H-3991.1  _______________________________________________

 

                          HOUSE BILL 2921

          _______________________________________________

 

State of Washington      56th Legislature     2000 Regular Session

 

By Representatives Dunn, Morris, Van Luven, Veloria and Santos

 

Read first time 01/24/2000.  Referred to Committee on Economic Development, Housing & Trade.

Concerning a sales and use tax enacted by an Indian tribe to finance public facilities.


    AN ACT Relating to public facility infrastructure development by Indian tribes; and amending RCW 82.14.370.

 

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

 

    Sec. 1.  RCW 82.14.370 and 1999 c 311 s 101 are each amended to read as follows:

    (1) The legislative authority of a rural county may impose a sales and use tax in accordance with the terms of this chapter.  The tax is in addition to other taxes authorized by law and shall be collected from those persons who are taxable by the state under chapters 82.08 and 82.12 RCW upon the occurrence of any taxable event within the county.  The rate of tax shall not exceed 0.08 percent of the selling price in the case of a sales tax or value of the article used in the case of a use tax, except that for rural counties with population densities between sixty and one hundred persons per square mile, the rate shall not exceed 0.04 percent before January 1, 2000.

    (((2))) The tax imposed under this subsection (((1) of this section)) shall be deducted from the amount of tax otherwise required to be collected or paid over to the department of revenue under chapter 82.08 or 82.12 RCW.  The department of revenue shall perform the collection of such taxes on behalf of the county at no cost to the county.

    (((3))) (2) A sales and use tax enacted by an Indian tribe in accordance with this section shall be credited against the state sales and use tax under chapter 82.08 or 82.12 RCW.  The tax shall be collected from those persons who are taxable by the state under chapters 82.08 and 82.12 RCW upon the occurrence of any taxable event within the reservation or on trust land.  The rate of tax shall not exceed 0.08 percent of the selling price in the case of a sales tax or value of the article used in the case of a use tax.

    (3) The tribal government must submit a copy of the enactment authorizing the tax to the department of revenue as a condition of receiving the credit under this section.  The department of revenue shall enter into an agreement with the tribe regarding the collection and distribution of proceeds to the tribe.  The agreement shall provide that the proceeds of the tax be used in accordance with subsection (4)(a) of this section and shall include a mechanism for oversight and review, such as a review of audit documents or use of a third party to certify accounts.  The agreement shall also include a provision regarding reimbursement for administration and collection expenses of the department of revenue, which reimbursement shall not exceed the percentage required of local governments under RCW 82.14.050.

    (4)(a) Moneys collected under this section shall only be used for the purpose of financing public facilities in rural counties or on Indian trust land or Indian reservations.  However, a tribe that as of the effective date of this section does not have a comprehensive planning process in place may use the proceeds of the tax to institute such a process.  Moneys collected under this section may not be used by a tribe to construct or remodel a commercial building or structure.

    (b) For those counties that plan under RCW 36.70A.040, the public facility must be listed as an item in the officially adopted county overall economic development plan, or the economic development section of the county's comprehensive plan, or the comprehensive plan of a city or town located within the county ((for those counties planning under RCW 36.70A.040)).  For those counties that do not have an adopted overall economic development plan and do not plan under the growth management act, the public facility must be listed in the county's capital facilities plan or the capital facilities plan of a city or town located within the county.  In implementing this section, the county shall consult with cities, towns, and port districts located within the county.  ((For the purposes of this section,))

    (5) The definitions in this subsection apply throughout this section unless the context clearly requires otherwise.

    (a) "Public facilities" means bridges, roads, domestic and industrial water facilities, sanitary sewer facilities, earth stabilization, storm sewer facilities, railroad, electricity, natural gas, buildings, structures, telecommunications infrastructure, transportation infrastructure, or commercial infrastructure, and port facilities in the state of Washington.

    (((4) No tax may be collected under this section before July 1, 1998.)) (b) "Reservation" means all lands, notwithstanding the issuance of any patent, within the exterior boundaries of areas set aside by the United States for the use and occupancy of Indian tribes by treaty, law, or executive order and which are areas recognized as "Indian reservations" by the United States department of the interior.

    (c) "Rural county" means a county with a population density of less than one hundred persons per square mile as determined by the office of financial management and published each year by the department for the period July 1st to June 30th.

    (d) "Tribe" or "Indian tribe" means a federally recognized Indian tribe.

    (e) "Tribal government" means the governing body of a federally recognized Indian tribe.

    (f) "Trust land" means land held in trust by the United States for an individual Indian or Indian nation, tribe, band, or community.

    (6)  No tax may be collected under this section by a county more than twenty-five years after the date that a tax is first imposed under this section.

    (((5) For purposes of this section, "rural county" means a county with a population density of less than one hundred persons per square mile as determined by the office of financial management and published each year by the department for the period July 1st to June 30th.))

 


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