H-0919.1

SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 1456

ByHouse Community & Economic Development (originally sponsored by Representatives Rule, Ramel, Robertson, Lekanoff, Shewmake, and Harris-Talley)

AN ACT Relating to minimum staffing levels for Washington main street programs; adding a new section to chapter 43.360 RCW; and providing an expiration date.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 43.360 RCW to read as follows:

(1) The department must establish a pilot project grant program to award grants to programs applying for designation as an official local main street program. The purpose of the grant program is to assist with costs related to establishing a minimum level of staffing as required by the department.

(2) The department must establish criteria for awarding grants under this section. At a minimum, the department must require that grant applicant programs:

(a) Be located within a city with a population of fewer than 20,000;

(b) Be an established 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(6) nonprofit organization with the sole mission of revitalizing a historic downtown commercial district;

(c) Report to the department on the diversity of the program's overseeing board;

(d) Have no paid staff at the time of application; and

(e) Pay their program's executive director a competitive salary that is equal to or more than the industry standard for similar jobs in the same geographic area.

(3) Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for this specific purpose, the department must provide for ongoing additional staff as needed to administer the grant program created in this section.

(4) This section expires June 30, 2025.

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