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Committee hears bill to centralize issuance of HOPE protection-order cards; AOC reports 831 cards issued
Summary
Substitute House Bill 1460 would move HOPE card issuance from court clerks to the Administrative Office of the Courts, make cards free and reduce required identifying information; AOC said it had issued 831 cards since January 1 and asked for funding.
The Law & Justice Committee heard Substitute House Bill 1460, which would change administration of the HOPE card program used by people with full civil protection orders. Under the substitute, the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) would become the source for HOPE cards rather than the issuing court clerk, cards would no longer be required to have a scannable electronic format, and the set of mandatory personal identifying information would be reduced to names and dates of birth. The bill also makes all cards free of charge, including duplicates.
Sponsor and agency testimony
Representative Dan Griffey, prime sponsor, said the original HOPE card concept has helped hundreds of survivors carry a compact record of protection orders and the AOC has built a centralized capability. AOC Court Services Director and Chief Legal Counsel Scott Alff said AOC had issued 831 cards across 306 cases since January 1 and described faster-than-expected turnaround times after centralization; AOC said central issuance avoids the need to place card printers at each court clerk's office, which would increase costs.
Fiscal and operational notes
Staff noted a fiscal note to the original bill and that a fiscal note to the substitute had been requested. Representative Griffey and AOC asked the legislature to consider funding the program (AOC mentioned an $86,000 figure in committee discussion and the sponsor referenced the house funding amount of $2,000 and asked for the remainder). No committee vote was taken at the public hearing.
Provenance
Staff briefing by Patrick Moore preceded sponsor testimony and AOC remarks; testimony included details on issuance counts and operational benefits of centralization.
