(1) Expenditures for the individual and family services waiver and the basic plus waiver administered under Title 71A RCW must be considered by the governor and the legislature for inclusion in maintenance level budgets beginning with the governor's budget proposal submitted in December 2022 and funding for these expenditures are subject to amounts appropriated for this specific purpose. The department of social and health services must annually submit a budget request for these expenditures.

(2) Beginning with the governor's budget proposal submitted in December 2022 and within the department's existing appropriations, the department of social and health services must annually submit a budget request for expenditures for the number of individuals who are expected to reside in state-operated living alternatives administered by the developmental disabilities administration under Title 71A RCW.

Findings—Intent—2022 c 219: "(1) The legislature finds that the recommendations in the December 2019 report, "Rethinking Intellectual and Developmental Disability Policy to Empower Clients, Develop Providers, and Improve Services" and recommendations in the 2021 preliminary report of the joint executive and legislative task force established in chapter 317, Laws of 2020 are the product of deliberations among a diverse and dedicated group of stakeholders and are critical to advancing the continuum of care for individuals with developmental disabilities.

(2) The legislature intends to continue efforts to expand community residential settings and supports with the goals of reducing the risk of federal divestment from Washington's intermediate care facilities and delivering appropriate care to clients of the developmental disabilities administration. To that end, the legislature finds that a reliable network of community providers is critical to meeting these goals and that community residential rates must be established at appropriate levels to ensure that individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities have community residential options that appropriately address their needs and ensure stable, permanent outcomes.

(3) The legislature also finds that it is imperative that internal processes within the department of social and health services, including those that guide eligibility determinations, assess hours of service delivery, and measure quality of providers, be examined to ensure that these systems function in the most streamlined and efficient manner with the goal of achieving a system that has greater consistency with regard to expectations and requirements of providers and that is structured to be more person-centered and user-friendly at interface." [ 2022 c 219 § 1.]