OLYMPIA – Washington residents may soon benefit from a plethora of consumer protection measures approved recently by the state Senate.
“We had a real consumer protection day,” said Sen. Darlene Fairley, D-Lake Forest Park, chair of the Senate Financial Institutions, Housing and Consumer Protection Committee. “We took on everything from identity theft to payday loans.”
Bills sponsored by Fairley and approved by the Senate include:
• SB 5327 creates the Office of Privacy Protection within the Attorney General’s office to coordinate privacy information and education.
• SB 5415 adopts the military’s “best practices” for payday loans to military borrowers.
• SB 5577 clarifies a landlord’s responsibilities for tenant relocation assistance when a dwelling fails to meet state health and safety standards.
• SB 5939 clarifies police reporting requirements on cases of identity theft.
• SB 5957 changes the terms for the escrow accounts required of self-funded multiple employer welfare arrangements.
Other bills include:
• SB 6043, sponsored by Sen. Dale Brandland, R-Bellingham, requires notification to affected Washington consumers for data security breaches, such as recently occurred with ChoicePoint.
• SB 5692, sponsored by Sen. Jean Berkey, D-Everett, regulates refund anticipation loans from tax preparers.
The bills were sent to the House of Representatives for consideration.
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