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AN ORDINANCE related to notification requirements for booking restrictions at King County adult detention facilities; and adding a new chapter to K.C.C. Title 2.

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STATEMENT OF FACTS:

1.  The King County department of adult and juvenile detention operates two adult detention facilities that process approximately 15,000 combined bookings annually.

2.  King County is required by state law to house all people arrested in the county for a felony and presented for booking into jail.

3.  Under RCW 39.34.180, counties, cities, and towns are responsible for incarceration of misdemeanor offenses committed by adults in their respective jurisdictions and referred from their respective law enforcement agencies.

4.  Twenty-seven jurisdictions within King County contract with the county for jail services including booking and incarceration.

5.  At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the King County executive implemented jail booking restrictions at King County's adult detention facilities in order to reduce the number of people in custody and limit the spread of COVID-19 within secure detention.

6.  As the health risks associated with the COVID-19 pandemic decreased, jail booking restrictions remained in place to maintain safety during pandemic-related staffing shortages.

7.  In 2025, King County lifted jail booking restrictions as adult detention staffing had reached a level sufficient for full capacity operations.

                     BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF KING COUNTY:

                     SECTION 1.  Sections 2 and 3 of this ordinance should constitute a new chapter in K.C.C. Title 2.

                     NEW SECTION.  SECTION 2.  The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter.

                     A.  "Booking" means processing persons for confinement in the Jail or assignment to a King County community corrections division program;

                     B.  "Contract cities" means cities that are signatory to an interlocal agreement between King County and the contract cities for jail services.

                     C.  "Emergency" has the same meaning as "emergency" in K.C.C. 12.52.010.

                     D.  "Jail" means a place owned or operated by or under contract to King County primarily designed, staffed, and used for any combination of:  housing, in full confinement, of adults charged or convicted of a criminal offense; the punishment, correction, and rehabilitation of offenders charged or convicted of a criminal offense; and confinement during a criminal investigation, and for civil detention to enforce a court order, all where such a place is structured and operated to ensure that the individuals being investigated or subject to the court order remain on the premises at all times, excluding time for court appearances, court approved off-premises trips, or medical treatment.

                     NEW SECTION.  SECTION 3.

                     A.  At least thirty days before implementing jail bookings restrictions, the executive shall provide written notice to the King County council and all contract city managers or mayors providing the reason for the booking restrictions, the list of restrictions, the conditions under which the restrictions may be lifted, and a channel for providing feedback and resolving concerns.

                     B.  In the case of an emergency, the thirty-day notice requirement does not apply, but notification with the same information set forth in subsection A. shall be provided to the King County council and contract cities within forty-eight hours of the booking restrictions being implemented.

                     C.  The executive shall electronically file the notices required under this section with the clerk of the council, who shall retain an electronic copy and provide an electronic copy to all councilmembers, the council chief of staff, and the lead staff to the law and justice committee or its successor.  The notices shall include a list of contract cities that received written notice and the date they received notice.