Washington State

House of Representatives

Office of Program Research

BILL

ANALYSIS

Local Government Committee

SSB 5679

This analysis was prepared by non-partisan legislative staff for the use of legislative members in their deliberations. This analysis is not a part of the legislation nor does it constitute a statement of legislative intent.

Background:

Public Facilities. Under the Growth Management Act, public facilities include streets, roads, highways, sidewalks, traffic signals, street lighting, domestic water systems, storm and sewer systems, parks and recreational facilities, and schools. Some cities, such as Seattle, consider police and fire stations, jails, animal control shelters, post office distribution centers, and work-release centers to be public facilities.

Community Reporting Areas. The Seattle Office of Planning and Community Development measures and reports neighborhood demographics in a variety of ways, including by community reporting area (CRA). CRAs were established as a standard, citywide geography for the purpose of reporting U.S. census information. There are 53 CRAs within Seattle.

American Community Survey. The American Community Survey (ACS) is a nationwide survey from the U.S. Census Bureau replacing the decennial census long form survey. The ACS is conducted on a continual, monthly basis, which enables estimates from the ACS to be published annually. ACS data is combined and presented in three series including one-, three-, and five-year estimates. The ACS collects information on a wide range of topics, including demographic, social, economic, and housing information.

A city with a population of more than 550,000 that permits a public facility to be constructed or operated by another local government agency in which the project was completed by December 31, 2014, in a district with 12 percent or more of the population below the poverty level and where at least 40 percent of the population identifies as persons of color on the most recent five-year ACS estimate must formally request that the entity constructing or operating the facility assess and mitigate negative impacts that the facility has on parking in the surrounding area. The entity must consider the potential disparate racial, social, and economic impacts of the facility and develop a mitigation plan that keeps residents whole for any costs. Neighborhood boundaries are defined by the boundaries of community reporting areas. The entity operating or constructing the facility may negotiate with other political subdivisions with a direct interest in having created the negative impacts, but residents must be held harmless.

Summary of Bill:

A city with a population of more than 550,000 that permits a public facility to be constructed or operated by another local government agency in which the project was completed by December 31, 2014, in a district with 12 percent or more of the population below the poverty level and where at least 40 percent of the population identifies as persons of color on the most recent five-year ACS estimate must assume responsibility for the negative impacts that facility has had or might have on the surrounding neighborhood. Neighborhood boundaries are defined by the boundaries of community reporting areas. The city must consider disparate racial, social, and economic impacts on nearby residents, and develop a mitigation plan.

The mitigation plan is subject to the following requirements:

the city must fully reimburse residents for the costs of any permits, charges, or any other costs of the mitigation strategy, including costs of any residential parking zone necessitated by the facility causing the impact;
the city may not add, increase, or establish any other fees or costs to be incurred by the residents to mitigate the negative impacts that the facility has had or might have on the surrounding neighborhood; and
any established residential parking zone necessitated by the facility causing the impact must be maintained in its current form, including the issuance of new permits as provided under the existing program.

The city may seek reimbursement from the entity that is constructing or operating the facility for costs reimbursed to residents. The city is required to implement the requirements of the act within 90 days of the effective date of the act.