Bill
SB 5745
The bill requires counties to fund and administer appointed counsel for ITA detainees, with OPD authorized to provide or contract such counsel on behalf of the county when requeste
Status & timeline
- Introduced: 02/13/2025.
- Passed Legislature: Senate (3/10/2025), House (4/11/2025). Delivered to Governor 4/22/2025; signed 5/12/2025.
- Effective date: 5/12/2025 (bill contains an emergency clause; sections 2 and 7 have contingent effective dates — see bill text for details).
- Appropriation: None. Fiscal note available.
Purpose
- To clarify and adjust who must provide and pay for appointed defense counsel in civil commitment (ITA) proceedings, especially for individuals detained at state-operated psychiatric facilities, and to authorize the Office of Public Defense (OPD) to administer that appointed counsel when requested by the Health Care Authority (HCA) on behalf of a county.
Key provisions
- County responsibility: The county where a person is detained (the site of proceedings) is responsible for administering appointed counsel under the ITA regardless of the detained person's county of origin. A county may provide counsel directly, contract for counsel, or request HCA to contract with OPD on the county’s behalf if the person is detained at a defined state facility.
- OPD authority: The OPD is expressly authorized to administer and provide appointed counsel in ITA cases at HCA’s request on behalf of a county. OPD may provide services directly or by contracting with licensed Washington attorneys or attorney-employing organizations.
- Notification deadline: If OPD notifies HCA that it cannot provide the requested appointed counsel, HCA must notify the county within 30 days; the county must then provide counsel directly or by contract.
- Funding adjustments / BHASO rules: When HCA contracts with OPD to provide public defense services, the county’s Behavioral Health Administrative Services Organization (BHASO) is not required to reimburse the county for direct public defense costs. Instead, HCA must reduce the funding it provides to the county’s BHASO by the amount HCA spends to contract with OPD. The county’s BHASO can still seek reimbursement from the BHASO serving the detained person's county of residence.
- Attorney General representation: The bill revises statutory language so that the AG’s obligation to represent in ITA proceedings (other than 14‑day commitments) applies with respect to “state facilities” rather than “state institutions.”
- Definitions aligned: “State facility” is defined to include the Center for Behavioral Health and Learning (UW Medicine site) and DSHS-owned/operated inpatient facilities that are not state hospitals; “state hospital” is aligned across statutes to mean Western State Hospital, Eastern State Hospital, and the Child Study and Treatment Center.
Who is affected
- Individuals detained under the ITA and their right to appointed counsel.
- Counties that host detention facilities (responsible for administering counsel).
- OPD and HCA (new contracting/administration roles).
- BHASOs (funding adjustments).
- Attorney General (clarified representation responsibility).
- Local defense counsel and public defense providers.
Other notes
- The bill was prompted in part by gaps that prevented admission to a new behavioral health teaching hospital when local public defense would not provide representation for detainees transferred into that county.
- Amendments were proposed (e.g., requiring OPD to exhaust local recruitment mechanisms and an annual OPD report) but were not adopted; see amendment documents for details.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
Sign in to ask a question.
