BE IT RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON, IN LEGISLATIVE SESSION ASSEMBLED:

THAT, At the next general election to be held in this state there shall be submitted to the qualified voters of the state for their approval and ratification, or rejection, an amendment to Article VII of the state Constitution, to be known as the Washington cost management act of 1987, by adding new sections to read as follows:

Article VII, section ..... (1) The economic and fiscal forecast council is hereby established. Membership on the council shall total thirteen persons and shall consist of:

(a) One member from each of the two largest party caucuses in the house of representatives and in the senate, appointed by the president of the senate and the speaker of the house of representatives;

(b) One member from each of the senate and house of representatives ways and means committees or successor committees, appointed by the president of the senate and the speaker of the house of representatives;

(d) The director of the department of revenue or successor agency; and

(e) Five members, appointed by the governor and confirmed by the senate, who have exhibited the experience and ability necessary to participate in fulfilling the duties mandated by this section.

(2) The governor shall appoint the chairman of the economic and fiscal forecast council. The chairman shall not be a member of the legislature or a government employee.

(3) The economic and fiscal forecast council shall:

(a) Cause to be published and made available to the legislature, the governor, and the public at least four times a year, an official state economic and fiscal forecast, which shall include for preceding, current, and succeeding biennia:

(i) Estimates of revenue and expenditures for the general fund‑-state and for all budget funds; and

(ii) Estimates of other fiscal and economic conditions and trends that the council deems necessary for a full understanding of the state's financial and economic condition; and

(b) Employ such professional and support staff as it and the legislature deem necessary to carry out its duties.

(4) The estimates and forecasts published by the council shall not be revised by the governor or the legislature.

Article VII, section ... (1) For any biennium, total general fund‑-state appropriations shall not exceed ninety-eight percent of the official estimate of general fund‑-state revenue, as published by the economic and fiscal forecast council on or before the first day of April immediately preceding the beginning of the first fiscal year of the biennium, and revised on or before the first day of April immediately preceding the beginning of the second fiscal year.

(2) For any biennium, the portion of actual revenue received in excess of ninety-eight percent of the amount officially estimated by the economic and fiscal forecast council shall be deposited in a reserve fund which the legislature shall establish for such purpose.

(3) For any biennium, the total amount contained in the reserve fund, including interest earned on deposits in the fund, shall not exceed five percent of the official general fund‑-state revenue forecast for that biennium. Any funds in excess of five percent shall first be used for the purpose of decreasing the unfunded liability of public employee retirement systems to which the state contributes. Upon legislative determination that liability is funded on an actuarially sound basis, any funds in excess of five percent shall be returned to the taxpayers through a reduction in the state general retail sales tax rate in the biennium following the biennium in which the excess occurs.

(4) Funds contained in the reserve fund shall not be appropriated except by law enacted by a sixty percent majority vote of each house of the legislature.

(5) No general fund‑-state tax rate, license, or fee shall be increased, or tax base expanded, except by law enacted by a sixty percent majority vote of each house of the legislature.

(6) The legislature shall not mandate the delivery of new or increased levels of service by any local government entity without providing funds to reimburse the local entity for the costs, if any, of such new or increased levels of service.

(7) The legislature shall not transfer responsibility for any program from the general fund‑-state to any other fund without providing for a commensurate reduction in total general fund‑-state appropriations, expressed as a percent of the official revenue estimate published by the economic and fiscal forecast council.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the secretary of state shall cause notice of the foregoing constitutional amendment to be published at least four times during the four weeks next preceding the election in every legal newspaper in the state.