BILL REQ. #:  S-1306.2 

Read first time 02/14/2007.   Referred to Committee on Transportation.

     AN ACT Relating to funding certain regional transportation investment district projects; amending RCW 36.120.130, 82.14.430, and 81.100.060; adding a new section to chapter 36.120 RCW; and repealing 2006 c 318 s 2.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   A new section is added to chapter 36.120 RCW to read as follows:
     Funding allocated for transportation projects in Pierce county, identified in the regional transportation investment plan submitted to voters at the 2007 general election under RCW 36.120.070(2), must be allocated based upon completing projects in the following priority order:
     (1) State route number 167 extension stage 1: Connect state route number 509 to Interstate 5 with no high-occupancy vehicle lanes or high-occupancy vehicle lane freeway-to-freeway connections;
     (2) State route number 704 (Cross-Base Highway); and
     (3) State route number 167 extension stages 2 and 3: New section of state route number 167 from Interstate 5 to state route number 161 in the city of Puyallup, including a connection to Interstate 5, but not to include high-occupancy vehicle lanes or high-occupancy vehicle lane freeway-to-freeway connections. Stage 3 must include an interchange at Valley Avenue.

Sec. 2   RCW 36.120.130 and 2003 c 372 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1)(a) Notwithstanding RCW 39.36.020(1), the district may at any time contract indebtedness or borrow money for district purposes and may issue general obligation bonds or other evidences of indebtedness, secured by the pledge of one or more of the taxes, tolls, charges, or fees authorized to be imposed by the district, in an amount not exceeding, together with any existing indebtedness of the district not authorized by the voters, one and one-half percent of the value of the taxable property within the boundaries of the district.
     (b) With the assent of three-fifths of the voters voting at an election, a district may contract indebtedness or borrow money for district purposes and may issue general obligation bonds or other evidences of indebtedness as long as the total indebtedness of the district does not exceed five percent of the value of the taxable property within the district, including indebtedness authorized under (a) of this subsection. The bonds shall be issued and sold in accordance with chapter 39.46 RCW.
     (2) The district may at any time issue revenue bonds or other evidences of indebtedness, secured by the pledge of one or more of the revenues authorized to be collected by the district, to provide funds to carry out its authorized functions without submitting the matter to the voters of the district. These obligations shall be issued and sold in accordance with chapter 39.46 RCW.
     (3) The district may enter into agreements with the lead agencies or the state of Washington, when authorized by the plan, to pledge taxes or other revenues of the district for the purpose of paying in part or whole principal and interest on bonds issued by the lead agency or the state of Washington. The agreements pledging revenues and taxes shall be binding for their terms, but not to exceed thirty years, and no tax pledged by an agreement may be eliminated or modified if it would impair the pledge made in any agreement.
     (4) Once construction of projects in the plan has been completed, revenues collected by the district may only be used for the following purposes: (a) Payment of principal and interest on outstanding indebtedness of the district; (b) to make payments required under a pledging agreement; and (c) to make payments for maintenance and operations of toll facilities as may be required by toll bond covenants.
     (5) As part of the regional transportation investment plan submitted to voters at the 2007 general election under RCW 36.120.070(2), the district shall issue general obligation bonds or other evidences of indebtedness, the term of which must be forty years. If bond proceeds received under this subsection (5), in conjunction with all other revenues generated under the plan, are not sufficient to fully fund the projects identified in section 1 of this act, the district may impose an additional sales and use tax of up to 0.1 percent, as provided under RCW 82.14.430(4), or an additional motor vehicle excise tax of up to 0.1 percent as provided under RCW 81.100.060(4), or both additional taxes, as is necessary to fully fund the projects.

