H-4218.1          _______________________________________________

                                  HOUSE BILL 2799

                  _______________________________________________

State of Washington              52nd Legislature             1992 Regular Session

By Representatives Edmondson, Rayburn, Lisk and Chandler

Read first time 01/28/92.  Referred to Committee on Revenue.Increasing from two to three percent the special excise tax on lodging.

     AN ACT Relating to cities and counties; and amending RCW 67.28.240.

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

     Sec. 1.  RCW 67.28.240 and 1991 c 363 s 140 are each amended to read as follows:

     (1) The legislative body of a county that qualified under RCW 67.28.180(2)(b) other than a county with a population of one million or more and the legislative bodies of cities in the qualifying county are each authorized to levy and collect a special excise tax of ((two)) three percent on the sale of or charge made for the furnishing of lodging by a hotel, rooming house, tourist court, motel, trailer camp, and the granting of any similar license to use real property, as distinguished from the renting or leasing of real property.  For the purposes of this tax, it shall be presumed that the occupancy of real property for a continuous period of one month or more constitutes a rental or lease of real property and not a mere license to use or to enjoy the same.

     (2) No city may impose the special excise tax authorized in subsection (1) of this section during the time the city is imposing the tax under RCW 67.28.180, and no county may impose the special excise tax authorized in subsection (1) of this section until such time as those cities within the county containing at least one-half of the total incorporated population have imposed the tax.

     (3) Any county ordinance or resolution adopted under this section shall contain, in addition to all other provisions required to conform to this chapter, a provision allowing a credit against the county tax for the full amount of any city tax imposed under this section upon the same taxable event.

     (4) Any seller, as defined in RCW 82.08.010, who is required to collect any tax under this section shall pay over such tax to the county or city as provided in RCW 67.28.200.  The deduction from state taxes under RCW 67.28.190 does not apply to taxes imposed under this section.