HOUSE BILL REPORT
HB 1374
This analysis was prepared by non-partisan legislative staff for the use of legislative members in their deliberations. This analysis is not a part of the legislation nor does it constitute a statement of legislative intent. |
As Reported by House Committee On:
Capital Budget
Title: An act relating to the local government archives account.
Brief Description: Concerning the local government archives account.
Sponsors: Representatives Dunshee and Warnick.
Brief History:
Committee Activity:
Capital Budget: 2/3/09, 2/9/09 [DP].
Brief Summary of Bill |
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HOUSE COMMITTEE ON CAPITAL BUDGET |
Majority Report: Do pass. Signed by 14 members: Representatives Dunshee, Chair; Ormsby, Vice Chair; Warnick, Ranking Minority Member; Pearson, Assistant Ranking Minority Member; Anderson, Blake, Chase, Hope, Jacks, Maxwell, McCune, Orwall, Smith and White.
Staff: Steve Masse (786-7115)
Background:
All archives and records management services provided by the Office of the Secretary of State are funded exclusively by a schedule of fees and charges established jointly by the Secretary of State and the Director of Financial Management. The Secretary of State's costs for preserving and providing public access to local government archives and providing records management assistance to local government agencies have been funded by fees paid by state government agencies. County auditors and local government officials are authorized to collect certain fees for copying, recording, and searching for records. These fees are deposited into the Local Government Archives Account. The Local Government Archives Account can be used by the Secretary of State for disaster recovery, records management, archival preservation, and records protection services. An additional surcharge of $1 per instrument recording after January 1, 2002, is deposited into the Local Government Archives Account for debt service on the Washington State Digital Archives building. When the debt obligation on the building has been satisfied, the surcharge is then deposited half into the Centennial Document Preservation and Modernization Account and half into the Archives and Records Management Account.
In 2008 the law was amended in the Capital Budget to include using excess revenues from the surcharge for use: (1) of debt service on the Heritage Center if the Heritage Center Account does not have sufficient revenue to support the required debt service; and (2) after the debt service has been satisfied on the Washington State Digital Archives building the surcharge shall not be deposited into the Centennial Document Preservation and the Modernization Account, and instead used for debt service on the Heritage Center if the revenue is insufficient to meet debt service needs. The 2008 Capital Budget also included a transfer of $4 million from the Local Government Archives Account to the Washington Heritage Center Account.
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Summary of Bill:
Future use of Local Government Archives surcharges for Heritage Center debt service is repealed, and the transfer of $4 million from the Local Government Archives Account is repealed.
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Appropriation: None.
Fiscal Note: Available.
Effective Date: The bill takes effect 90 days after adjournment of the session in which the bill is passed.
Staff Summary of Public Testimony:
(In support) The Local Government Archives Account supports many local government programs. Local government officials are not supportive of moving operational funds to support capital projects, although they are supportive of the Heritage Center project. The Local Government Archives Account supports local government and regional archives. Grants in the amount of $2.5 million have been awarded for the preservation and archiving of government archives.
(Opposed) None.
Persons Testifying: Representative Dunshee, prime sponsor; James McMahan and Debbie Wilkie, Washington Association of County Officials; and Jerry Pettit, Kittitas County.
Persons Signed In To Testify But Not Testifying: None.