BP BHEAD INT S [atlas:bill]

AN ACT Relating to providing funding for the acquisition of salmon habitat and recreation areas; adding new sections to chapter 43.98A RCW; adding a new section to chapter 43.135 RCW; creating a new section; and providing for submission of this act to a vote of the people.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that:

(1) Washington possesses an abundance of natural wealth in the form of forests, mountains, wildlife, waters, and other natural resources, all of which help to provide a unique natural environment and a quality of life unmatched in this nation;

(2) As the state's population grows, the demand on these resources is growing too, resulting in a significant loss of salmon habitat and lands open to public use and enjoyment;

(3) Public acquisition and development programs have not kept pace with the state's expanding population or with the increased demand for recreation and public use areas;

(4) Public acquisition programs have not specifically targeted salmon or riparian habitat;

(5) If current trends continue, some fisheries species and opportunities for parks and open space will be lost in the state forever;

(6) There is a need for the people of the state to reserve certain areas of the state, in rural as well as urban settings, for the benefit of present and future generations.

Therefore, it is the policy of the state to expeditiously acquire the most significant lands for salmon conservation and for public use and recreation to meet the needs of present and future generations.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. The definitions in this section apply throughout sections 3 through 16 of this act unless the context clearly requires otherwise.

(1) "Acquisition" means the purchase from a willing seller of an interest in real property, including, but not limited to, fee simple, conservation easement, development rights, options to purchase, and rights of first refusal.

(2) "Critical salmon habitat" means lands and waters important for the survival, protection, management, or recovery of salmonids, including, but not limited to, riparian corridors, wetlands, estuaries, refugia, tidelands, and shorelines.

(3) "Committee" means the interagency committee for outdoor recreation.

(4) "Local agencies" means a city, county, town, tribe, special purpose district, port district, or other political subdivision of the state providing services to less than the entire state.

(5) "Public use" includes low-impact public recreation and educational uses and improvements that do not adversely affect a site's conservation value, are appropriate to the maintenance of the site in a substantially unmodified natural setting, and do not detract from long‑term ecological processes.

(6) "Recreation areas" means lands to be acquired for recreation or low-impact public use outside of urban growth areas, but within thirty miles of rapidly urbanizing areas for the development of state or regional parks.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. (1) The legacy acquisition account is established in the state treasury. The committee shall administer the account in accordance with RCW 43.99.110 through 43.99.130 and chapter . . ., Laws of 1999 (this act), and shall hold it separate and apart from all other money, funds, and accounts of the committee.

(2) Moneys deposited in the legacy acquisition account shall be invested as authorized for other state funds, and any earnings on them shall be credited to the account.

(3) All moneys deposited in the legacy acquisition account from bonds authorized by section 11 of this act, or other sources, shall be allocated under sections 4 through 10 of this act as grants to state or local agencies for acquisition of critical salmon habitat or recreation areas within the jurisdiction of those agencies, subject to legislative appropriation. The committee may use or permit the use of any funds in this account as matching funds where federal, local, or other funds are made available for projects within the purposes of chapter . . ., Laws of 1999 (this act).

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. (1) The committee may adopt rules establishing policies and priorities for distributions from the legacy acquisition account created in section 3 of this act.

(2) Moneys from bonds sold under section 11 of this act may be used for salmon habitat and recreation land acquisition, including costs incidental to acquisition, including, but not limited to, title search, surveying expenses, fencing, and signing. Moneys may not be used for the operation or maintenance of land acquired.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. (1) In determining funding priorities with respect to the legacy acquisition account created in section 3 of this act, the committee shall give highest priority to the acquisition of critical salmon habitat and recreation areas that best:

(a) Protect critical salmon habitat that is currently in good condition;

(b) Protect critical salmon habitat most at risk of development or conversion to a use incompatible with recovering salmon populations; and

(c) Provide land suitable for low-impact recreation or public use for state or regional parks in areas experiencing rapid population growth.

