BILL REQ. #:  S-4404.1 

Read first time 01/24/08.   Referred to Committee on Economic Development, Trade & Management.

     AN ACT Relating to sales and use tax for public facilities in urban counties; adding a new section to chapter 82.14 RCW; and providing an effective date.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   A new section is added to chapter 82.14 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The legislative authority of an eligible county may impose a sales and use tax in accordance with the terms of this chapter. The tax is in addition to other taxes authorized by law 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 county. The rate of tax may not exceed 0.09 percent of the selling price in the case of a sales tax or value of the article used in the case of a use tax.
     (2) The tax imposed under subsection (1) of this section must be deducted from the amount of tax otherwise required to be collected or paid over to the department of revenue under chapter 82.08 or 82.12 RCW. The department of revenue must perform the collection of such taxes on behalf of the county at no cost to the county.
     (3)(a) Distributions of the tax imposed under the authority of this section may not exceed five million dollars in any calendar year. Any revenue generated by the tax in excess of five million dollars belongs to the state.
     (b) If the limit in (a) of this subsection is met in any calendar year, the department will resume distributions in January of the following calendar year.
     (4)(a) Moneys collected under this section must only be used to finance public facilities serving economic development purposes in eligible counties and finance personnel in economic development offices. The public facility must be listed as an item in the officially adopted county overall economic development plan, or the economic development section of the county's comprehensive plan, or the comprehensive plan of a city or town located within the county for those counties planning under RCW 36.70A.040. For those counties that do not have an adopted overall economic development plan and do not plan under the growth management act, the public facility must be listed in the county's capital facilities plan or the capital facilities plan of a city or town located within the county.
     (b) In implementing this section, the county must consult with cities, towns, and port districts located within the county and the associate development organization serving the county to ensure that the expenditure meets the goals of chapter 130, Laws of 2004 and the requirements of (a) of this subsection. Each county collecting money under this section must report, as follows, to the office of the state auditor, within one hundred fifty days after the close of each fiscal year: (i) A list of new projects begun during the fiscal year, showing that the county has used the funds for those projects consistent with the goals of chapter 130, Laws of 2004 and the requirements of (a) of this subsection; and (ii) expenditures during the fiscal year on projects begun in a previous year. Justice system facilities may not be funded with money collected under this section.
     (c) The definitions in this subsection apply throughout this section.
     (i) "Public facilities" means bridges, roads, domestic and industrial water facilities, sanitary sewer facilities, earth stabilization, storm sewer facilities, railroad, electricity, natural gas, buildings, structures, telecommunications infrastructure, transportation infrastructure, or commercial infrastructure, and port facilities in the state of Washington.
     (ii) "Economic development purposes" means those purposes which facilitate the creation or retention of businesses and jobs in a county.
     (iii) "Economic development office" means an office of a county, port district, or an associate development organization as defined in RCW 43.330.010, which promotes economic development purposes within the county.
     (5) No tax may be collected under this section before July 1, 2008. No tax may be collected under this section by a county more than twenty-five years after the date that a tax is first imposed under this section.
     (6) For purposes of this section, "eligible county" means a county with a population density of one hundred persons or greater per square mile and with a population that exceeds one hundred fifty thousand persons as determined by RCW 36.13.100.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   This act takes effect July 1, 2009.