READ FIRST TIME 03/07/05.   

     AN ACT Relating to creating a job development fund; amending RCW 43.155.050; adding new sections to chapter 43.160 RCW; creating new sections; and providing an expiration date.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   The legislature has and continues to recognize the vital importance of economic development to the health and prosperity of Washington state as indicated in RCW 43.160.010, 43.155.070(4)(g), 43.163.005, and 43.168.010. The legislature finds that current economic development programs and funding, which are primarily low-interest loan programs, can be enhanced by creating a grant program to assist with public infrastructure projects that directly stimulate community and economic development by supporting the creation of new jobs or the retention of existing jobs.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   A new section is added to chapter 43.160 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The job development fund program is created to provide grants for public infrastructure projects that will stimulate job creation or assist in job retention. The program is to be administered by the board. The board shall establish a competitive process to request and prioritize proposals and make grant awards.
     (2) For the purposes of this act, "public infrastructure projects" has the same meaning as "public facilities" as defined in RCW 43.160.020(11).
     (3) The board shall conduct a statewide request for project applications. The board shall apply the following criteria for evaluation and ranking of applications:
     (a) The relative benefits provided to the community by the jobs the project would create, including, but not limited to: (i) The total number of jobs; (ii) the total number of full-time, family wage jobs; (iii) the unemployment rate in the area; and (iv) the increase in employment in comparison to total community population;
     (b) The present level of economic activity in the community and the existing local financial capacity to increase economic activity in the community;
     (c) The rate of return of the state's investment, that includes the expected increase in state and local tax revenues associated with the project;
     (d) The lack of another timely source of funding available to finance the project which would likely prevent the proposed community or economic development, absent the financing available under this act;
     (e) The ability of the project to improve the viability of existing business entities in the project area;
     (f) Whether or not the project is a partnership of multiple jurisdictions;
     (g) Demonstration that the requested assistance will directly stimulate community and economic development by facilitating the creation of new jobs or the retention of existing jobs; and
     (h) The availability of existing assets that applicants may apply to projects.
     (4) Job development fund program grants may only be awarded to those applicants that have entered into or expect to enter into a contract with a private developer relating to private investment that will result in the creation or retention of jobs upon completion of the project. Job development fund program grants shall not be provided for any project where:
     (a) The funds will not be used within the jurisdiction or jurisdictions of the applicants; or
     (b) Evidence exists that the project would result in a development or expansion that would displace existing jobs in any other community in the state.
     (5) The board shall, with the joint legislative audit and review committee, develop performance criteria for each grant and evaluation criteria to be used to evaluate both how well successful applicants met the community and economic development objectives stated in their applications, and how well the job development fund program performed in creating and retaining jobs.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   A new section is added to chapter 43.160 RCW to read as follows:
     The maximum grant from the job development fund for any one project is ten million dollars. Grant assistance from the job development fund may not exceed thirty-three percent of the total cost of the project. The nonstate portion of the total project cost may include cash, the value of real property when acquired solely for the purpose of the project, and in-kind contributions.

Sec. 4   RCW 43.155.050 and 2001 c 131 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) The public works assistance account is hereby established in the state treasury. Money may be placed in the public works assistance account from the proceeds of bonds when authorized by the legislature or from any other lawful source. Money in the public works assistance account shall be used to make loans and to give financial guarantees to local governments for public works projects. Moneys in the account may also be appropriated to provide for state match requirements under federal law for projects and activities conducted and financed by the board under the drinking water assistance account. Not more than fifteen percent of the biennial capital budget appropriation to the public works board from this account may be expended or obligated for preconstruction loans, emergency loans, or loans for capital facility planning under this chapter; of this amount, not more than ten percent of the biennial capital budget appropriation may be expended for emergency loans and not more than one percent of the biennial capital budget appropriation may be expended for capital facility planning loans.
     (2) The job development fund is hereby established in the state treasury. Up to fifty million dollars each biennium from the public works assistance account may be transferred into the job development fund. Money in the job development fund may be used solely for job development fund program grants, administrative expenses related to the administration of the job development fund program created in section 2 of this act, and for the report prepared by the joint legislative audit and review committee pursuant to section 5(2) of this act. Moneys in the job development fund may be spent only after appropriation. The board shall prepare a prioritized list of proposed projects of up to fifty million dollars as part of the department's 2007-09 biennial budget request. The board may provide an additional alternate job development fund project list of up to ten million dollars. The legislature may remove projects from the list recommended by the board. The legislature may not change the prioritization of projects recommended for funding by the board, but may add projects from the alternate list in order of priority, as long as the total funding does not exceed fifty million dollars.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 5   (1) The joint legislative audit and review committee shall conduct an inventory of all state public infrastructure programs and funds. The inventory shall identify: The public infrastructure state programs and funds and the purposes each serve; how the program or fund is implemented; the types of public infrastructure projects supported by the program or fund; the dollar amount of the projects funded by each program or fund; the balance of a fund, if applicable; and the geographic distribution of projects supported by a program or fund. Where applicable, the inventory shall identify overlaps or gaps in types of public infrastructure projects supported through state programs or funds. Where appropriate, the inventory shall evaluate the return on investment for economic development infrastructure programs. The inventory shall be delivered to the appropriate committees of the legislature by December 1, 2006.
     (2) By September 1, 2010, the joint legislative audit and review committee shall submit a report on the outcomes of the job development fund program to the appropriate committees of the legislature. The report shall apply the performance and evaluation criteria developed by the community economic revitalization board and the committee and shall include a project by project review detailing how the funds were used and whether the performance measures were met. The report shall also include impacts to the availability of low-interest and interest-free loans to local governments under RCW 43.155.055, 43.155.060, 43.155.065, and 43.155.068, resulting from appropriations to the job development fund. Information in the report shall include, but not be limited to:
     (a) The total funds appropriated from the public works assistance account to the job development account;
     (b) The ratio of loan requests submitted to the public works board as compared to actual money available for loans in the public works assistance account since the effective date of this act;
     (c) The total amount that would have been available for loans from the public works assistance account had this act not taken effect;
     (d) Identification of specific loan requests that would have qualified for funding under chapter 43.155 RCW had money been available in the public works assistance account;
     (e) Assessment of increased costs for otherwise qualifying projects where local governments were compelled to seek alternate funding sources.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 6   This act expires June 30, 2011.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 7   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.