Sec. 3   RCW 82.14.430 and 2006 c 311 s 17 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) If approved by the majority of the voters within its boundaries voting on the ballot proposition, a regional transportation investment district may impose a sales and use tax of up to 0.1 percent of the selling price or value of the article used in the case of a use tax. The tax authorized by this section is in addition to the tax authorized by RCW 82.14.030 and must be collected from those persons who are taxable by the state under chapters 82.08 and 82.12 RCW upon the occurrence of any taxable event within the taxing district. Motor vehicles are exempt from the sales and use tax imposed under this subsection.
     (2) If approved by the majority of the voters within its boundaries voting on the ballot proposition, a regional transportation investment district may impose a tax on the use of a motor vehicle within a regional transportation investment district. The tax applies to those persons who reside within the regional transportation investment district. The rate of the tax may not exceed 0.1 percent of the value of the motor vehicle. The tax authorized by this subsection is in addition to the tax authorized under RCW 82.14.030 and must be imposed and collected at the time a taxable event under RCW 82.08.020(1) or 82.12.020 takes place. All revenue received under this subsection must be deposited in the local sales and use tax account and distributed to the regional transportation investment district according to RCW 82.14.050. The following provisions apply to the use tax in this subsection:
     (a) Where persons are taxable under chapter 82.08 RCW, the seller shall collect the use tax from the buyer using the collection provisions of RCW 82.08.050.
     (b) Where persons are taxable under chapter 82.12 RCW, the use tax must be collected using the provisions of RCW 82.12.045.
     (c) "Motor vehicle" has the meaning provided in RCW 46.04.320, but does not include farm tractors or farm vehicles as defined in RCW 46.04.180 and 46.04.181, off-road and nonhighway vehicles as defined in RCW 46.09.020, and snowmobiles as defined in RCW 46.10.010.
     (d) "Person" has the meaning given in RCW 82.04.030.
     (e) The value of a motor vehicle must be determined under RCW 82.12.010.
     (f) Except as specifically stated in this subsection (2), chapters 82.12 and 82.32 RCW apply to the use tax. The use tax is a local tax imposed under the authority of chapter 82.14 RCW, and chapter 82.14 RCW applies fully to the use tax.
     (3) In addition to fulfilling the notice requirements under RCW 82.14.055(1), and unless waived by the department, a regional transportation investment district shall provide the department of revenue with digital mapping and legal descriptions of areas in which the tax will be collected.
     (4) If bond proceeds received under RCW 36.120.130(5), in conjunction with all other revenues generated under the regional transportation investment plan submitted to voters at the 2007 general election under RCW 36.120.070(2), are not sufficient to fully fund the projects identified in section 1 of this act, the district may impose an additional sales and use tax under this section of up to 0.1 percent of the selling price or value of the article used in the case of a use tax.

Sec. 4   RCW 81.100.060 and 2006 c 311 s 15 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) A county with a population of one million or more and a county with a population of from two hundred ten thousand to less than one million that is adjoining a county with a population of one million or more, having within their boundaries existing or planned high-occupancy vehicle lanes on the state highway system, or a regional transportation investment district, but only to the extent that the surcharge has not already been imposed by the county, may, with voter approval, impose a local surcharge of not more than three-tenths of one percent in the case of a county, or eight-tenths of one percent in the case of a regional transportation investment district, of the value on vehicles registered to a person residing within the county or investment district and not more than 13.64 percent on the state sales and use taxes paid under the rate in RCW 82.08.020(2) on retail car rentals within the county or investment district. A county may impose the surcharge only to the extent that it has not been imposed by the district. No surcharge may be imposed on vehicles licensed under RCW 46.16.070 except vehicles with an unladen weight of six thousand pounds or less, RCW 46.16.079, 46.16.085, or 46.16.090.
     (2) Counties or investment districts imposing a surcharge under this section shall contract, before the effective date of the resolution or ordinance imposing a surcharge, administration and collection to the state department of licensing, and department of revenue, as appropriate, which shall deduct a percentage amount, as provided by contract, not to exceed two percent of the taxes, for administration and collection expenses incurred by the department. All administrative provisions in chapters 82.03, 82.32, and 82.44 RCW shall, insofar as they are applicable to motor vehicle excise taxes, be applicable to surcharges imposed under this section. All administrative provisions in chapters 82.03, 82.08, 82.12, and 82.32 RCW shall, insofar as they are applicable to state sales and use taxes, be applicable to surcharges imposed under this section. A surcharge imposed under this section, or a change to the surcharge, shall take effect no sooner than seventy-five days after the department of licensing or the department of revenue receives notice of the surcharge or change to the surcharge, and shall take effect only on the first day of January, April, July, or October. Unless waived by the department of licensing or the department of revenue, notice includes providing the appropriate department with digital mapping and legal descriptions of areas in which the ((tax)) surcharge will be collected.
     (3) If the tax authorized in RCW 81.100.030 is also imposed, the total proceeds from tax sources imposed under this section and RCW 81.100.030 each year shall not exceed the maximum amount which could be collected under this section.
     (4) If bond proceeds received under RCW 36.120.130(5), in conjunction with all other revenues generated under the regional transportation investment plan submitted to voters at the 2007 general election under RCW 36.120.070(2), are not sufficient to fully fund the projects identified in section 1 of this act, the regional transportation investment district may impose an additional surcharge under this section of up to 0.1 percent of the value on vehicles registered to a person residing within the district.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 5   2006 c 318 s 2 is repealed.