HOUSE BILL REPORT

                  HB 2464

                      As Passed House:

                      January 26, 2000

Title:  An act relating to creating the multimodal transportation account.

Brief Description:  Creating the multimodal transportation account.

Sponsors:  Representatives Fisher, Mitchell, Edwards, Hankins, Lovick, Kessler, Cody, Conway, Tokuda, Cooper, Wolfe, Van Luven, Ogden, Ruderman, Murray, Scott, Stensen, Edmonds, Wood and Hurst.

Brief History:

  Committee Activity:

Transportation: 1/17/00, 1/20/00 [DP].

Floor Activity:

Passed House:  1/26/00, 92-3.

                 Brief Summary of Bill

$Creates the multimodal transportation account.

$No revenues are currently dedicated for this account.

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION

Majority Report: Do pass.  Signed by 23 members: Representatives Fisher, Democratic Co-Chair; Mitchell, Republican Co-Chair; Cooper, Democratic 1^st Vice Chair; Edwards, Democratic 2^nd Vice Chair; Ericksen, Republican Vice Chair; Hankins, Republican Vice Chair; Buck; DeBolt; Fortunato; Haigh; Hatfield; Hurst; Lovick; McDonald; Morris; Murray; Ogden; Radcliff; Schindler; Schual-Berke; Skinner; Wood and Woods.

Minority Report: Do not pass.  Signed by 1 member: Representative Mielke.

Staff: Jeff Doyle (786-7322)

Background:

Initiative 695, passed by the voters in November, 1999, repealed several statutes related to the motor vehicle excise tax (MVET).  In addition to repealing the tax itself, it also repealed the statute that created the Transportation Fund, which was one of the accounts that received MVET revenues. 

The Transportation Fund was originally created in 1990 to serve as the repository account for non-highway revenues.  Unlike Motor Vehicle Fund revenues, which must be spent strictly for highway purposes, Transportation Fund revenues may be spent on any transportation purpose, including passenger rail, passenger ferries, high capacity transit, bicycle and pedestrian programs, etc.  Transportation Fund revenues also were used for highway purposes.  Prior to passage of Initiative 695, approximately $197 million from the Transportation Fund, or 60 percent of the total fund balance, was earmarked for highway construction in the 1999-01 biennium.

Now that Initiative 695 repealed most of the MVET-related statutes (including the statute that had created the Transportation Fund), the state does not have an equivalent account to use to keep non-restricted transportation funds segregated from constitutionally-protected highway funds.

Summary of Bill:

The Multimodal Transportation Account is created in the state treasury.  Funds may only be used for transportation purposes, including (but not limited to) rail, ferries, high capacity transit, highway construction, and other multimodal purposes.

The Multimodal Transportation Account does not have a dedicated revenue source at this time, but the account may be used as a repository for any non-18th amendment funds appropriated or transferred.

Appropriation: None.

Fiscal Note: Not requested.

Effective Date: The bill contains several effective dates.  Please refer to the bill.

Testimony For: None.

Testimony Against: None.

Testified: None.