AN ACT Relating to regional transportation benefit authorities; amending RCW 82.36.440 and 82.38.280; adding a new chapter to Title 36 RCW; providing an effective date; and providing an expiration date.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. Due to high economic development activities and population increases, the state of Washington is confronted with emergency needs for improvement of state highways, county arterials, and city arterials in urban and suburban areas. The intent of the legislature is to provide a mechanism for the regions to raise sufficient new roadway revenues to alleviate and prevent intolerable traffic congestion in urban and suburban growth areas without the disruption of the long range state-wide highway program essential to the economic well-being of the people of this state.

The legislature's purpose is to establish a regional transportation authority to alleviate congestion and enhance economic development through commuter rail development, high-occupancy-vehicle lane additions, repair and expansion of existing roadways, and development of new roadways. The intent of this act is to establish a funding distribution authority for such improvements and not to create an administrative agency or authority.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. The definitions set forth in this section apply throughout this chapter unless the context clearly requires otherwise.

(1) "Authority" means a regional transportation benefit authority established pursuant to section 3 of this act.

(2) "Board" means the governing body of an authority, constituted as provided by section 3 of this act.

(3) "Motor vehicle" has the meaning given in RCW 82.36.010(1).

(4) "Motor vehicle fuel" has the meaning given in RCW 82.36.010(2).

(5) "Regional fuel tax fund" means the regional motor vehicle fuel tax revolving fund established by section 9 of this act.

(6) "Special fuel" has the meaning given in RCW 82.38.020(5).

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. The legislative authorities of contiguous class A or AA counties may, by resolution, form the several counties, or portions thereof, into a regional transportation benefit authority. The governing body of an authority shall be a board consisting of three representatives from each county, elected at large from the area of the county within the authority. Candidates for the board shall file for office and be nominated and elected in accordance with chapter 29.21 RCW. They shall serve terms of four years until their successors are elected and qualified. The secretary of transportation, or the secretary's designee, shall serve as chairman of the board, and shall vote only in case of a tie.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. Members of the board shall receive no compensation for their services on the board, but shall be reimbursed for travel expenses incurred while attending meetings of the board or while engaged on other business of the board when authorized by the board in accordance with RCW 43.03.050 and 43.03.060.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. The department of transportation shall furnish necessary staff services and facilities required by the board. The cost of such services, together with travel expenses in accordance with RCW 43.03.050 and 43.03.060 of the members and all other lawful expenses of the board, shall be part of the administrative expenses covered by contract under section 9 of this act. The board may appoint an executive secretary who shall serve at its pleasure and whose salary shall be set by the board and similarly treated as an administrative expense.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. The board shall first meet during the first week of July 1988. Thereafter the board shall meet at least once quarterly and upon the call of its chairman and shall adopt rules for its own government and as may be necessary for it to discharge its duties and exercise its powers under this chapter.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. The authority may, by resolution for the purposes authorized in this chapter, fix and impose an excise tax on the sale or distribution of motor vehicle fuel and special fuel within the geographic boundaries of the authority. The rate of the tax shall be in increments of one-tenth of a cent per gallon and shall not exceed five cents per gallon. Any person paying the excise tax who, in turn, sells or distributes the fuel to another, whether or not for use, shall include the tax as part of the selling price of the fuel. Any person thereafter paying a price for such fuel that includes an increment for the tax imposed under this section, and who subsequently resells the fuel, shall include the increment so paid as part of the selling price of the fuel.

