SB 5443 addresses fiscal notes and dynamic fiscal impact statements. It requires fiscal notes dealing with corrections, child welfare, and mental health issues to include an estimate of the fiscal impact of expenditure reductions or increases on other state or local program expenditures as well as any return on investment as a result of the legislation, if requested by a member of a legislative fiscal committee for legislation projected to result in an increase or decrease in state expenditures exceeding five million dollars. It also requires the director of the office of financial management and the director of the state institute for public policy to convene a work group to explore the establishment of a nonpartisan agency to conduct objective, impartial fiscal analysis on behalf of the legislature.
EFFECT OF CHANGES MADE BY WAYS & MEANS COMMITTEE (First Substitute):
-Clarifies that the Washington Institute for Public Policy will provide staff support to the work group convened to review fiscal notes.
-Requires that the work group must consider the Washington Institute for Public Policy, the Legislative Evaluation and Accountability Program Committee (LEAP), or a new nonpartisan agency to provide fiscal analysis of proposed bills.
-Changes the due date for the work group’s report and recommendations from December 1, 2017 to December 1, 2018. This section expires on July 1, 2019 rather than July 1, 2018.
-It should be noted that there is funding in the Senate budget ($249,000) for the WA State Institute for Public Policy for a workgroup to examine the accuracy of fiscal notes and provide recommendations on the creation of a nonpartisan agency for the production of fiscal notes.
