BILL REQ. #:  H-1063.2 

Read first time 01/26/2007.   Referred to Committee on Capital Budget.

     AN ACT Relating to state and municipal park funding; amending RCW 39.42.060; adding a new chapter to Title 79A RCW; and providing for submission of this act to a vote of the people.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   (1) For the purpose of providing funds to finance state park capital facility projects, and all costs incidental thereto, the state finance committee is authorized to issue general obligation bonds of the state of Washington in the sum of one hundred twenty-five million dollars, or as much thereof as may be required, to finance these projects and all costs incidental thereto. Bonds authorized in this section may be sold at such price as the state finance committee shall determine. No bonds authorized in this section may be offered for sale without prior legislative appropriation of the net proceeds of the sale of the bonds.
     (2) For the purpose of providing funds to finance municipal park capital facility projects, and all costs incidental thereto, the state finance committee is authorized to issue general obligation bonds of the state of Washington in the sum of one hundred twenty-five million dollars, or as much thereof as may be required, to finance these projects and all costs incidental thereto. Bonds authorized in this section may be sold at such price as the state finance committee shall determine. No bonds authorized in this section may be offered for sale without prior legislative appropriation of the net proceeds of the sale of the bonds.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   The proceeds from the sale of the bonds authorized in section 1(1) of this act shall be deposited in the state parks capital facilities account created in section 7 of this act, and the proceeds from the sale of the bonds authorized in section 1(2) of this act shall be deposited into the municipal parks capital facilities account created in section 8 of this act. These proceeds shall be used exclusively for the purposes specified in section 7 or 8 of this act and for the payment of expenses incurred in the issuance and sale of the bonds, and shall be administered by the office of financial management subject to legislative appropriation.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   (1) The debt-limit general fund bond retirement account shall be used for the payment of the principal of and interest on the bonds authorized in section 1 (1) and (2) of this act.
     (2) The state finance committee shall, on or before June 30th of each year, certify to the state treasurer the amount needed in the ensuing twelve months to meet the bond retirement and interest requirements on the bonds authorized in section 1 (1) and (2) of this act.
     (3) On each date on which any interest or principal and interest payment is due on bonds issued for the purposes of section 1 (1) and (2) of this act, the state treasurer shall withdraw from any general state revenues received in the state treasury and deposit in the debt-limit general fund bond retirement account an amount equal to the amount certified by the state finance committee to be due on the payment date.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 4   (1) Bonds issued under sections 1 through 3 of this act shall state that they are a general obligation of the state of Washington, shall pledge the full faith and credit of the state to the payment of the principal thereof and the interest thereon, and shall contain an unconditional promise to pay the principal and interest as the same shall become due.
     (2) The owner and holder of each of the bonds or the trustee for the owner and holder of any of the bonds may by mandamus or other appropriate proceeding require the transfer and payment of funds as directed in this section.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 5   The legislature may provide additional means for raising moneys for the payment of the principal of and interest on the bonds authorized in section 1 of this act, and section 3 of this act shall not be deemed to provide an exclusive method for the payment.

