HOUSE BILL REPORT

SSB 6182

BYSenate Committee on Governmental Operations (originally sponsored by Senators McCaslin, Madsen and Conner)

Clarifying provisions relating to fire protection district service charges.

House Committe on Local Government

Majority Report:  Do pass as amended.  (14)

      Signed by Representatives Haugen, Chair; Cooper, Vice Chair; Ferguson, Ranking Republican Member; Horn, Kirby, Nealey, Nelson, Nutley, Phillips, Raiter, Rayburn, Wolfe, Wood and Zellinsky.

House Staff:Steve Lundin (786-7127)

AS PASSED HOUSE MARCH 2, 1990

BACKGROUND:

Fire protection districts are authorized to impose service charges based on the benefit to personal property and improvements to real property which are located within the fire district.  The service charge must be approved by a 60 percent majority of voters who vote at the election in which the service charge is submitted for approval.  This authority was not used until the past two years when nine districts sought voter approval and six were successful.  Other districts intend to seek approval in 1990. The experience of the districts which have obtained approval has revealed a variety of problems.

Districts believe that the term "service charge" creates the misimpression that charges will be made for individual responses to emergencies and that this has caused confusion among voters when asked for approval.

Problems with regard to identifying and excluding property upon which charges may be based are:

(1)  Under the current law, improvements and personal property which may not receive benefit from fire protection must still be included in determining the charge.  For example, swimming pools, tennis courts and concrete piers are included;

(2)  The current law provides that charges include farming equipment or property "ordinarily housed or stored in a building or structure."  This provision creates considerable administrative difficulty in determining what a farmer keeps inside the barn and what is left outside; and

(3)  The current law excludes from charges all property "subject to RCW 52.30.020." This refers to property of public agencies located within a fire district.  Except for school districts, and public agencies that either have their own firefighting staff and equipment or contract elsewhere for fire protection, agencies are directed to contract with the fire district for protection of their property.  School districts make payments to the fire districts for fire protection services based upon uniform rates developed by the Insurance Commissioner.  The Superintendent of Public Instruction must include an amount sufficient to reimburse school districts in its biennial budget request.  Some agencies have failed to enter such contracts and the current statute does not allow the fire district to make service charges against this property where no contract exists.

The times set for annual hearings and the fixing of charges do not correspond with existing county tax collection schedules.  There is no provision for notice to owners of the amounts of the service charge prior to the appeal process.  There are no deductions or exemptions for senior citizens with limited income.

In order to impose such a service charge, the district must obtain approval of 60 percent of the voters.  Voter approval may be for up to six years.  The ballot form must state that the district be "authorized to impose service charges each year for up to a six-year period."  Confusion results when the district seeks approval for a time period of less than six years, but the ballot contains the above language.

SUMMARY:

The prescribed ballot form for approval of fire protection district service fees is amended to permit the ballot to reflect the intent of the fire protection district with respect to the duration of the benefit charge.

The term "service charge" is changed to "benefit charge" throughout the statute.  Fire protection commissioners are granted the authority to determine that certain property is not receiving measurable benefit and may be excluded in calculating charges.  Farming equipment, whether in the barn or out, is excluded from the definition of personal property.  Property of public agencies situated in the fire district is excluded only when it is under contract or for which the district is receiving payments.  Reference to the county assessor is deleted when defining property assessed by both the assessor and the state Department of Revenue. The date is changed by which the district must contract with the county for collection services from the "effective date of a resolution imposing" charges to the date of imposition of the charges.  The date by which hearings on the following year's charges must be held is changed from October 15 to November 15 and the date by which charges must be transmitted to the county for collection is changed from October 31 to November 30.  Notice of charges is required to be sent to property owners and appeals hearings will be scheduled after such notice.  A senior citizen exemption schedule is provided of 25, 50 and 75 percent of the charges based upon the three tiers of exemptions for property taxes.

Fiscal Note:      Not Requested.

House Committee ‑ Testified For:    Pete Spiller, Washington Fire Commissioners Association.

House Committee - Testified Against:      No one.

House Committee - Testimony For:    This bill corrects some small problems identified with the imposition of service charges.  It provides better notice to the voters and provides needed flexibility.

House Committee - Testimony Against:      None.