H-1151              _______________________________________________

                                                   HOUSE BILL NO. 1490

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                               51st Legislature                              1989 Regular Session

By Representatives Peery, Betrozoff, Locke, Holland, Walker, Van Luven, Brough, Miller, Rayburn, Jacobsen, Nelson, P. King, Cole, Sayan, Dorn, Morris and H. Myers

Read first time 1/25/89 and referred to Committee on Education. Referred 2/15/89 to Committee on Capital Facilities & Financing.

AN ACT Relating to school construction; creating new sections; making an appropriation; and declaring an emergency.

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

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.     The legislature finds that:

          (1) Enrollment growth, combined with the age of existing school buildings, has increased the need for state funding to support school construction and modernization;

          (2) Local school districts have passed bonds for school construction with the expectation that state matching funds would be available for these projects;

          (3) School trust land revenues have provided funding only for the highest-ranked projects, resulting in large numbers of other projects being deferred from one year to the next;

          (4) A backlog of two to three hundred million dollars in projects with local money has persisted for several years, including many projects in school districts that passed bonds in 1984 and are still waiting for state matching funds;

          (5) In 1989, school trust revenues are likely to fund barely half of eligible projects for new construction due to enrollment growth, and no projects for modernization;

          (6) Any long-term solution to shortfalls in school construction funding is incomplete and cannot address current project delays without an immediate infusion of state dollars to reduce this project backlog;

          (7) During the 1988 interim, a joint select committee on school construction was appointed which included members of both the senate and the house of representatives, the superintendent of public instruction, the commissioner of public lands, the president of the state board of education, and the director of the office of financial management; and

          (8) The joint select committee, after reviewing current expenditure policies and needs, recommended the transfer of one hundred fifty million dollars from the general fund to supplement school trust land moneys for school construction.

          Therefore, the legislature intends to transfer moneys from the projected general fund balance for the 1987-89 fiscal period into the common school construction fund, for appropriation for school construction projects in the upcoming biennium.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.     The state treasurer shall transfer the sum of one hundred fifty million dollars from the general fund to the common school construction fund before June 30, 1989.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3.     The sum of one hundred fifty million dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated for the biennium ending June 30, 1991, from the common school construction fund to the state board of education for school construction and modernization projects.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4.     This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and shall take effect immediately.