S-2131.1
SENATE BILL 5907
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State of Washington | 65th Legislature | 2017 Regular Session |
By Senators Liias, Hobbs, Palumbo, Darneille, Wellman, Saldaña, Mullet, and Keiser
Read first time 03/22/17. Referred to Committee on Transportation.
AN ACT Relating to prioritizing transit agency integration for regional mobility grants in counties with a population of seven hundred thousand or more; amending RCW
47.66.030; creating a new section; and declaring an emergency.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The central Puget Sound is projected to grow considerably, in both population and jobs, over the course of the next several decades. In November 2016, the voters within the sound transit district approved a fifty-four billion dollar, taxpayer-funded light rail, heavy rail, and bus expansion in the Puget Sound region. However, it is also important that all of the central Puget Sound's transportation infrastructure be well planned and coordinated, including its transit systems. It is the intent of the legislature to reform the planning and coordination process for central Puget Sound transit systems, in order to improve the user experience, increase ridership, and make the most effective use of tax dollars.
Sec. 2. RCW 47.66.030 and 2015 3rd sp.s. c 11 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:
(1)(a) The department shall establish a regional mobility grant program. The purpose of the grant program is to aid local governments in funding projects such as intercounty connectivity service, park and ride lots, rush hour transit service, and capital projects that improve the connectivity and efficiency of our transportation system. The department shall identify cost-effective projects that reduce delay for people and goods and improve connectivity between counties and regional population centers. The department shall submit a prioritized list of all projects requesting funding to the legislature by December 1st of each year.
(b) Once the department has a prioritized list, pursuant to (a) of this subsection and RCW
47.66.040, of all projects requesting funding, the department shall reprioritize the projects in counties with a population of seven hundred thousand or more that border Puget Sound based on the same criteria used for the prioritized list as well as the additional criteria of coordination and integration. After this reprioritization, the department shall integrate these reprioritized projects with the prioritized projects from all other counties while ensuring that the prioritized projects from all other counties do not move to a lower relative position on this integrated list or, if a prioritized project from all other counties is in the funded portion of the prioritized list, out of the funded portion of this integrated list.
(c)(i) Beginning in 2020, transit agencies located in counties with a population of seven hundred thousand or more that border Puget Sound must be able to demonstrate reasonable progress, as determined by the department, in integrating service with the regional transit authority located in the same county in order to be eligible for grants from the regional mobility grant program.
(ii)(A) For purposes of this subsection (1)(c), "reasonable progress" must be defined by rule by the department after consultation with the affected transit agencies, taking into consideration the criteria of (c)(ii)(B) of this subsection, and using 2017 as the year from which reasonable progress will be measured.
(B) For purposes of (c)(ii)(A) of this subsection, the department shall consider the following criteria:
(I) Integration of marketing efforts;
(II) Alignment of fare structures;
(III) Integration of service planning;
(IV) Coordination of long-range planning, including capital projects planning and implementation;
(V) Integration of other administrative functions and internal business processes as appropriate; and
(VI) Integration of customer-focused tools and initiatives.
(2) The department may establish an advisory committee to carry out the mandates of this chapter.
(3) The department must report annually to the transportation committees of the legislature on the status of any grants projects funded by the program created under this section.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. 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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