Brief Description: Retaining the distribution of city hardship assistance program funds to cities and towns for street maintenance.

Sponsors: Senate Committee on Transportation (originally sponsored by Senators Kauffman, Holmquist, Haugen, Clements, Rasmussen and Shin; by request of Transportation Improvement Board).

Senate Committee on Transportation
House Committee on Transportation

Background: The City Hardship Assistance Program (CHAP) is a special maintenance program for cities with populations of less than 20,000 that take over state routes. There are currently 15 cities eligible to receive CHAP funds. CHAP funds total about $1.6 million a biennium. Residual CHAP funding, if any, is ratably returned to cities based on population. A total of $1.5 million in CHAP funds have been returned to cities since 1998.

The Small City Preservation and Sidewalk Account was created and funded at a level of $2 million a biennium by the Legislature in 2006 for the purpose of funding preservation programs in cities with populations of less than 5,000.

Summary: CHAP funds are moved from the Urban Arterial Trust Account to the Small City Preservation and Sidewalk Account. CHAP eligible projects would continue to be funded first, and any remaining CHAP funds would be used to fund additional small city preservation projects instead of being ratably returned to cities.

Votes on Final Passage:

Senate      46   1
House      98   0

Effective:   July 22, 2007