BILL REQ. #:  H-1488.4 

READ FIRST TIME 2/28/07.   

     AN ACT Relating to the agency council on coordinated transportation; amending RCW 47.06B.015, 47.06B.040, 47.06B.900, 47.80.023, and 47.06B.901; reenacting and amending RCW 47.06B.030; adding a new section to chapter 47.06B RCW; creating a new section; and repealing 1999 c 372 s 13.

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

Sec. 1   RCW 47.06B.015 and 1999 c 385 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:
     In order to increase efficiency, to reduce waste and duplication, to enable people to access social and health services, to provide a basic level of mobility, and to extend and improve transportation services to people with special transportation needs, the state shall ((implement the Program for)) create the agency council on coordinated transportation. The ((program)) council will improve transportation efficiency and effectiveness to maximize the use of community resources so that more people can be served within available funding levels.
     The ((Program for)) agency council on coordinated transportation will facilitate a statewide approach to coordination and will support the development of community-based coordinated transportation systems that ((exhibit the following characteristics:
     (1) Organizations serving persons with special transportation needs share responsibility for ensuring that customers can access services.
     (2) There is a single entry process for customers to use to have trips arranged and scheduled, so the customer does not have to contact different locations based on which sponsoring agency or program is paying for the trip.
     (3) A process is in place so that when decisions are made by service organizations on facility siting or program policy implementation, the costs of client transportation and the potential effects on the client transportation costs of other agencies or programs are considered. Affected agencies are given an opportunity to influence the decision if the potential impact is negative.
     (4) Open local market mechanisms give all providers who meet minimum standards an opportunity to participate in the program, and, in addition, allow for cost comparisons so that purchasers can select the least expensive trip most appropriate to the customer's needs.
     (5) There is flexibility in using the available vehicles in a community so that the ability to transport people is not restricted by categorical claims to vehicles.
     (6) There is maximum sharing of operating facilities and administrative services, to avoid duplication of costly program elements.
     (7) Trip sponsors and service providers have agreed on a process for allocating costs and billing when they share use of vehicles.
     (8) Minimum standards exist for at least safety, driver training, maintenance, vehicles, and technology to eliminate barriers that may prevent sponsors from using each other's vehicles or serving each other's clients.
     (9) The system is user friendly. The fact that the system is supported by a multitude of programs and agencies with different eligibility, contracting, service delivery, payment, and funding structures does not negatively affect the customer's ability to access service.
     (10) Support is provided for research, technology improvements, and sharing of best practices from other communities, so that the system can be continually improved.
     (11) There are performance goals and an evaluation process that leads to continuous system improvement)) identify and address barriers, focus on results, and increase advocacy for special needs transportation as directed and prioritized by the agency council on coordinated transportation.

Sec. 2   RCW 47.06B.030 and 1999 c 385 s 5 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
     To assure ((implementation)) the effectiveness of the ((Program for)) agency council on coordinated transportation, the council, in coordination with stakeholders, shall((:
     (1) Develop guidelines for local planning of coordinated transportation in accordance with this chapter;
     (2) Initiate local planning processes by contacting the board of commissioners and county councils in each county and encouraging them to convene local planning forums for the purpose of implementing special needs coordinated transportation programs at the community level;
     (3) Work with local community forums to designate a local lead organization that shall cooperate and coordinate with private and nonprofit transportation brokers and providers, local public transportation agencies, local governments, and user groups;
     (4) Provide a forum at the state level in which state agencies will discuss and resolve coordination issues and program policy issues that may impact transportation coordination and costs;
     (5) Provide guidelines for state agencies to use in creating policies, rules, or procedures to encourage the participation of their constituents in community-based planning and coordination, in accordance with this chapter;
     (6) Facilitate state-level discussion and action on problems and barriers identified by the local forums that can only be resolved at either the state or federal level;
     (7) Develop and test models for determining the impacts of facility siting and program policy decisions on transportation costs;
     (8) Develop methodologies and provide support to local and state agencies in identifying transportation costs;
     (9) Develop guidelines for setting performance measures and evaluating performance;
     (10) Develop monitoring reporting criteria and processes to assess state and local level of participation with this chapter;
     (11) Administer and manage grant funds to develop, test, and facilitate the implementation of coordinated systems;
     (12) Develop minimum standards for safety, driver training, and vehicles, and provide models for processes and technology to support coordinated service delivery systems;
     (13) Provide a clearinghouse for sharing information about transportation coordination best practices and experiences;
     (14) Promote research and development of methods and tools to improve the performance of transportation coordination in the state;
     (15) Provide technical assistance and support to communities;
     (16) Facilitate, monitor, provide funding as available, and give technical support to local planning processes;
     (17) Form, convene, and give staff support to stakeholder work groups as needed to continue work on removing barriers to coordinated transportation;
     (18) Advocate for the coordination of transportation for people with special transportation needs at the federal, state, and local levels;
     (19) Recommend to the legislature changes in laws to assist coordination of transportation services;
     (20) Petition the office of financial management to make whatever changes are deemed necessary to identify transportation costs in all executive agency budgets;
     (21) Report to the legislature by December 1, 2000, on council activities including, but not limited to, the progress of community planning processes, what demonstration projects have been undertaken, how coordination affected service levels, and whether these efforts produced savings that allowed expansion of services. Reports must be made once every two years thereafter, and other times as the council deems necessary)) focus its efforts on projects that identify and address barriers in laws, policies, operations, and procedures; focus on results; and increase advocacy for transportation for persons with special needs, as adopted and prioritized in the agency council on coordinated transportation biennial work plan. The council will, as necessary, convene work groups at the state, regional, or local level to implement and develop coordinated approaches to special needs transportation.

