5816 AMH LG H2825.2

SB 5816 - H COMM AMD

By Committee on Local Government

     Strike everything after the enacting clause and insert the following:

     "NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 36.32 RCW to read as follows:

     A county when calling for competitive bids for the procurement of road maintenance materials may award to multiple bidders for the same commodity when the bid specifications provide for the factors of haul distance to be included in the determination of which vendor is truly the lowest price to the county.  The county may readvertise for additional bidders and vendors if it deems it necessary in the public interest."

     "NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  A new section is added to chapter 36.88 RCW to read as follows:

     At its option, a county may include the value of right of way or property that is donated or given to the county for purposes of an improvement to be financed by a road improvement district, together with the costs of acquiring other rights of way or property for the improvement that was not donated or given to the county, in the costs of the improvement and credit or reduce the assessments imposed on benefited property for the value of the right of way or property that the owner of the benefited property donated or gave to the county for the improvement."

     "Sec. 3.  RCW 36.70.540 and 1963 c 4 s 36.70.540 are each amended to read as follows:

     Whenever a ((board)) county legislative authority has approved by motion and certified all or part of a comprehensive plan, no ((street)) road, square, park or other public ground or open space shall be acquired by dedication or otherwise((, no street shall be disposed of, closed or abandoned,)) and no public building or structure shall be constructed or authorized to be constructed in the area to which the comprehensive plan applies until its location, purpose and extent has been submitted to and reported upon by the planning agency.  The report by the planning agency shall set forth the manner and the degree to which the proposed project does or does not conform to the objectives of the comprehensive plan.  If final authority is vested by law in some governmental officer or body other than the ((board)) county legislative authority, such officer or governmental body shall report the project to the planning agency and the planning agency shall render its report to such officer or governmental body.  In both cases the report of the planning agency shall be advisory only.  Failure of the planning agency to report on such matter so referred to it within forty days or such longer time as the ((board)) county legislative authority or other governmental officer or body may indicate, shall be deemed to be approval."

     "Sec. 4.  RCW 47.76.030 and 1990 c 43 s 11 are each amended to read as follows:

     (1) The essential rail assistance account is hereby created in the state treasury.  Moneys in the account may be appropriated only for the purposes specified in this section.

     (2) Moneys appropriated from the account to the department of transportation may be distributed by the department to first class cities, county rail districts, counties, and port districts for the purpose of:

     (a) Acquiring, maintaining, or improving branch rail lines;

     (b) Operating railroad equipment necessary to maintain essential rail service;

     (c) Construction of transloading facilities to increase business on light density lines or to mitigate the impacts of abandonment; or

     (d) Preservation, including operation, of viable light density lines, as identified by the Washington state department of transportation, in compliance with this chapter.

     (3) First class cities, county rail districts, counties, and port districts may grant franchises to private railroads for the right to operate on lines acquired, repaired, or improved under this chapter.

     (4) If rail lines or rail rights of way are used by county rail districts, port districts, state agencies, or other public agencies for the purposes of rail operations and are later abandoned, the rail lines or rail rights of way cannot be used for any other purposes without the consent of the underlying fee title holder or reversionary rights holder, or compensation has been made to the underlying fee title holder or reversionary rights holder.

     (5) Moneys distributed under subsection (2) of this section shall not exceed eighty percent of the cost of the service or project undertaken.  At least twenty percent of the cost shall be provided by the first class city, county, port district, or other local sources.

     (6) The amount distributed under this section shall be repaid to the state by the first class city, county rail district, county, or port district.  The repayment shall occur within a period not longer than fifteen years, as set by the department, of the distribution of the moneys and shall be deposited in the essential rail assistance account.  The repayment schedule and rate of interest, if any, shall be set at the time of the distribution of the moneys.

     (7) All earnings of investments of balances in the essential rail assistance account shall be credited to that account except as provided in RCW 43.84.090 and 43.84.092."

     "Sec. 5.  RCW 47.76.040 and 1985 c 432 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:

     The department shall sell property acquired under RCW 47.76.030 to a county rail district established under chapter 36.60 RCW, a county, a port district, or any other public or private entity authorized to operate rail service.  Any public or private entity which originally donated funds to the department pursuant to RCW 47.76.030 shall receive credit against the purchase price for the amount donated to the department, less management costs, in the event such public or private entity purchases the property from the department.

     If no county rail district, county, port district, or other public or private entity authorized to operate rail service offers to purchase such property within six years after its acquisition by the department, the department may sell such property in the manner provided in RCW 47.76.050.  Failing this, the department may sell or convey all such property in the manner provided in RCW 47.76.060 or 47.76.080."

     "Sec. 6.  RCW 47.76.160 and 1990 c 43 s 7 are each amended to read as follows:

     (1) The essential rail banking account is created in the state treasury.  Moneys in the account may be spent only after appropriation.  Expenditures from the account may be used only for the purposes specified in this section.

     (2) Moneys in the account may be used by the department to:

     (a) Purchase unused rail rights of way; or

     (b) Provide up to eighty percent of the funding through loans to first class cities, port districts, counties, and county rail districts to purchase unused rail rights of way.

     (3) Use of the moneys pursuant to subsection (2) of this section shall be for rights of way that meet the following criteria:

     (a) The right of way has been identified, evaluated, and analyzed in the state rail plan prepared pursuant to this chapter;

     (b) The right of way may be or has been abandoned;

     (c) The right of way has potential for future rail service; and

     (d) Reestablishment of rail service would benefit the state of Washington; and this benefit shall be based on the public and private costs and benefits of reestablishing the service compared with alternative service including necessary road improvement costs, or of taking no action.

     Funds in the account may be expended for this purpose only with legislative appropriation.  Funds for acquisition of any line shall be expended only after obtaining the approval of the legislative transportation committee.  The department may also expend funds from the receipt of a donation of funds sufficient to cover the property acquisition and management costs.  The department may receive donations of funds for this purpose, which shall be conditioned upon, and made in consideration for the repurchase rights contained in RCW 47.76.040.  The department or the participating local jurisdiction shall be responsible for maintaining the right of way, including provisions for fire and weed control and for liability associated with ownership.  Nothing in this section and in RCW 47.76.140 and 47.76.030 shall be interpreted or applied so as to impair the reversionary rights of abutting landowners, if any, without just compensation.

     (4) All earnings of investments of balances in the essential rail banking account shall be credited to that account except as provided in RCW 43.84.090 and 43.84.092."

SB 5816 - H COMM AMD

By Committee on Local Government

     On page 1, line 1 of the title, after "counties;" strike the remainder of the title and insert "amending RCW 36.70.540, 47.76.030, 47.76.040, and 47.76.160; adding a new section to chapter 36.32 RCW; and adding a new section to chapter 36.88 RCW."