4426.E [atlas:bill]

WHEREAS, Counties were originally created as political and administrative subdivisions of the state; and

WHEREAS, Counties provide services to all citizens within a county on behalf of the state; and

WHEREAS, Recent enactments, including the Growth Management Act, chapter 36.70A RCW, and the Local Service Agreement Act, chapter 36.115 RCW, have reenforced the role of counties as providers of regional services within their boundaries and on a multicounty basis; and

WHEREAS, The process initiated by the Local Service Agreement Act for determining how regional services should be delivered and funded in the state's eight largest counties is underway; and

WHEREAS, The Local Service Agreement Act requires counties, cities, and certain special districts to reach agreement on service delivery by January 1, 1997, or they must submit reports to the legislature if they are unable to reach agreement; and

WHEREAS, The Legislature requires either additional information to evaluate the agreements, or reports in terms of the need to provide services in the most efficient and cost-effective manner on the local level, or both; and

WHEREAS, The Legislature recognizes that the Growth Management Act, especially its provisions on urban growth areas and resulting annexations and incorporations, may be undermining the long-term financial ability of counties to continue providing regional services on behalf of the state; and

WHEREAS, Devolution of federal responsibility to state government will significantly affect counties as the state's primary agent on the local level; and

WHEREAS, The Legislature recognizes that it is necessary for county governments to be in a financial position to provide the services required of them by the state and its citizens;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, By the House of Representatives of the State of Washington, the Senate concurring, That a Commission on County Services and Resources, hereinafter referred to as the Commission, be established to evaluate the current ability of county government to maintain its status as both a regional service provider and as an agent of the state; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That:

The Commission shall make a report to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the President of the Senate, and the Governor, no later than December 31, 1996, that contains an analysis of and recommendations on the following items:

(1) Services that county governments are required to provide under state or federal law and current costs of those services in each county;

(2) Services other than those in subsection (1) above currently provided by one or more county governments and their respective costs in the counties offering them;

(3) Services that county governments are authorized to provide under state law but are not currently offered;

(4) Services that might be consolidated and offered on a regional basis for greater efficiency, and their potential funding sources;

(5) Federal, state, and local revenues currently received by counties, including taxes and fees;

(6) Identification of those county revenues that may be used at the discretion of the county legislative authority, and those revenues that are dedicated to specific uses;

(7) The effect of annexations and incorporations on the county tax base;

(8) The relationship between the county tax base and the state's tax base;

(9) As information becomes available, issues raised during the process mandated by the Local Service Agreement Act, as well as solutions developed through the process, that are likely to require legislative action; and

(10) Other matters as the Commission may deem necessary; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That:

The Commission shall consist of voting members appointed as follows:

(1) Four members of the Legislature, two appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, two appointed by the President of the Senate, one from each caucus of the respective houses;

(2) Two members from the Office of Financial Management and the Department of Community, Trade, and Economic Development;

(3) Four members from the Washington State Association of Counties, appointed jointly by the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate;

(4) Four members from the Association of Washington Cities, appointed jointly by the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate;

(5) One member from the Washington State Association of Sewer and Water Districts, appointed jointly by the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate;

(6) One member from the Washington State Fire Commissioners Association, appointed jointly by the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate; and

(7) The Lieutenant Governor, who shall serve as chair of the Commission; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That staffing for the Commission shall be provided by the finance committees of the House of Representatives and the Senate, the Office of Financial Management, the Department of Revenue, and the Washington State Association of Counties, with other state agencies and local governments providing assistance as needed.