SENATE BILL REPORT

                   SB 5760

               As Passed Senate, March 11, 1999

Title:  An act relating to fire protection districts.

Brief Description:  Allowing unincorporated territory adjacent to a fire protection district to be annexed.

Sponsors:  Senators Goings, Haugen, McCaslin and Patterson.

Brief History:

Committee Activity:  State & Local Government:  2/18/99, 3/1/99 [DP].

Passed Senate, 3/11/99, 43-0.

SENATE COMMITTEE ON STATE & LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Majority Report:  Do pass.

  Signed by Senators Patterson, Chair; Gardner, Vice Chair; Hale, Haugen, Horn, Kline and McCaslin.

Staff:  Sharon Swanson (786-7445)

Background:  Currently, territory contiguous to a fire protection district and not within the bounds of a city, town, or other fire protection district may be annexed to the fire protection district.

Summary of Bill:  A territory adjacent to a fire protection district and not within the boundaries of a city, town, or other fire protection district may be annexed to the fire protection district by petition of 15 percent of the qualified registered electors residing within the territory proposed to be annexed.  A petition for annexation must be in writing, addressed to and filed with the board of fire commissioners of the district to which annexation is desired. A city or town lying adjacent to a fire protection district may be annexed to such district if at the time of the initiation of annexation the population of the city or town is 100,000 or less.

Appropriation:  None.

Fiscal Note:  Not requested.

Effective Date:  Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.

Testimony For:  This is a small change to allow annexation of areas that are very near to a district but not exactly contiguous to it.  The intervening territory may be an area that cannot be annexed for whatever reason.  Homeowners in these areas have very high insurance rates as a consequence of being in an area without fire protection.

Testimony Against:  None.

Testified:  PRO:  Senator Goings, prime sponsor; Dwight Van Zahlin, Maple Valley Fire & Life Safety; Dan Packer, East Pierce Fire & Rescue.