Sec. 3   RCW 47.06B.040 and 1999 c 385 s 6 are each amended to read as follows:
     ((The council may request, and may require as a condition of receiving coordination grants, selected county governments to convene local planning forums and invite participation of all entities, including tribal governments, that serve or transport persons with special transportation needs. Counties are encouraged to coordinate and combine their forums and planning processes with other counties, as they find it appropriate. The local community forums must:
     (1) Designate a lead organization to facilitate the community planning process on an ongoing basis;
     (2) Identify functional boundaries for the local coordinated transportation system;
     (3) Clarify roles and responsibilities of the various participants;
     (4) Identify community resources and needs;
     (5) Prepare a plan for developing a coordinated transportation system that meets the intent of this chapter, addresses community needs, and efficiently uses community resources to address unmet needs;
     (6) Implement the community coordinated transportation plan;
     (7) Develop performance measures consistent with council guidelines;
     (8) Develop a reporting process consistent with council guidelines;
     (9) Raise issues and barriers to the council when resolution is needed at either the state or federal level;
     (10) Develop a process for open discussion and input on local policy and facility siting decisions that may have an impact on the special needs transportation costs and service delivery of other programs and agencies in the community.))
     The agency council on coordinated transportation shall review and recommend certification of local plans developed with regional transportation planning organizations based on meeting federal requirements and the implementation of coordinated human service and transportation plans. Each regional transportation planning organization must submit to the council an updated plan that includes the elements, consistent with federal planning requirements, identified by the council beginning on July 1, 2007, and every other year thereafter.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 4   A new section is added to chapter 47.06B RCW to read as follows:
     The agency council on coordinated transportation shall submit a progress report on council activities to the legislature by December 1, 2009, and every other year thereafter. The report must describe the council's progress in attaining the applicable goals identified in the council's biennial work plan and highlight any problems encountered in achieving these goals. The information will be reported in a form established by the council.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 5   (1) The joint transportation committee, with cooperation from the agency council on coordinated transportation, shall study and review the legal and programmatic changes and best practices necessary for providing effective coordination of special needs transportation services at the subregional level.
     (2) In conducting its review, the committee shall:
     (a) Convene local and regional special needs transportation providers, brokers, brokerages, representatives of users of transit services, representatives of nonprofit organizations that provide related transportation services, including hopelink, and representatives of other agencies and organizations, including the department of social and health services, that have related transportation responsibilities;
     (b) Identify and examine both obstacles to and opportunities for improving effective coordination in relation to, but not limited to, the following:
     (i) Coordinating provider billing;
     (ii) Establishing a uniform system for reporting trips;
     (iii) Standardizing provider agreements and reporting requirements;
     (iv) Streamlining or centralizing access to customer services;
     (v) Opportunities for transit and community service providers to work more closely with brokerages or clients;
     (vi) Sharing eligibility information and trip requirements between all participating agencies;
     (vii) Using nontraditional service providers, such as public utility districts;
     (viii) Making facility siting decisions for state agencies with special needs transportation responsibilities;
     (ix) Identifying federal funding and related barriers, and developing strategies to remove those barriers, including improving state management plans necessary for federal programs with transportation requirements for the purpose of identifying opportunities to improve coordination and reasonable cost sharing;
     (x) Establishing appropriate statewide standards, developing strategies to maintain those standards in a decentralized system, and identifying the state's role in this decentralized system;
     (c) Review and consider other relevant model coordinated special needs transportation systems throughout the nation as a source of best practices for Washington state, including the ACCESS transportation system in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and
     (d) Conduct a comprehensive statewide survey of existing transportation resources for persons with special needs.
     (3) Staff support shall be provided by the committee.
     (4) The committee shall provide a final report, with specific recommendations on best practices to effectively coordinate transportation services for persons with special needs at the subregional level, to the house of representatives and senate transportation committees by December 1, 2007.

