BILL REQ. #:  H-4404.2 

Read first time 01/27/2004.   Referred to Committee on Transportation.

     AN ACT Relating to vehicle tires; amending RCW 70.95.510, 70.95.530, and 70.95.535; and adding a new section to chapter 70.95 RCW.

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

Sec. 1   RCW 70.95.510 and 1989 c 431 s 92 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) There is levied a one dollar per tire fee on the retail sale of new replacement vehicle tires ((for a period of five years, beginning October 1, 1989)). The fee imposed in this section shall be paid by the buyer to the seller, and each seller shall collect from the buyer the full amount of the fee. The fee collected from the buyer by the seller ((less the ten percent amount retained by the seller as provided in RCW 70.95.535 shall)) must be paid to the department of revenue in accordance with RCW 82.32.045, and the proceeds remaining after the deposit required by subsections (3) and (4) of this section, must be deposited into the vehicle tire recycling account created under section 2 of this act. All other applicable provisions of chapter 82.32 RCW have full force and application with respect to the fee imposed under this section. The department of revenue shall administer this section.
     (2) For the purposes of this section, "new replacement vehicle tires" means tires that are newly manufactured for vehicle purposes and used tires available for resale, but does not include retreaded vehicle tires.
     (3) Of the one-dollar fee imposed in subsection (1) of this section, thirty cents must be deposited into the motor vehicle account and must be used by the department of transportation for road maintenance, which must incorporate the use of material derived from scrap tires.
     (4) Of the one-dollar fee imposed in subsection (1) of this section, three cents must be deposited into the state patrol highway account and must be used by the state patrol for business inspection and enforcement activities under RCW 46.55.230, 46.79.090, 46.80.150, and 47.41.070.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   A new section is added to chapter 70.95 RCW to read as follows:
     The vehicle tire recycling account is created within the state treasury. After the deposit of funds into the motor vehicle account as provided for in RCW 70.95.510(3) and the state patrol highway account as provided for in RCW 70.95.510(4), the remaining funds received under RCW 70.95.510(1) must be deposited into the vehicle tire recycling account and used by the department of ecology for purposes including but not limited to those specified in RCW 70.95.535. The department of revenue shall deduct two percent from the funds collected under RCW 70.95.510 for the purpose of administering and collecting the fee from new replacement tire retailers.

Sec. 3   RCW 70.95.530 and 1988 c 250 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     Moneys in the vehicle tire recycling account may be appropriated to the department of ecology for the following purposes:
     (1) To provide ((for)) funding to state and local governments for the removal of discarded vehicle tires from ((unauthorized)) illegal tire ((dump sites)) piles;
     (2) To ((accomplish the other purposes of RCW 70.95.020(5); and
     (3) To fund the study authorized in section 2, chapter 250, Laws of 1988)) support the programs provided for in RCW 70.95.535(2).
     In spending funds in the account under this section, the department of ecology shall identify communities with the most severe problems with waste tires and prioritize sites with greater than one thousand waste tires. The department shall provide funds first to those ((communities)) counties with high-priority sites to remove accumulations of waste tires.

Sec. 4   RCW 70.95.535 and 1989 c 431 s 93 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Every person engaged in making retail sales of new replacement vehicle tires in this state ((shall retain ten percent of the collected)) may collect a service fee that is separate from the one- dollar fee collected under RCW 70.95.510. The moneys ((retained may)) from the service fee must be used for costs associated with the proper management of the waste vehicle tires by the retailer.
     (2) The department of ecology will administer the funds contained in the vehicle tire recycling account for ((the)) purposes ((specified in RCW 70.95.020(5))) including, but not limited to:
     (a) ((Making grants to local governments for pilot demonstration projects for on-site shredding and recycling of tires from unauthorized dump sites;
     (b))) Competitive grants to ((local)) county governments for removal of illegal waste tire piles and enforcement programs;
     (((c))) (b) Implementation of a public information and education program to include posters, signs, and informational materials to be distributed to retail tire sales and tire service outlets;
     (((d))) (c) Product marketing studies for recycled tires and alternatives to land disposal;
     (d) Scrap tire demonstration projects including those implemented by state agencies;
     (e) Statewide illegal tire pile cleanups, as provided for in RCW 70.95.530, and local citizen scrap tire amnesty events;
     (f) Statewide tire carrier tracking, reporting, and enforcement of the movement of tires within this state.
     (3) No less than twenty-three percent of the funds contained in the vehicle tire recycling account must be awarded to county governments for removal of illegal waste tire piles.
     (4) County governments that are recipients of the enforcement program grant funding must submit an annual report to the department of ecology for each year the grant funding is expended, detailing the uses of the funds and including information on what enforcement activities were supported with the grant funds.