Sec. 6   RCW 39.42.060 and 2003 c 147 s 13 are each amended to read as follows:
     No bonds, notes, or other evidences of indebtedness for borrowed money shall be issued by the state which will cause the aggregate debt contracted by the state to exceed that amount for which payments of principal and interest in any fiscal year would require the state to expend more than seven percent of the arithmetic mean of its general state revenues, as defined in RCW 39.42.070, for the three immediately preceding fiscal years as certified by the treasurer in accordance with RCW 39.42.070. It shall be the duty of the state finance committee to compute annually the amount required to pay principal of and interest on outstanding debt. In making such computation, the state finance committee shall include all borrowed money represented by bonds, notes, or other evidences of indebtedness which are secured by the full faith and credit of the state or are required to be paid, directly or indirectly, from general state revenues and which are incurred by the state, any department, authority, public corporation or quasi public corporation of the state, any state university or college, or any other public agency created by the state but not by counties, cities, towns, school districts, or other municipal corporations, and shall include debt incurred pursuant to section 3 of Article VIII of the Washington state Constitution, but shall exclude the following:
     (1) Obligations for the payment of current expenses of state government;
     (2) Indebtedness incurred pursuant to RCW 39.42.080 or 39.42.090;
     (3) Principal of and interest on bond anticipation notes;
     (4) Any indebtedness which has been refunded;
     (5) Financing contracts entered into under chapter 39.94 RCW;
     (6) Indebtedness authorized or incurred before July 1, 1993, pursuant to statute which requires that the state treasury be reimbursed, in the amount of the principal of and the interest on such indebtedness, from money other than general state revenues or from the special excise tax imposed pursuant to chapter 67.40 RCW;
     (7) Indebtedness authorized and incurred after July 1, 1993, pursuant to statute that requires that the state treasury be reimbursed, in the amount of the principal of and the interest on such indebtedness, from (a) moneys outside the state treasury, except higher education operating fees, (b) higher education building fees, (c) indirect costs recovered from federal grants and contracts, and (d) fees and charges associated with hospitals operated or managed by institutions of higher education;
     (8) Any agreement, promissory note, or other instrument entered into by the state finance committee under RCW 39.42.030 in connection with its acquisition of bond insurance, letters of credit, or other credit support instruments for the purpose of guaranteeing the payment or enhancing the marketability, or both, of any state bonds, notes, or other evidence of indebtedness;
     (9) Indebtedness incurred for the purposes identified in RCW 43.99N.020;
     (10) Indebtedness incurred for the purposes of the school district bond guaranty established by chapter 39.98 RCW;
     (11) Indebtedness incurred for the purposes of replacing the waterproof membrane over the east plaza garage and revising related landscaping construction pursuant to RCW 43.99Q.070;
     (12) Indebtedness incurred for the purposes of the state legislative building rehabilitation, to the extent that principal and interest payments of such indebtedness are paid from the capitol building construction account pursuant to RCW 43.99Q.140(2)(b); ((and))
     (13) Indebtedness incurred for the purposes of financing projects under RCW 47.10.867; and
     (14) Indebtedness incurred under sections 1 through 3 of this act.
     To the extent necessary because of the constitutional or statutory debt limitation, priorities with respect to the issuance or guaranteeing of bonds, notes, or other evidences of indebtedness by the state shall be determined by the state finance committee.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 7   The state parks capital facilities account is created in the state treasury. All receipts from bonds issued under section 1(1) of this act must be deposited into the account, less expenses incurred in the issuance and sale of the bonds. Moneys in the account may be spent only after appropriation by the legislature. Expenditures from the account may be used only for the development, construction, or improvement of state park capital facilities. Expenditures must include capital projects related to Saint Edward state park.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 8   (1) The municipal parks capital facilities account is created in the state treasury. All receipts from bonds issued under section 1(2) of this act must be deposited into the account, less expenses incurred in the issuance and sale of the bonds. Moneys in the account may be spent only after appropriation. Expenditures from the account may be used only for: (a) Competitive grants to municipal corporations as provided in subsection (2) of this section; and (b) distributions to counties with small populations as provided in subsection (3) of this section.
     (2)(a) The interagency committee for outdoor recreation shall conduct a competitive grant process to award funds to municipal corporations for the development, construction, or renovation of municipal park capital facilities. Competitive grant applications may only be submitted to the interagency committee for outdoor recreation by cities, towns, counties, or other municipal corporations that operate parks. The interagency committee for outdoor recreation must rank applications according to the following criteria: (i) Recent park funding levels for the municipal corporation; (ii) the current state and condition of the parks within the municipal corporation relative to jurisdictions of similar type and population size; (iii) the amount of geographic area set aside for parks relative to jurisdictions of similar type and population size; and (iv) other criteria the committee deems appropriate.
     (b) By December 3, 2008, and by the first business day of each year thereafter, the interagency committee for outdoor recreation shall provide a report to the appropriate committees of the legislature that recommends no more than thirty million dollars of grants to municipal corporations. The legislature shall, by appropriation, approve any or all of the eligible grants during the immediately following legislative session. After each legislative session, the director of the interagency committee for outdoor recreation shall notify the state finance committee of projects approved through legislative enactment.
     (3) The legislature shall, by appropriation, approve any amount to be distributed to counties with small populations under this subsection (3). After each legislative session, the office of financial management shall notify the state finance committee of amounts authorized under this subsection (3). Upon the sale of bonds for the purposes of this subsection (3), the state treasurer shall distribute the proceeds to counties ratably based on population. A county must promptly distribute any amounts received under this subsection (3) to any cities or towns within the county ratably based on population. Only counties with total populations of less than two hundred thousand are eligible to receive funding under this subsection (3). Any municipality that receives a distribution under this subsection (3) must use the money for the development, construction, or renovation of municipal park capital facilities. Population size must be determined in accordance with the most recent population estimates by the office of financial management for allocation of state revenue.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 9   The secretary of state shall submit this act to the people for their adoption and ratification, or rejection, at the next general election to be held in this state, in accordance with Article II, section 1 of the state Constitution and the laws adopted to facilitate its operation.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 10   Sections 1 through 5, 7, and 8 of this act constitute a new chapter in Title 79A RCW.