HOUSE BILL REPORT

HB 2076

BYRepresentatives Pruitt, Fraser, G. Fisher, Phillips and Brekke

Collecting a tire disposal fee per vehicle per year at the time of vehicle registration.

House Committe on Revenue

Majority Report:  The substitute bill be substituted therefor and the substitute bill do pass.  (13)

      Signed by Representatives Wang, Chair; Pruitt, Vice Chair; Horn, Assistant Ranking Republican Member; Appelwick, Basich, Brumsickle, Fraser, Grant, Haugen, Morris, Phillips, Rust and H. Sommers.

Minority Report:  Do not pass.  (3)

      Signed by Representatives Holland, Ranking Republican Member; Silver and Van Luven.

House Staff:Rick Wickman and Bob Longman (786-7136)

AS REPORTED BY COMMITTEE ON REVENUE MARCH 1, 1989

BACKGROUND:

In 1985, the Legislature established a vehicle tire recycling program and imposed an annual assessment on retail sales of new replacement vehicle tires.  The rate of assessment is twelve hundredths of one percent (.12 percent) of the gross proceeds of vehicle tires sold by persons engaged in business in the state.  The assessment does not apply to tires on new vehicles nor to retreads or used tires.

Monies from the assessment are placed in the vehicle tire recycling account within the state treasury.  These monies may be used for: 1) assisting the state and local governments for the removal of discarded vehicle tires from unauthorized tire dump sites; and 2) assisting local governments in planning, enforcement, and financing of solid waste and proper disposal and recycling of discarded tires.  Monies in the account are appropriated to the Department of Ecology for the purposes stated above.

For the 1987-89 biennium, the vehicle tire recycling account contains approximately $310,000.

SUMMARY:

SUBSTITUTE BILL:  Effective with purchases of vehicle registrations with December 1990 or later expiration dates, a new fee of $1.00 per vehicle is imposed.  The current excise tax of .12 percent of the gross proceeds of new replacement tires remains in effect until January 1, 1990.

The new $1.00 per vehicle fee will be collected by the Department of Licensing.  The Department of Revenue will collect the existing excise tax on tires until its expiration date.

The new $1.00 per vehicle fee expires for vehicle registrations with December 1995 or later expirations dates.  An appropriate standing committee of the Legislature shall at that time review the appropriateness of continuing the $1.00 fee in relation to progress made in cleaning up tire dump sites and accomplishment of tire recycling programs.

SUBSTITUTE BILL COMPARED TO ORIGINAL:  The Department of Licensing instead of the Department of Revenue is responsible for collecting the proposed $1.00 per vehicle fee imposed for tire recycling and disposal programs.

The effective date for imposition of a new $1.00 fee for tire recycling and the current excise tax on new tires was clarified. The current excise tax on new tires is to expire January 1, 1990. The new $1.00 per vehicle fee for tire recycling programs will be effective for vehicle registrations with December 1990 or later expiration dates.  The uses of the revenues from the $1.00 fee was clarified to be tire disposal and recycling programs.

Fiscal Note:      Available.

House Committee ‑ Testified For:    Don Leaf, Thurston County Directors; Keith Rowbotham, Washington State Tire Dealers; John Whitman, Consulting Engineer; Duane Williamson, Potential Tire Recycling Company; Randy Scott, Washington State Association of Counties; Waddell Hill, Pierce County Fire Marshal; Leonard Vail, Pierce County Fire District 15; Bill Alkire, Washington State Department of Ecology; John Urbick, KACA Corporation; Harold Holm, Tire Recyclers; and Bill Fritz, Rubber Manufacturers Association.

House Committee - Testified Against:      None Presented.

House Committee - Testimony For:    Tire recycling programs need additional monies to deal with the problem of abandoned and improperly discarded waste tires.

House Committee - Testimony Against:      None Presented.