On June 7, 2018, House Bill 1783 became effective. What that means is that there is no more 12% interest imposed on newly convicted individuals and no more interest accrual on existing LFOs, excluding victim restitution!
This is a huge improvement. But significantly, it is not retroactive. So everyone with LFOs, including all the participants on this project, still owe what they owe. And the interest already accrued does not go away.
Every single individual with non-restitution LFOs now has to go to court to request a waiver of their interest. And yet, there is little legal aid available to assist and even less for those who need an interpreter.
So while we CELEBRATE, we are also not going to forget about everyone with accrued interest. Stay tuned!
A woman and child leaving the Spokane County Courthouse.