The tax imposed in this section shall be collected and paid to the authority but once in respect to any motor vehicle fuel or special fuel. This tax is in addition to any other tax authorized or imposed by law.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. The entire proceeds of the tax imposed under this chapter, less refunds and less amounts deducted by the department of licensing for administration and collection expenses, shall be used solely for the purposes of this chapter.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. Before the effective date of the resolution imposing the tax under this chapter, the authority shall contract with the department of licensing for the administration and collection of the tax, including refunds, if any. The department shall deduct a percentage amount, as provided by contract, for administration and collection expenses incurred by it. The remainder of any portion of the tax authorized by this chapter that is collected by the department of licensing shall be deposited by the department in a special fund under the custody of the state treasurer to be known as the regional motor vehicle fuel tax revolving fund. Each month the state treasurer shall distribute to the authority the moneys in such fund, less refunds. All appropriate administrative provisions in chapters 82.36 and 82.38 RCW, insofar as they apply to state motor vehicle fuel and special fuel taxes, apply to the tax imposed under to this chapter.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 10. The board shall:

(1) Adopt rules necessary to implement the provisions of this chapter relating to the allocation of funds in the regional fuel tax fund;

(2) Adopt reasonably uniform design standards for regional arterials that meet the requirements for regional development;

(3) Adopt as its highest priority a mass rail and roadway transportation system throughout the region;

(4) Report biennially on the first day of November of the even-numbered years to the department and to the chairs of the house and senate transportation committees, including one copy to the staff of each of the committees, regarding progress of cities and counties in developing long-range plans for their regional arterial construction and the allocation of the regional fuel tax fund to the cities and counties.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 11. The board may adopt rules establishing qualifications for cities and counties administering and supervising the design and construction of regional arterial projects financed in part from the regional fuel tax fund. The rules establishing qualifications shall take into account the resources and population of the city or county, its permanent engineering staff, its design and construction supervision experience, and other factors the board deems appropriate. Any city or county failing to meet the qualifications established by the board for administering and supervising a regional arterial project shall contract with a qualified city or county or the department for the administration and supervision of the design and construction of any approved regional arterial project as a condition for receiving moneys from the regional fuel tax fund for the project.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 12. Cities and counties within the geographical boundaries of the authority may apply to the board for financial assistance with their regional arterial projects. In distributing moneys from the regional fuel tax fund for such projects, the board shall consider the following as they relate to arterials currently in the project area:

(1) Their structural ability to carry loads imposed upon them;

(2) Their capacity to move traffic at reasonable speeds without undue congestion;

(3) Their adequacy of alignment and related geometrics;

(4) Their accident experience; and

(5) Their fatal accident experience.

Sec. 13. Section 82.36.440, chapter 15, Laws of 1961 as amended by section 5, chapter 181, Laws of 1979 ex. sess. and RCW 82.36.440 are each amended to read as follows:

The tax herein levied is in lieu of any excise, privilege, or occupational tax upon the business of manufacturing, selling, or distributing motor vehicle fuel, and no city, town, county, township or other subdivision or municipal corporation of the state shall levy or collect any excise tax upon or measured by the sale, receipt, distribution, or use of motor vehicle fuel: PROVIDED, That nothing in this section or chapter 82.36 RCW shall be construed to prohibit in any manner the imposition of a ((~~city~~)) regional tax upon motor vehicle fuel pursuant to ((~~RCW 82.39.010~~)) section 7 of this act.

Sec. 14. Section 29, chapter 175, Laws of 1971 ex. sess. as amended by section 6, chapter 181, Laws of 1979 ex. sess. and RCW 82.38.280 are each amended to read as follows:

The tax herein levied is in lieu of any excise, privilege, or occupational tax upon the business of manufacturing, selling, or distributing special fuel, and no city, town, county, township or other subdivision or municipal corporation of the state shall levy or collect any excise tax upon or measured by the sale, receipt, distribution, or use of special fuel: PROVIDED, That nothing in this section or chapter 82.38 RCW shall be construed to prohibit in any manner the imposition of a ((~~city~~)) regional tax upon special fuel pursuant to ((~~RCW 82.39.010~~)) section 7 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 15. 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.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 16. Sections 1 through 12 of this act constitute a new chapter in Title 36 RCW.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 17. Sections 1 through 12 of this act shall expire on July 1, 2008, unless extended by law.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 18. This act shall take effect on July 1, 1988.