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                       ENGROSSED SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 1546

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State of Washington              52nd Legislature             1991 Regular Session

By House Committee on Local Government (originally sponsored by Representatives Nelson, Haugen, Brough, Hine, Locke, Heavey, Valle, G. Fisher, O'Brien, Zellinsky, R. Fisher, Rust, Brekke, Belcher, Prentice, H. Sommers, Cole, Jacobsen, Phillips and Braddock).

Read first time March 6, 1991.  Changing provisions relating to property tax levies by port districts.

     AN ACT Relating to port districts; adding a new section to chapter 53.36 RCW; and adding a new section to chapter 53.08 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 53.36 RCW to read as follows:

     A port district with a population of one hundred thousand or more may not impose a nonvoter-approved tax levy under RCW 53.36.020 or 53.36.100 in any year unless, prior to imposing or requesting the imposition of such a nonvoter-approved tax levy, the port prepares a study justifying the imposition of the property tax levy and holds a public hearing on the study at which it shall receive public testimony on the proposed nonvoter-approved tax levy or levies.

     The study shall address the following:  (1) An analysis of the proposed tax dollars and other public benefits that the port district receives; (2) a comparison of these tax dollars and other public benefits that the port district receives with any tax dollars and other public benefits that other public maritime shipping port authorities in California, Oregon, and British Columbia receive, including both dollar amounts and the relative percentage of supplement that each receives; (3) a description of purposes for which these tax dollars will be expended; and (4) a justification of the use of the proposed property tax dollars.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  A new section is added to chapter 53.08 RCW to read as follows:

     A port district with a population of one hundred thousand or more may not pay bonuses to its employees or officials.