1702 AMH LIIA MOET 506

HB 1702 - H AMD 217

By Representative Liias

WITHDRAWN 03/04/2011

    On page 1, beginning on line 5, strike all of section 1 and insert the following:

"Sec. 1. RCW 82.02.050 and 1994 c 257 s 24 are each amended to read as follows:

    (1) It is the intent of the legislature:

    (a) To ensure that adequate facilities are available to serve new growth and development;

    (b) To promote orderly growth and development by establishing standards by which counties, cities, and towns may require, by ordinance, that new growth and development pay a proportionate share of the cost of new facilities needed to serve new growth and development; and

    (c) To ensure that impact fees are imposed through established procedures and criteria so that specific developments do not pay arbitrary fees or duplicative fees for the same impact.

    (2) Counties, cities, and towns that are required or choose to plan under RCW 36.70A.040 are authorized to impose impact fees on development activity as part of the financing for public facilities, provided that the financing for system improvements to serve new development must provide for a balance between impact fees and other sources of public funds and cannot rely solely on impact fees.

    (3)(a) Counties, cities, and towns collecting impact fees must adopt a permanent system for the collection of impact fees from residential applicants for building permits issued for a lot or unit created by a subdivision, short subdivision, site development permit, binding site plan, or condominium that includes one or more of the following:

    (i)(A) A process by which an applicant for any development permit that requires payment of an impact fee may record a covenant against title to the lot or unit subject to the impact fee obligation. A covenant under this subsection (3)(a)(i) must also serve as a lien.  The covenant must require payment equal to one hundred percent of the impact fee applicable to the lot or unit at the rates in effect at the time building permit was issued, less a credit for any deposits paid.

    (B) Covenants recorded in accordance with this subsection (3)(a)(i) must provide for payment of the impact fee through escrow at the earlier of the following: The time of closing of sale of the applicable lot or unit; or in accordance with the applicable county, city, or town ordinance, eighteen or more months after the building permit is issued.  Impact fees that are not paid in accordance with the timeline requirements of this subsection (3)(a)(i) are subject to a late charge of five percent and interest at the rate of twelve percent per annum commencing on the date on which payment was due and until paid in full.  Payment of impact fees due at closing of a sale must, unless an agreement to the contrary is reached between buyer and seller, be made from the seller's proceeds.  In the absence of an agreement to the contrary, the seller bears strict liability for the payment of the impact fees.

    (C) Either a seller or a seller's agent, or both, of property subject to a deferral covenant authorized under this subsection (3)(a)(i) must provide written disclosure of the covenant to a purchaser or prospective purchaser as provided in chapter 64.06 RCW.  Disclosure of the covenant must include the amount of impact fees payable and the entities to which fees are to be paid at closing; or

    (ii) A process by which an applicant may apply for a deferral of the impact fee payment until final inspection or certificate of occupancy, or equivalent certification.

    (b) Counties, cities, and towns may adopt local systems for the collection of impact fees that differ from the requirements of this subsection (3) if the payment timing provisions are consistent with those of this subsection.

(4) The impact fees:

    (a) Shall only be imposed for system improvements that are reasonably related to the new development;

    (b) Shall not exceed a proportionate share of the costs of system improvements that are reasonably related to the new development; and

    (c) Shall be used for system improvements that will reasonably benefit the new development.

    (((4))) (5)(a) Impact fees may be collected and spent only for the public facilities defined in RCW 82.02.090 which are addressed by a capital facilities plan element of a comprehensive land use plan adopted pursuant to the provisions of RCW 36.70A.070 or the provisions for comprehensive plan adoption contained in chapter 36.70, 35.63, or 35A.63 RCW.  After the date a county, city, or town is required to adopt its development regulations under chapter 36.70A RCW, continued authorization to collect and expend impact fees shall be contingent on the county, city, or town adopting or revising a comprehensive plan in compliance with RCW 36.70A.070, and on the capital facilities plan identifying:

    (((a))) (i) Deficiencies in public facilities serving existing development and the means by which existing deficiencies will be eliminated within a reasonable period of time;

    (((b))) (ii) Additional demands placed on existing public facilities by new development; and

    (((c))) (iii) Additional public facility improvements required to serve new development.

(b) If the capital facilities plan of the county, city, or town is complete other than for the inclusion of those elements which are the responsibility of a special district, the county, city, or town may impose impact fees to address those public facility needs for which the county, city, or town is responsible."

EFFECT: Modifies proposed impact fee deferral requirements applying to jurisdictions that impose impact fees by: (1) limiting the deferral requirements to residential applicants for building permits; (2) extending the deferral provisions to binding site plans; (3) allowing the applicable county, city, or town to extend the deferral beyond 18 months; (4) specifying late charges and interest penalties for impact fees that are not timely paid; (5) deleting a provision pertaining to dwellings built on land that is owned or otherwise controlled by a party who contracts for the construction of a dwelling; and (6) allowing counties, cities, and towns to adopt local impact fee deferral systems that differ from prescribed requirements if the payment timing provisions are consistent with specified requirements.   

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