Sec. 6   RCW 47.06B.900 and 1999 c 385 s 7 are each amended to read as follows:
     The agency council on coordinated transportation is terminated on June 30, ((2007)) 2010, as provided in RCW 47.06B.901.

Sec. 7   RCW 47.80.023 and 1998 c 171 s 8 are each amended to read as follows:
     Each regional transportation planning organization shall have the following duties:
     (1) Prepare and periodically update a transportation strategy for the region. The strategy shall address alternative transportation modes and transportation demand management measures in regional corridors and shall recommend preferred transportation policies to implement adopted growth strategies. The strategy shall serve as a guide in preparation of the regional transportation plan.
     (2) Prepare a regional transportation plan as set forth in RCW 47.80.030 that is consistent with county-wide planning policies if such have been adopted pursuant to chapter 36.70A RCW, with county, city, and town comprehensive plans, and state transportation plans.
     (3) Certify by December 31, 1996, that the transportation elements of comprehensive plans adopted by counties, cities, and towns within the region reflect the guidelines and principles developed pursuant to RCW 47.80.026, are consistent with the adopted regional transportation plan, and, where appropriate, conform with the requirements of RCW 36.70A.070.
     (4) Where appropriate, certify that county-wide planning policies adopted under RCW 36.70A.210 and the adopted regional transportation plan are consistent.
     (5) Develop, in cooperation with the department of transportation, operators of public transportation services and local governments within the region, a six-year regional transportation improvement program which proposes regionally significant transportation projects and programs and transportation demand management measures. The regional transportation improvement program shall be based on the programs, projects, and transportation demand management measures of regional significance as identified by transit agencies, cities, and counties pursuant to RCW 35.58.2795, 35.77.010, and 36.81.121, respectively. The program shall include a priority list of projects and programs, project segments and programs, transportation demand management measures, and a specific financial plan that demonstrates how the transportation improvement program can be funded. The program shall be updated at least every two years for the ensuing six-year period.
     (6) Designate a lead planning agency to coordinate preparation of the regional transportation plan and carry out the other responsibilities of the organization. The lead planning agency may be a regional organization, a component county, city, or town agency, or the appropriate Washington state department of transportation district office.
     (7) Review level of service methodologies used by cities and counties planning under chapter 36.70A RCW to promote a consistent regional evaluation of transportation facilities and corridors.
     (8) Work with cities, counties, transit agencies, the department of transportation, and others to develop level of service standards or alternative transportation performance measures.
     (9) Submit to the agency council on coordinated transportation, as provided in chapter 47.06B RCW, beginning on July 1, 2007, and every other year thereafter, an updated plan that includes the elements identified by the council.

Sec. 8   RCW 47.06B.901 and 1999 c 385 s 8 are each amended to read as follows:
     The following acts or parts of acts, as now existing or hereafter amended, are each repealed, effective June 30, ((2008)) 2011:
     (1) RCW 47.06B.010 and 1999 c 385 s 1 & 1998 c 173 s 1;
     (2) RCW 47.06B.012 and 1999 c 385 s 2;
     (3) RCW 47.06B.015 and 2007 c ... s 1 (section 1 of this act) & 1999 c 385 s 3;
     (4) RCW 47.06B.020 and ((1999 c 385 s 4 &)) 1998 c 173 s 2;
     (5) RCW 47.06B.030 and 2007 c ... s 2 (section 2 of this act), 1999 c 385 s 5, & 1998 c 173 s 3; ((and))
     (6) RCW 47.06B.040 and 2007 c ... s 3 (section 3 of this act) & 1999 c 385 s 6; and
     (7) Section 4 of this act.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 9   1999 c 372 s 13 is repealed.