Protect Consumers' Last Dollars from Garnishment!
In our semi-annual listening sessions, the main things we hear about from Washingtonians living on low incomes are the struggles of living in debt and rising costs of living. When payments are impossible to make, collectors can take what they're owed directly from Washingtonians bank accounts through garnishment. Washingtonians facing bank account garnishment are struggling to make ends meet, facing rising costs in addition to a mountain of debt to pay back. As one listening session attendee put it, “As much as I'm trying to get ahead, I'm really not. I'm basically robbing Peter to pay Paul just to survive.”
This is an issue that disproportionately impacts communities of color. 14% of Washingtonians have a debt in collections, which is better than the national average. However, in communities of color, up to 29% of people have a debt in collections, more than double our state average.
While $2,000 is protected from garnishment by law, under current statute only $1,000 of that amount is self-executing. This means that Washingtonians have to go through a legal procedure to get back up to $1,000 illegally garnished by collectors. Washingtonians facing garnishment do not have the time or resources to navigate a complicated, time-sensitive legal process to keep the full $2,000 protected by law in their bank accounts, and that amount is not sufficient to meet families' basic needs in our state.
SB 5651 offers a simple solution – it makes the full amount of last dollar protections automatically protected and increases that amount to more effectively cover the cost of living in Washington.
With this bill, Washingtonians facing collections can focus on navigating the path to financial stability instead of scrambling to navigate our state's legal system to claw back money already protected by law.
Tell your lawmakers: schedule and pass SB 5651 to support Washingtonians living on a low income in our state.
Contact Your Lawmakers: [link removed]
We need progressive revenue, not budget cuts
Our state is facing a revenue shortfall over the next four years. Governor Ferguson has committed to exhausting options for budget cuts instead of pursuing options for progressive revenue, but we must urge lawmakers to take the opposite approach.
Even a 6% cut to vital resources like the Department of Social and Health Services would take over $702 million away from programs that serve low income families in Washington. During hard times, families rely on TANF, SNAP, and other services to get by, and these cuts would strand people who need support. Our state is still recovering from the harm that cutting vital programs and services caused during the Great Recession, and it would be a mistake to repeat this approach.
Instead of balancing the budget on the backs of Washingtonians living on a low income again, we should ask those who can afford it to pay their fair share. When families face difficult times financially, they don't just tighten their belts, they look for new opportunities for income. Washington has a clear opportunity - with progressive revenue, we can afford to meet this budget shortfall and maintain funding for vital programs that support our state's most vulnerable residents.
Tell your lawmakers: Pass progressive revenue, not budget cuts!
Contact Your Lawmakers: [link removed]
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Statewide Poverty Action Network
1501 N 45th Street
Seattle, WA 98103
United States
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