S-3813.1  _______________________________________________

                         SENATE BILL 6412

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      55th Legislature     1998 Regular Session

By Senators McCaslin, Patterson, Heavey, Roach, Haugen and Schow

Read first time 01/19/98.  Referred to Committee on Government Operations.

Limiting voters of a port commissioner district to elect commissioners in districts with populations of five hundred thousand or more.

    AN ACT Relating to voting for port commissioners; amending RCW 53.12.010; and adding a new section to chapter 53.12 RCW.

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

    Sec. 1.  RCW 53.12.010 and 1994 c 223 s 81 are each amended to read as follows:

    (1) The powers of the port district shall be exercised through a port commission consisting of three or, when permitted by this title, five members.

    Every port district that is not coextensive with a county having a population of five hundred thousand or more and every port district with a population of one million or more shall be divided into the same number of commissioner districts as there are commissioner positions, each having approximately equal population, unless provided otherwise under subsection (2) of this section.  Where a port district with three commissioner positions and three commissioner districts is coextensive with the boundaries of a county ((that has a population of less than five hundred thousand)) and the county has three county legislative authority districts, the port commissioner districts shall be the county legislative authority districts.  In other instances where a port district is divided into commissioner districts, the port commission shall divide the port district into commissioner districts unless the commissioner districts have been described pursuant to RCW 53.04.031.  The commissioner districts shall be altered as provided in chapter 53.16 RCW.

    Commissioner districts shall be used as follows:  (a) Only a registered voter who resides in a commissioner district may be a candidate for, or hold office as, a commissioner of the commissioner district; and (b) only the voters of a commissioner district may vote at a primary to nominate candidates for a commissioner of the commissioner district.  Voters of the entire port district may vote at a general election to elect a person as a commissioner of the commissioner district.

    (2) In port districts with five commissioners, two of the commissioner districts may include the entire port district if approved by the voters of the district either at the time of formation or at a subsequent port district election at which the issue is proposed pursuant to a resolution adopted by the board of commissioners and delivered to the county auditor.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  A new section is added to chapter 53.12 RCW to read as follows:

    If the commissioners of a port district wish to have their district exempted from the requirement of RCW 53.12.010 that the port district be divided into districts of approximately equal population, the commissioners may place on the next general election ballot following the effective date of this section the following measure:  "Shall the port of . . . elect all of its commissioners at large, instead of by separate district?"  The request shall be in the form of a resolution consistent with RCW 29.13.020.  The measure shall be advertised as required by RCW 29.27.060, and shall be considered enacted if approved by a majority of voters voting on the measure.

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