House committee hears divided testimony on bill to close Rainier School residential habilitation center

The House Appropriations Committee held a public hearing on Substitute Senate Bill 5393, which would require the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) to close Rainier School, a residential habilitation center (RHC) in Buckley, by June 30, 2027, and relocate current residents to other settings.

Committee staff told lawmakers the bill directs DSHS to stop new admissions immediately, to offer placements in other RHCs, supported living programs, state-operated living alternatives (SOLAs) or adult family homes based on resident preference, and — "subject to funds appropriated" — to offer RHC employees opportunities in SOLAs and other state programs. The transcript fiscal summary reported a projected net savings of roughly $18.1 million over a four-year outlook, an operating impact shown in the fiscal note including smaller-year biennium figures, and capital costs for closure and enhanced site security estimated at about $2.4 million.

Why it matters: Rainier School is one of four state RHCs certified by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services as intermediate care facilities (ICFs). Staff said Rainier currently houses about 58 long‑term residents and 13 short‑term residents; the bill’s implementation would directly affect those residents, their guardians and RHC employees, and would change how Washington draws federal Medicaid match tied to ICF certification.

Staff briefing and fiscal details Brian Waystaff, fiscal staff to the committee, said the DSHS fiscal note assumes 50% of Rainier residents would move to other RHCs, 25% to supported living programs and 25% to SOLAs. That placement assumption is the "primary driver" of the fiscal estimate, Waystaff said, and the fiscal note projects the net savings figure after counting both expenditure changes and declines in state ICF tax revenue used to draw federal match.

Public testimony highlighted a deep split.

Opponents: family members, guardians, many current RHC staff and workers’ unions urged lawmakers not to close Rainier without greater community capacity. Becky Carter, who said she has worked at Rainier School for 34 years and is guardian to a former resident, told the committee, "Clients are people. They are not numbers," and argued some residents have nowhere safe to go in the community. Britney Barber, who identified herself as a WUSSI member and a 25‑year Rainier employee, described a person who spent two years in a hospital because community providers would not take him and asked, "If Rainier closes, where is he gonna go?" Micah Belaspas, an attorney representing more than 80 guardians, warned that closing Rainier would remove about one‑third of ICF‑licensed beds in Washington and said he currently has two people waiting in hospitals for placements.

Several union and staff speakers highlighted concrete harms they said followed previous RHC closures. Mike Kastrzemski of the Washington Federation of State Employees said a state project to open a SOLA (West) was closed before serving a single client due to budget cuts, and warned that "we have less capacity today than we did a week ago." Staff reports and multiple speakers described residents who declined rapidly after being moved off campus; several testified that they knew of individual deaths they connected to premature moves.

Supporters: advocates for community living, several providers and self‑advocates spoke in favor of the bill. Scott Livingood of Alta Supported Living Services said supported living now serves roughly 4,600 people statewide through about 200 contracted providers compared with the RHCs’ smaller populations. Stacy Dim, executive director of The Arc of Washington State, said Rainier’s census has fallen from hundreds in prior decades to roughly the facility’s current population and argued the state has decades of experience moving people to the community with individualized plans and supports. Chloe Marino of Disability Rights Washington called Rainier "a uniquely dangerous place" and cited documented abuse and neglect cases in the facility’s history.

Points of contention and clarifications Committee members and witnesses repeatedly raised capacity and acuity questions. Representative Penner asked whether the fiscal note accounted for higher per‑day costs for high‑acuity residents; staff replied the fiscal note used average forecasted costs for supported living and did not model resident‑level acuity. Opponents said the fiscal estimate’s assumption that half of Rainier residents would move to other RHCs was unrealistic because other RHCs currently lack open beds and funding to add residents. Supporters pointed to examples of successful transitions and argued many people with high support needs already live in supported living.

The hearing record includes repeated references to federal Medicaid rules, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services certification for ICFs, and DSHS planning obligations spelled out in the bill draft. Several speakers urged the committee to require more concrete capacity planning and phased transitions before legislating a hard closure date.

What happens next The committee concluded the public hearing and moved on to other agenda items; no committee vote or formal action was recorded in the hearing. The bill, as presented in the staff briefing, would require DSHS to close Rainier by June 30, 2027, prohibit new admissions effective immediately and to offer SOLAs, supported living and other RHC slots as the law’s implementation relies on appropriations.

Ending Testimony underscored a stark divide between advocates who argue community supports can and should replace institutional placements and family members, staff and unions who say the state has not yet built adequate alternatives for the most complex, high‑acuity residents. Lawmakers will weigh the fiscal estimates, capacity questions and the individual stories presented at this hearing as the bill moves through the process.