WA bill giving AGO ‘enormous amount of power’ clears House committee

(The Center Square) – The Washington House Civil Rights and Judiciary Committee has voted to advance a bill that would give the State Attorney General’s Office expanded power to demand information from private individuals and entities without a judicial warrant.

While Democrat committee members such as Vice Chair Darya Farivar, D-Seattle, sought to portray the bill as giving the AGO more legal tools to protect the civil rights of state residents, Rep. Jim Walsh, R-Aberdeen, argued at the committee’s Feb. 24 vote on Senate Bill 5925 that it does the opposite.

Introduced at the request of the AGO, SB 5925 would expand the grounds for which the office could issue what is known as a ...