SENATE BILL REPORT
SB 5295
As Passed Senate, February 15, 2023
Title: An act relating to eliminating accounts.
Brief Description: Eliminating accounts.
Sponsors: Senators Wilson, L., Rolfes and Gildon; by request of Office of Financial Management.
Brief History:
Committee Activity: Ways & Means: 1/19/23, 1/31/23 [DP].
Floor Activity: Passed Senate: 2/15/23, 47-0.
Brief Summary of Bill
  • Eliminates numerous accounts, and transfers remaining balances in those accounts to the state general fund or other related fund.
SENATE COMMITTEE ON WAYS & MEANS
Majority Report: Do pass.
Signed by Senators Rolfes, Chair; Robinson, Vice Chair, Operating & Revenue; Mullet, Vice Chair, Capital; Wilson, L., Ranking Member, Operating; Gildon, Assistant Ranking Member, Operating; Schoesler, Ranking Member, Capital; Rivers, Assistant Ranking Member, Capital; Warnick, Assistant Ranking Member, Capital; Billig, Boehnke, Braun, Conway, Dhingra, Hasegawa, Hunt, Keiser, Muzzall, Nguyen, Pedersen, Saldaña, Torres, Van De Wege, Wagoner and Wellman.
Staff: Shani Bauer (786-7468)
Background:

In addition to the state general fund, which may be expended for any lawful purpose, the state maintains several hundred accounts dedicated to particular statutory purposes. These accounts generally fall into one of three categories: 

  • accounts located in the State Treasury, which require appropriation by the Legislature;
  • accounts held in the custody of the State Treasurer, which may or may not require legislative appropriation; and
  • accounts located in state agencies and institutions of higher education, known as local accounts.

 

State law requires the state treasurer, in each odd-numbered year, to provide the Office of Financial Management a list of any accounts believed to be obsolete.
Summary of Bill:

The following accounts are eliminated:

  • Reinvesting in Youth Account;
  • Public Health Services Account;
  • State Higher Education Construction Account;
  • Higher Education Construction Account;
  • Higher Education Reimbursable Short Term Bond Account;
  • Fisheries Capital Projects Account;
  • Water Quality Capital Account; and
  • Stadium and Exhibition Center Construction Account.

 

Any residual balance in the Water Quality Capital Account will be transferred to the Salmon Recovery Account and any residual balance of the Higher Education Construction Account or State Higher Education Construction Account will be transferred to the Community and Technical College Capital Projects Account.  Any funds remaining in any other eliminated account will be transferred to the state general fund.

 

Conforming statutory changes are made to reflect the repeal or decodification of the various accounts.
Appropriation: None.
Fiscal Note: Not requested.
Creates Committee/Commission/Task Force that includes Legislative members: No.
Effective Date: The bill contains several effective dates. Please refer to the bill.
Staff Summary of Public Testimony:

PRO:  This is purely a technical bill.
Persons Testifying: PRO: K.D. Chapman-See, Office of Financial Management.
Persons Signed In To Testify But Not Testifying: No one.