AN ACT Relating to supporting warehousing and manufacturing job centers; adding new sections to chapter 82.14 RCW; creating a new section; providing an effective date; providing an expiration date; and declaring an emergency.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature recognizes that changes in sales tax sourcing laws created a significant negative fiscal impact on communities with a concentration of warehousing, manufacturing, and shipping. These communities are vital job centers to our state economy. Furthermore, the infrastructure demands to support these industries are significant. The legislature hereby creates the warehousing and manufacturing job center assistance program to provide these communities with revenue to mitigate the negative fiscal impact of changes in sales tax sourcing laws and fund important infrastructure to maintain these key job centers.

(1)(a) In order to mitigate local sales tax revenue net losses as a result of the sourcing provisions of the streamlined sales and use tax agreement under this title, the state treasurer, on October 1, 2021, and each July 1st thereafter through July 1, 2026, must transfer into the manufacturing and warehousing job centers account from the general fund the sum required to mitigate actual net losses as determined under this section.

(b) The payment required under (a) of this subsection for October 1, 2021, must be for double the amount determined pursuant to subsection (2) of this section.

(2) The department shall provide each qualified local taxing district a quarterly mitigation payment from the warehousing and manufacturing job center assistance program equal to the streamlined sales tax mitigation payment that was provided to that qualified local taxing district on June 30, 2020. Starting July 1, 2022, the amount of the quarterly mitigation payment shall be reduced by 20 percent from the previous year's payment for that same quarter for each qualified local taxing district.

(3) For the purposes of this section, "qualified local taxing district" means a city that received a quarterly streamlined sales tax mitigation payment from the state on June 30, 2020, of at least $60,000.

The manufacturing and warehousing job centers account is created in the state treasury. All receipts from section 2 of this act must be deposited into the account. Moneys in the account may be spent only after appropriation. Expenditures from the account may be used only for the purpose of mitigating the negative fiscal impacts to local taxing jurisdictions as a result of RCW 82.14.490 and 82.14.020.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and takes effect July 1, 2021.