OLYMPIA — Under a new law that takes effect Sunday, parents in Washington will no longer be able to cite philosophical or personal beliefs to exempt their children from the combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccine that’s required for attendance at private and public schools and day care centers.
More than 80 cases of measles have been reported in the state this year, with the 10 most recent cases reported in King County between May and mid-July. A previous outbreak was centered in Clark County, where a majority of the cases involved children age 10 and younger.
Washington was one of three states that passed legislation this year in response to measles outbreaks. Maine removed personal and religious belief exemptions for public school immunization requirements earlier this year, and New York removed religious exemptions last month.
California removed nonmedical vaccine exemptions for children in both public and private schools in 2015, after a measles outbreak at Disneyland sickened 147 people and spread across the U.S. and into Canada. Vermont abandoned its personal exemption that same year. Other than California, Mississippi and West Virginia are the only other states that don’t allow either a religious or philosophical exemption.
Washington is now among just 15 states that allow some type of nonmedical vaccine exemption for personal or philosophical beliefs. In addition, medical and religious exemptions exist for attendance at the state’s public or private schools or licensed day-care centers and those two exemptions for the combined MMR vaccine remain in place under the measure passed by the Washington Legislature earlier this year. The new law also requires staff and volunteers of licensed child care centers to be immunized against measles.
Unless an exemption is claimed, children are required to be vaccinated against or show proof of acquired immunity for nearly a dozen diseases — including polio, whooping cough and measles — before they can attend school or go to child care centers.
The vaccine exemption bill was one of nearly 500 bills passed during the 105-day legislative session that concluded at the end of April. While dozens of the measures have varying effective dates, more than 400 of those bills take effect Sunday. Here’s a look at just a few:
OIL TRAIN RESTRICTIONS: New restrictions on oil trains from the Northern Plains to guard against explosive derailments have already drawn a challenge, with attorneys general for North Dakota and Montana asking the Trump administration to overrule the new law. The law requires oil shipped by rail through the state to have more volatile gases removed to reduce the risk of explosive and potentially deadly derailments.
SEXUAL ASSAULT-STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS: The statute of limitation for a group of the most serious sex crimes against children, including first through third-degree rape, is removed for victims who were under 16 at the time of the crime. Limits of time to report rape involving older victims would be extended to as much as twenty years, depending on the charge. The new law also alters consent rules by removing active resistance from the definition of third-degree rape. The definition of the crime is modified to mean sex without consent — given by words or action — from the victim.
MARIJUANA CONVICTIONS: People with previous misdemeanor marijuana possession convictions face a lower burden to have those convictions vacated. Previously, a sentencing court had the discretion to vacate an applicant’s misdemeanor conviction record, except in several circumstances, including where criminal charges are pending against the person, fewer than three years have passed since they completed their sentence, or if they’ve been convicted of a new crime since the date of conviction. Under the new law, the court will be required to vacate any applicant’s conviction record provided they were 21 or older when the prior misdemeanor marijuana conviction occurred.
TENANT PROTECTIONS: Lawmakers approved a package of tenant protections that extend eviction notices from three days to 14, ban eviction for nonpayment of fees, and require payments go to rent before fees. The new law also gives new power to judges, allowing them to temporarily block evictions based on factors including a tenants’ good-faith effort to pay. Another measure taking effect this weekend requires landlords to provide renters a minimum of 60 days’ notice of an increase in rent. For people in subsidized housing where rent is based on income or other circumstances, landlords must provide a minimum of 30 days’ notice of an increase in rent.
