverages, loss of control over the amount and
31 circumstances of use, symptoms of tolerance, physiological or
32 psychological withdrawal, or both, if use is reduced or discontinued,
33 and impairment of health or disruption of social or economic
34 functioning;
35 (4) "Antipsychotic medications" means that class of drugs
36 primarily used to treat serious manifestations of mental illness
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 1 associated with thought disorders, which includes, but is not limited
2 to atypical antipsychotic medications;
3 (5) "Approved substance use disorder treatment program" means a
4 program for persons with a substance use disorder provided by a
5 treatment program certified by the department as meeting standards
6 adopted under chapter 71.24 RCW;
7 (6) "Attending staff" means any person on the staff of a public
8 or private agency having responsibility for the care and treatment of
9 a patient;
10 (7) "Authority" means the Washington state health care authority;
11 (8) "Behavioral health disorder" means either a mental disorder
12 as defined in this section, a substance use disorder as defined in
13 this section, or a co-occurring mental disorder and substance use
14 disorder;
15 (9) "Behavioral health service provider" means a public or
16 private agency that provides mental health, substance use disorder,
17 or co-occurring disorder services to persons with behavioral health
18 disorders as defined under this section and receives funding from
19 public sources. This includes, but is not limited to: Hospitals
20 licensed under chapter 70.41 RCW; evaluation and treatment facilities
21 as defined in this section; community mental health service delivery
22 systems or community behavioral health programs as defined in RCW
23 71.24.025; licensed or certified behavioral health agencies under RCW
24 71.24.037; an entity with a tribal attestation that it meets minimum
25 standards or a licensed or certified behavioral health agency as
26 defined in RCW 71.24.025; facilities conducting competency
27 evaluations and restoration under chapter 10.77 RCW; approved
28 substance use disorder treatment programs as defined in this section;
29 secure withdrawal management and stabilization facilities as defined
30 in this section; and correctional facilities operated by state
31 ((and)), local, and tribal governments;
32 (10) "Co-occurring disorder specialist" means an individual
33 possessing an enhancement granted by the department of health under
34 chapter 18.205 RCW that certifies the individual to provide substance
35 use disorder counseling subject to the practice limitations under RCW
36 18.205.105;
37 (11) "Commitment" means the determination by a court that a
38 person should be detained for a period of either evaluation or
39 treatment, or both, in an inpatient or a less restrictive setting;
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 1 (12) "Community behavioral health agency" has the same meaning as
2 "licensed or certified behavioral health agency" defined in RCW
3 71.24.025;
4 (13) "Conditional release" means a revocable modification of a
5 commitment, which may be revoked upon violation of any of its terms;
6 (14) "Crisis stabilization unit" means a short-term facility or a
7 portion of a facility licensed or certified by the department, such
8 as an evaluation and treatment facility or a hospital, which has been
9 designed to assess, diagnose, and treat individuals experiencing an
10 acute crisis without the use of long-term hospitalization, or to
11 determine the need for involuntary commitment of an individual;
12 (15) "Custody" means involuntary detention under the provisions
13 of this chapter or chapter 10.77 RCW, uninterrupted by any period of
14 unconditional release from commitment from a facility providing
15 involuntary care and treatment;
16 (16) "Department" means the department of health;
17 (17) "Designated crisis responder" means a mental health
18 professional appointed by the county, by an entity appointed by the
19 county, or by the authority in consultation with a ((federally
20 recognized Indian)) tribe or after meeting and conferring with an
21 Indian health care provider, to perform the duties specified in this
22 chapter;
23 (18) "Detention" or "detain" means the lawful confinement of a
24 person, under the provisions of this chapter;
25 (19) "Developmental disabilities professional" means a person who
26 has specialized training and three years of experience in directly
27 treating or working with persons with developmental disabilities and
28 is a psychiatrist, physician assistant working with a supervising
29 psychiatrist, psychologist, psychiatric advanced registered nurse
30 practitioner, or social worker, and such other developmental
31 disabilities professionals as may be defined by rules adopted by the
32 secretary of the department of social and health services;
