Latest news with #HouseBill1472
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Republicans walk out after WA House committee votes to close center for people with disabilities
Rep. Travis Couture, R-Allyn, speaks on the House floor in an undated photo. He was among the Republicans who walked out of a House Appropriations Committee meeting this week in protest of a bill that would close a facility in Pierce County for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. (Photo courtesy of Legislative Support Services) Republican lawmakers walked out of a committee meeting in the Washington Legislature on Wednesday to protest approval of a bill that would close a residential center for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. 'We voted no on the bill first and, when it was apparent that the bill was going to pass, we were upset and we just decided to leave,' said Rep. Travis Couture, R-Allyn, the top GOP lawmaker on the House Appropriations Committee. Senate Bill 5393, which the committee voted out Wednesday, aims to close the Rainier School in Pierce County and relocate its residents by June 30, 2027. House Bill 1472 calls for the closure of both the Rainier School and the Yakima Valley School in Selah. Republicans say the centers are crucial for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, providing paths to educational and employment opportunities. And they say that there are limited options for where people could end up if these closures occur. But Democrats say the facilities are expensive to operate and that closing them could allow for resources to be shifted in a way that gives people improved options for services. The 'residential habilitation centers,' operated by the state's Department of Social and Health Services, have also faced scrutiny in recent years. Groups like Disability Rights Washington have documented extensive problems with abuse, neglect, and safety lapses. The group and other advocates for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities have called for the centers to be closed. 'Washington is one of the states that had the highest investment in folks with intellectual and developmental disabilities, yet with the poorest outcomes,' said Rep. Darya Farivar, D-Seattle. 'When the RHCs were built, they were intended to be short-term placements,' Farivar said. 'The intent was not for these to be permanent placements, and so the facilities we are using, the level of care that we are using, is failing pretty horrifically for these individuals.' She also explained how the Rainier School is in an isolated location, compared to Fircrest School, in Shoreline, which allows residents greater access to the surrounding community. A new 120-bed facility is under construction at Fircrest, Farivar later noted in an email. Including the Rainier and Yakima Valley schools, the state operates four residential habilitation centers. An analysis of the Senate bill says that the Rainier School has 58 long-term residents. Farivar said she wants people to have the choice between a residential habilitation center and living in housing in the broader community, with support services. Both Fircrest and Lakeland Village, near Spokane, have the capacity to house more people and can provide services at a lower cost than the Rainier School, Farivar said. 'At $775,625 per person annually, Rainier is the most expensive care setting in the state,' she wrote in the email. Farivar said she and others are pressing to ensure there's funding in the budget for the staff needed at Fircrest and Lakeland Village so people can transition out of the Rainier School. But Couture said closing the Rainier School would raise the odds of people with disabilities ending up in hospitals, jails, or living on the streets without access to care. And, he said, 'the amount of abuse and neglect that happens in community care settings is just as great, if not greater, than what has ever happened at some of these RHC facilities.' Couture said that if the bill to close the Rainier School makes it to the House floor for a vote, Republicans 'will grind the brakes off of this place and do every procedural motion in the book, we will throw the kitchen sink at defeating this. It has to stop.' He derided the bill as the 'most cruel and disgusting' one introduced this year. The walkout after the House Appropriations Committee vote was not pre-planned, according to Couture, but rather a decision after Republican committee members became frustrated. 'Most of us had tears in our eyes and there's only just so much you can put up with,' Couture said. It is unclear when the House could take up the bill for a floor vote. Only a short time is left until the session is scheduled to end on Sunday, April 27.
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Rainier School is a home, not just a facility. WA lawmakers' proposed closure cruel
There's a deep sense of community at Rainier School. For decades, it has been more than just a facility — it has been a home for individuals with significant intellectual and developmental disabilities, a place where they receive specialized care, structure and stability. Families rest easier knowing their loved ones are in an environment tailored specifically to their needs, supported by experienced staff who have dedicated their lives to this critical work. Yet that sense of security is under threat from false promises of budget savings and overstated claims of available community placements. House Bill 1472 and the proposed operating budget would mandate the closure of Rainier School by June 30, 2027, halting all new admissions immediately. On paper, the proposal promises millions in savings and smooth transitions into community-based services. In reality, viable community alternatives simply do not exist for the majority of Rainier's residents. Rainier School serves as a safety net — often the last, best hope — for some of our state's most vulnerable individuals. Many residents have cycled through multiple community-based placements, each one tragically ending in failure. They've faced repeated hospitalizations, run-ins with law enforcement and emotional distress when the promised 'community care' couldn't meet their complex medical and behavioral needs. These are not isolated incidents; this revolving door is tragically common. One parent shared the heartbreaking story of their child's perilous experience outside Rainier. After moving to a community placement, the child's health rapidly declined due to inadequate support. In one terrifying incident, the lack of appropriate supervision led to a dangerous confrontation with law enforcement — an encounter that could have ended in tragedy. Returning to Rainier didn't just stabilize this individual; it most assuredly saved their life. We've seen similar consequences from previous closures, such as the Frances Haddon Morgan Center. Residents did not smoothly transition to less costly community placements; many faced homelessness, emergency hospitalizations, or ended up in far more expensive crisis care. Some died. Promised budget savings turned into escalating expenses and, far worse, human suffering. Moreover, Rainier School's staff provides specialized care and medical services unmatched elsewhere. These dedicated individuals possess decades of irreplaceable expertise, offering around-the-clock medical, dental and psychiatric care — critical support that isn't easily or quickly replicated elsewhere. Losing Rainier doesn't just remove housing; it dismantles an irreplaceable network of compassionate, highly trained professionals. It decimates a community. Families consistently describe Rainier School as their lifeline, ensuring loved ones live with dignity, safety and stability. Removing this lifeline thrusts families into agonizing uncertainty. What happens to these families when the promised community-based placements fail yet again? How do we measure the emotional toll — the fear, anxiety and trauma inflicted by forcing vulnerable individuals from their homes? Rather than closing Rainier School, we should invest in necessary improvements, strengthen oversight, and uphold the safety and dignity of its residents. This approach reflects true compassion and fiscal responsibility, acknowledging that human lives cannot be reduced to simple budgetary calculations. Closing Rainier School is not just irresponsible — it's cruel. Families deserve certainty, not empty promises. Staff deserve respect, not displacement. Above all, residents deserve to be protected, not cast aside for budgetary convenience. This is a defining moment for lawmakers to choose compassion and responsibility over short-sighted cost-cutting. Rainier School must remain open, and we must ensure its continued operation for the sake of those who depend upon it most. Rep. Joshua Penner is a Republican who represents the 31st Legislative District.
