HOUSE BILL REPORT

ESHB 1702

BYHouse Committee on Local Government (originally sponsored by Representatives Nutley, Ferguson, Doty, Haugen, Brough and Nelson; by request of Washington State Local Governance Commission)

Revising provisions for annexation for municipal purposes.

House Committe on Local Government

Majority Report:  The substitute bill be substituted therefor and the substitute bill do pass.  (13)

      Signed by Representatives Haugen, Chair; Cooper, Vice Chair; Beck, Bumgarner, Butterfield, Dorn, Ferguson, Hine, Nealey, Nelson, Nutley, Rayburn and Zellinsky.

Minority Report:  Do not pass.  (1)

      Signed by Representative Jones.

House Staff:Steve Lundin (786-7127)

AS PASSED HOUSE FEBRUARY 11, 1988

BACKGROUND:

Cities and towns are authorized to annex territory through a variety of procedures, including:

(1)  A resolution/election method where a ballot proposition authorizing an annexation is submitted to the voters residing in the area proposed to be annexed upon adoption of a resolution proposing the annexation by the city or town council;

(2)  A petition/election method where a ballot proposition authorizing an annexation is submitted to the voters residing in the area proposed to be annexed upon the submission of a petition requesting the annexation that has been signed by voters residing in the area, and acceptance of the annexation by the city or town council;

(3)  A direct petition method where owners of the property in the area proposed to be annexed equal to at least 75 percent in value according to the assessed valuation for general taxation purposes sign a petition proposing the annexation and the city or town council approves the annexation.

The details of these annexation methods vary somewhat for code cities and non-code cities and towns.

Code cities are authorized to annex areas of 100 or fewer acres that are 80 percent or more contiguous with the city the following procedure: (1) the city holds a hearing on the proposal; and (2) the city adopts an ordinance causing the annexation within no less than 45 days after adoption of the ordinance during which time a petition, signed by voters residing within the area equal in number to at least 10 percent of the number of voters in the area who voted at the last state general election, can be filed requiring the annexation to be subjected to approval of the voters of the area.

Legislation was enacted in 1975 precluding a city or town from having its boundaries established at the centerline of the right- of-way of a public street, road or highway.

A city or town council is authorized to condition an annexation to the city or town on the acceptance of all or part of the indebtedness of the city or town.  Acceptance of this indebtedness, and the related property taxes, is given for an annexation made under the petition/election or resolution/election methods of annexation by approval of a ballot proposition authorizing acceptance of the indebtedness by a margin of at least sixty percent of the voters of the area proposing to be annexed who vote on the proposition, where the total number of votes cast is equal to at least forty percent of the number of votes cast in the area at the last preceding general election.

SUMMARY:

The petition/election method of annexation by cities and towns is altered as follows: (1) the signature requirement to initiate an annexation to a non-code city or town is reduced from signatures of voters equal in number to 20 percent of the voters in the area who cast votes at the last election to 10 percent who voted at the last state general election; and (2) the city or town council indicates to the county at which special election date the election on the annexation shall be held.

The direct petition method of annexation by cities and towns is altered as follows: (1) city and town councils are authorized to reject or geographically modify proposed annexations; (2) the signature requirement is reduced from the owners of 75 percent of the assessed value of the property to the owners of 60 percent of the assessed value of property; and (3) cities and towns are authorized to annex territory having 80 percent or more of its boundaries contiguous to the city or town upon the petition of owners of 50 percent of the value of property.

The signature requirement is increased for the number of voters necessary to force an election on the proposed annexation, under the special procedure for code cities to annex areas that are 80 percent or more contiguous to the city, from ten percent of the voters voting at the last general state election to forty percent of the voters voting at the last general state election.  The limitation of this special annexation procedure to areas that are 100 or fewer acres is eliminated.

Non-code cities and towns are authorized to annex areas that are 80 percent or more contiguous with the city or town under the same special procedures as a code city.

Cities and towns are authorized to provide public information on the effects of a pending annexation.

A city or town council can combine the ballot petition authorizing an election under the petition/election or resolution/election methods of annexation with the ballot proposition authorizing acceptance of all or part of the indebtedness of the city or town.

A process is established to adjust city or town boundary lines when one city or town has a boundary line within a right-of-way and another city or town annexes or incorporates up to this boundary line, and when only all or a portion of a right-of-way separates two cities or towns as their boundaries exist currently.

Cities or towns and counties are authorized to agree upon moving a city or town boundary that is within a right-of-way to one side or the other side of the right-of-way.

A portion of a county road that is immediately outside of a city is annexed into the city if the portion of the county road does not directly connect to other portions of the county road system.

A city that has been annexed by a fire district may enter into a joint service agreement with that fire district and another fire district that has territory annexed by the city.

Fiscal Note:      Not Requested.

Effective Date:The bill contains an emergency clause and takes effect immediately.

House Committee ‑ Testified For:    Joe Tovar, Washington Association of City Planning Directors; Jeannette Williams, Seattle City Council; Paul Grattet, City of Vancouver; Jim Williams, Washington Association of Counties; and Doug Baker, Washington Association of Cities.

House Committee - Testified Against:      None Presented.

House Committee - Testimony For:    We have the most difficult annexation statutes of any other state.  These changes make it only slightly easier to annex.  It is not good to have a city with boundaries within a right-of- way.

House Committee - Testimony Against:      None Presented.