33 (20) "Developmental disability" means that condition defined in
34 RCW 71A.10.020(6);
35 (21) "Director" means the director of the authority;
36 (22) "Discharge" means the termination of hospital medical
37 authority. The commitment may remain in place, be terminated, or be
38 amended by court order;
39 (23) "Drug addiction" means a disease, characterized by a
40 dependency on psychoactive chemicals, loss of control over the amount
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 1 and circumstances of use, symptoms of tolerance, physiological or
2 psychological withdrawal, or both, if use is reduced or discontinued,
3 and impairment of health or disruption of social or economic
4 functioning;
5 (24) "Evaluation and treatment facility" means any facility which
6 can provide directly, or by direct arrangement with other public or
7 private agencies, emergency evaluation and treatment, outpatient
8 care, and timely and appropriate inpatient care to persons suffering
9 from a mental disorder, and which is licensed or certified as such by
10 the department. The authority may certify single beds as temporary
11 evaluation and treatment beds under RCW 71.05.745. A physically
12 separate and separately operated portion of a state hospital may be
13 designated as an evaluation and treatment facility. A facility which
14 is part of, or operated by, the department of social and health
15 services or any federal agency will not require certification. No
16 correctional institution or facility, or jail, shall be an evaluation
17 and treatment facility within the meaning of this chapter;
18 (25) "Gravely disabled" means a condition in which a person, as a
19 result of a behavioral health disorder: (a) Is in danger of serious
20 physical harm resulting from a failure to provide for his or her
21 essential human needs of health or safety; or (b) manifests severe
22 deterioration in routine functioning evidenced by repeated and
23 escalating loss of cognitive or volitional control over his or her
24 actions and is not receiving such care as is essential for his or her
25 health or safety;
26 (26) "Habilitative services" means those services provided by
27 program personnel to assist persons in acquiring and maintaining life
28 skills and in raising their levels of physical, mental, social, and
29 vocational functioning. Habilitative services include education,
30 training for employment, and therapy. The habilitative process shall
31 be undertaken with recognition of the risk to the public safety
32 presented by the person being assisted as manifested by prior charged
33 criminal conduct;
34 (27) "Hearing" means any proceeding conducted in open court that
35 conforms to the requirements of RCW 71.05.820;
36 (28) "History of one or more violent acts" refers to the period
37 of time ten years prior to the filing of a petition under this
38 chapter, excluding any time spent, but not any violent acts
39 committed, in a behavioral health facility, or in confinement as a
40 result of a criminal conviction;
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 1 (29) "Imminent" means the state or condition of being likely to
2 occur at any moment or near at hand, rather than distant or remote;
3 (30) "In need of assisted outpatient treatment" refers to a
4 person who meets the criteria for assisted outpatient treatment
5 established under RCW 71.05.148;
6 (31) "Individualized service plan" means a plan prepared by a
7 developmental disabilities professional with other professionals as a
8 team, for a person with developmental disabilities, which shall
9 state:
10 (a) The nature of the person's specific problems, prior charged
11 criminal behavior, and habilitation needs;
12 (b) The conditions and strategies necessary to achieve the
13 purposes of habilitation;
14 (c) The intermediate and long-range goals of the habilitation
15 program, with a projected timetable for the attainment;
16 (d) The rationale for using this plan of habilitation to achieve
17 those intermediate and long-range goals;
18 (e) The staff responsible for carrying out the plan;
19 (f) Where relevant in light of past criminal behavior and due
20 consideration for public safety, the criteria for proposed movement
21 to less-restrictive settings, criteria for proposed eventual
22 discharge or release, and a projected possible date for discharge or
23 release; and
24 (g) The type of residence immediately anticipated for the person
25 and possible future types of residences;
26 (32) "Intoxicated person" means a person whose mental or physical
27 functioning is substantially impaired as a result of the use of
28 alcohol or other psychoactive chemicals;
29 (33) "Judicial commitment" means a commitment by a court pursuant
30 to the provisions of this chapter;
31 (34) "Legal counsel" means attorneys and staff employed by county
32 prosecutor offices or the state attorney general acting in their
33 capacity as legal representatives of public behavior