S-4582.1  _______________________________________________

                         SENATE BILL 6845

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      56th Legislature     2000 Regular Session

By Senators Loveland and Snyder

Read first time 02/08/2000.  Referred to Committee on Ways & Means.

Reconciling actual revenues and the expenditure limit.

    AN ACT Relating to the emergency reserve fund; amending RCW 43.135.045; and declaring an emergency.

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

    Sec. 1.  RCW 43.135.045 and 1994 c 2 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:

    (1) The emergency reserve fund is established in the state treasury.  During each fiscal year, the state treasurer shall deposit in the emergency reserve fund all general fund‑-state revenues in excess of the state expenditure limit for that fiscal year.  Deposits shall be made at the end of each fiscal quarter based on projections of state revenues and the state expenditure limit.  The treasurer shall make transfers between these accounts as necessary to reconcile actual annual revenues and the expenditure limit.

    (2) The legislature may appropriate moneys from the emergency reserve fund only with approval of at least two-thirds of the members of each house of the legislature, and then only if the appropriation does not cause total expenditures to exceed the state expenditure limit under this chapter.

    (3) The emergency reserve fund balance shall not exceed five percent of ((biennial)) annual general fund‑-state revenues as projected by the official state revenue forecast.  Any balance in excess of five percent shall be transferred on a quarterly basis by the state treasurer to the education construction fund hereby created in the treasury.

    (4)(a) Funds may be appropriated from the education construction fund exclusively for common school construction or higher education construction.

    (b) Funds may be appropriated for any other purpose only if approved by a two-thirds vote of each house of the legislature and if approved by a vote of the people at the next general election.  An appropriation approved by the people under this subsection shall result in an adjustment to the state expenditure limit only for the fiscal period for which the appropriation is made and shall not affect any subsequent fiscal period.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  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 takes effect immediately.

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