BILL REQ. #:  H-4475.1 

Read first time 01/17/08.   Referred to Committee on Finance.

     AN ACT Relating to distributions of tax proceeds from thermal electric generating facilities; and amending RCW 54.28.010 and 54.28.055.

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

Sec. 1   RCW 54.28.010 and 1977 ex.s. c 366 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     As used in this chapter:
     (1) "Operating property" means all of the property utilized by a public utility district in the operation of a plant or system for the generation, transmission, or distribution of electric energy for sale;
     (2) "Taxing districts" means counties, cities, towns, school districts, and road districts;
     (3) "Distributes to consumers" means the sale of electric energy to ultimate consumers thereof, and does not include sales of electric energy for resale by the purchaser;
     (4) "Wholesale value" means all costs of a public utility district associated with the generation and transmission of energy from its own generation and transmission system to the point or points of inter-connection with a distribution system owned and used by a district to distribute such energy to consumers, or in the event a distribution system owned by a district is not used to distribute such energy, then the term means the gross revenues derived by a district from the sale of such energy to consumers;
     (5) "Thermal electric generating facility" means a steam-powered electrical energy producing facility utilizing nuclear or fossil fuels;
     (6) "Placed in operation" means delivery of energy into a transmission or distribution system for use or sale in such a manner as to establish a value accruing to the power plant operator, except operation incidental to testing or startup adjustments;
     (7) "Impacted area" for a thermal electric generating facility on a federal reservation means that area in the state lying within thirty-five statute miles of the most commonly used entrance of the federal reservation and which is south of the southern boundary of township fifteen north;
     (8) "Modified impacted area" for a thermal electric generating facility on a federal reservation means that area in the state lying within thirty-five statute miles of the most commonly used entrance of the federal reservation.

Sec. 2   RCW 54.28.055 and 1986 c 189 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) After computing the tax imposed by RCW 54.28.025(1), the department of revenue shall instruct the state treasurer to distribute the amount collected as follows:
     (a) Fifty percent to the state general fund for the support of schools; and
     (b) Twenty-two percent to the counties, twenty-three percent to the cities, three percent to the fire protection districts, and two percent to the library districts.
     (2) Each county, city, fire protection district, and library district shall receive a percentage of the amount for distribution to counties, cities, fire protection districts, and library districts, respectively, in the proportion that the population of such district residing within the impacted area bears to the total population of all such districts residing within the impacted area. Except that, for any tax amount collected in excess of the collections for fiscal year 2007, the department shall instruct the state treasurer to distribute to each county, city, fire protection district, and library district a percentage of the amount for distribution to counties, cities, fire protection districts, and library districts, respectively, in the proportion that the population of such district residing within the modified impacted area bears to the total population of all such districts residing within the modified impacted area. For the purposes of this chapter, the term "library district" includes only regional libraries as defined in RCW 27.12.010(4), rural county library districts as defined in RCW 27.12.010(5), intercounty rural library districts as defined in RCW 27.12.010(6), and island library districts as defined in RCW 27.12.010(7). The population of a library district, for purposes of such a distribution, shall not include any population within the library district and the impacted area or modified impacted area that also is located within a city or town.
     (3) If any distribution pursuant to subsection (1)(b) of this section cannot be made, then that share shall be prorated among the state and remaining local districts.
     (4) All distributions directed by this section to be made on the basis of population shall be calculated in accordance with data to be provided by the office of financial management.