Committee hears hours of testimony on eviction reform and tenant-safety bill (SB 5740)

The Washington State Senate Housing Committee on Feb. 19 heard extensive public testimony and staffing briefings on Senate Bill 5,740, a package of changes labeled “eviction reform and tenant safety” that would allow superior courts to appoint attorneys as commissioners for unlawful detainer actions and alter several procedural and substantive protections in the Residential Landlord Tenant Act (RLTA).

Bill Fosbury, staff to the committee, told members the bill would authorize superior courts to appoint one or more attorneys to act as commissioners in unlawful detainer actions; revise the unlawful detainer summons and the timing and scope of show-cause hearings; impose written-answer requirements on tenants; and change aspects of the RLTA’s just-cause eviction provisions, among other items. Fosbury summarized the bill’s three main components as court-commissioner appointments, changes to unlawful detainer procedure, and modifications to just-cause eviction rules.

The bill’s prime sponsor, Sen. John Braun, said the measure responds to court backlogs and delays that “provide a better way to help provide the resources necessary to manage the…