(2) In addition, when determining funding priorities with respect to the legacy acquisition account, the committee shall consider, at a minimum:

(a) Watersheds with federally listed salmonids;

(b) Watersheds in the salmon and steelhead stock inventory report; and

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. Moneys made available under this chapter for land acquisition shall not be used to acquire land through condemnation.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. Before October 1st of each year, the committee shall recommend to the governor a prioritized list of all projects to be granted funds under sections 4 through 10 of this act. The governor may remove projects from the list and shall submit this amended list in the capital budget request to the legislature. The list shall include, but not be limited to, a description of each project and any particular match requirement. The legislature shall appropriate funds requested by the governor in the budget from the legacy acquisition account to the interagency committee for outdoor recreation for allocation and disbursement.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. The committee shall not sign contracts or otherwise financially obligate funds from the legacy acquisition account created in section 3 of this act before the legislature has appropriated funds for a specific list of projects. The legislature may remove projects from the list recommended by the governor.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. On or before November 1st of each odd‑numbered year, the committee shall submit to the governor and the standing committees of the legislature dealing with fiscal affairs, fish and wildlife, and natural resources a report detailing the acquisitions and development projects granted funds under chapter . . ., Laws of 1999 (this act) during the immediately preceding biennium.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 10. Grants, gifts, other financial assistance, proceeds received from public bodies as administrative cost contributions, and moneys made available to the state of Washington by the federal government for conservation purposes, may be deposited into the legacy acquisition account created in section 3 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 11. In order to provide funds necessary for the acquisition of critical salmon habitat and recreation areas, there shall be issued and sold upon the request of the committee a maximum of one billion dollars of general obligation bonds of the state of Washington. The acquisition of critical salmon habitat and recreation areas in accordance with chapter . . ., Laws of 1999 (this act) shall be a "single work or object" for the purposes of Article VIII, section 3 of the state Constitution.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 12. (1) Upon the request of the committee, the state finance committee shall supervise and provide for the issuance, sale, and retirement of the bonds authorized by section 11 of this act in accordance with chapter 39.42 RCW. These bonds shall be sold in such manner, at such time or times, in such amounts, and at such price as the state finance committee shall determine. These bonds shall be paid and discharged within thirty years of the date of issuance. No such bonds may be offered for sale without prior legislative appropriation of the net proceeds of the sale of the bonds.

(2) The state finance committee shall consider the issuance of short-term obligations in lieu of long-term obligations for the purposes of more favorable interest rates, lower total interest costs, and increased marketability, and for the purpose of retiring the bonds during the life of the project for which they were issued.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 13. The proceeds from the sale of bonds authorized by section 11 of this act shall be deposited in the legacy acquisition account created in section 3 of this act. The proceeds shall be available only for the purposes provided for in chapter . . ., Laws of 1999 (this act), for the payment of bond anticipation notes, if any, and for the payment of bond issuance costs, including the costs of underwriting.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 14. Bonds issued under the authority of section 11 of this act shall state that they are a general obligation of the state of Washington, shall pledge the full faith and credit of the state to the payment of the principal thereof and the interest thereon, and shall contain an unconditional promise to pay such principal and interest as it becomes due.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 15. Both principal and interest on the bonds issued under the authority of section 11 of this act shall be payable from a special account to be created by the state finance committee. The state finance committee shall, on or before June 30th of each year, certify to the state treasurer the amount required for principal and interest on the bonds in accordance with the bond proceedings. The state treasurer shall withdraw revenues from the general fund and deposit in the special account created by the state finance committee such amounts and at such times as are required by the bond proceedings.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 16. Bonds issued under authority of section 11 of this act shall not be considered an indebtedness for the purposes of RCW 39.42.060 or for calculating any other statutory debt limit.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 17. A new section is added to chapter 43.135 RCW to read as follows:

RCW 43.135.035(4) does not apply to section 15 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 18. If any provision of this act or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the act or the application of the provision to other persons or circumstances is not affected.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 19. The secretary of state shall submit this act to the people for their adoption and ratification, or rejection, at the next general election to be held in this state, in accordance with Article VIII, section 3 of the state Constitution and the laws adopted to facilitate its operation.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 20. Sections 2 through 16 of this act are each added to chapter 43.98A RCW.