AN ACT Relating to the authority of investigators of the attorney general's office;
Summary
HB 2156 authorizes the Washington Attorney General to designate certain investigators as limited authority Washington peace officers. These investigators must be employees of the Attorney General’s office whose duties include investigating suspected economic or financial crimes. The bill gives them authority to investigate those crimes, but it expressly does not give them the power to detain, arrest, or carry firearms.
The bill also limits how these investigators may serve search warrants. They may serve warrants only electronically on a business, and only after judicial approval; they may not physically serve search warrants for business records. In addition, the bill requires these investigators to meet applicable training and criminal background check requirements under state law, and it bars the Attorney General from employing anyone in this role if the person’s history would require denial, suspension, or revocation of peace officer certification. The measure clarifies that it does not change the investigative authority or criminal jurisdiction of other law enforcement agencies.
Impact
HB 2156 amends Washington law by adding a new section to chapter 43.10 RCW and expanding the Attorney General’s office’s enforcement capacity in economic and financial crime investigations. It creates a new category of limited authority peace officer for designated AG investigators, while preserving existing certification, training, and background-check standards and leaving other agencies’ jurisdiction unchanged. The practical effect is to give the Attorney General a more formalized investigative role in white-collar crime cases without creating a full arrest authority.
Sentiment
The voting history suggests the bill had meaningful but not overwhelming support. It passed the House and Senate, but several votes were relatively close, including a narrow Senate committee vote and a divided House final passage vote, indicating some concern even among supporters. Overall, the bill appears to have been viewed as a targeted law-enforcement modernization measure, with enough bipartisan or cross-chamber support to pass, but not broad consensus.
Contention
The main points of contention appear to have centered on whether Attorney General investigators should receive peace-officer status and how far that authority should extend. Supporters likely viewed the bill as a practical tool for investigating economic and financial crimes, while skeptics may have been concerned about expanding law-enforcement powers within the Attorney General’s office. The bill’s limits on arrest authority, firearms, and physical warrant service suggest those issues were important in shaping the final compromise, along with safeguards such as training, background checks, and certification restrictions.
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