OLYMPIA -- A proposal to give judges more flexibility in dealing with disputes on the boards of nonprofit corporations sailed through the House of Representatives today.

HB 3046 essentially gives a Superior Court judge the same options in dealing with a deadlocked nonprofit as with a dispute on a for-profit corporation, Rep. John Driscoll, D-Spokane, said.

Although a Senate version of this bill was attacked at a committee hearing (for previous story, click here) as interfering in a dispute between the owners of Deaconess Medical Center and Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center of Inland Northwest Health Systems, the House version is prospective only, Driscoll said. It wouldn't apply to any action currently in the courts.

It passed 97-0, and heads to the Senate.

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