Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

CERTIFICATION OF ENROLLMENT
                                HOUSE BILL 1987
                            Chapter 58, Laws of 2024
                                68th Legislature
                              2024 Regular Session
RURAL PUBLIC FACILITIES SALES AND USE TAX—USE FOR WORKFORCE HOUSING
                       EFFECTIVE DATE: June 6, 2024
 Passed by the House February 12, 2024                CERTIFICATE
   Yeas 97 Nays 0
                                         I, Bernard Dean, Chief Clerk of the
                                         House of Representatives of the
             LAURIE JINKINS              State of Washington, do hereby
 Speaker of the House of                 certify that the attached is HOUSE
 Representatives                         BILL 1987 as passed by the House of
                                         Representatives and the Senate on
                                         the dates hereon set forth.
 Passed by the Senate February 27,
                                              BERNARD DEAN
   Yeas 48 Nays 1                                                   Chief Clerk
               DENNY HECK
 President of the Senate
 Approved March 13, 2024 1:58 PM                         FILED
                                                     March 14, 2024
                                                  Secretary of State
               JAY INSLEE                         State of Washington
 Governor of the State of Washington
                                HOUSE BILL 1987
                   Passed Legislature - 2024 Regular Session
     State of Washington       68th Legislature       2024 Regular Session
     By Representatives Low, Ramel, Ryu, Eslick, Timmons, Paul, Ramos,
     Reed, Chapman, Ormsby, Graham, Doglio, Sandlin, Lekanoff, Tharinger,
     and Santos
     Prefiled 12/19/23. Read first time 01/08/24.    Referred to Committee
     on Local Government.
      AN ACT Relating to the use of moneys from the rural public
  facilities sales and use tax for affordable workforce housing
  infrastructure and facilities; and amending RCW 82.14.370.
  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
     Sec. 1.   RCW 82.14.370 and 2023 c 411 s 1 are each amended to
 read as follows:
     (1) The legislative authority of a rural county may impose a
 sales and use tax in accordance with the terms of this chapter. The
 tax is in addition to other taxes authorized by law and must be
 collected from those persons who are taxable by the state under
 chapters 82.08 and 82.12 RCW upon the occurrence of any taxable event
 within the county. The rate of tax may not exceed 0.09 percent of the
 selling price in the case of a sales tax or value of the article used
 in the case of a use tax, except that for rural counties with
 population densities between 60 and 100 persons per square mile, the
 rate shall not exceed 0.04 percent before January 1, 2000.
     (2) The tax imposed under subsection (1) of this section must be
 deducted from the amount of tax otherwise required to be collected or
 paid over to the department of revenue under chapter 82.08 or 82.12
 RCW. The department of revenue must perform the collection of such
 taxes on behalf of the county at no cost to the county.
                                     p. 1                       HB 1987.SL
     (3)(a) Moneys collected under this section may only be used to
 ((finance)):
     (i) Finance public facilities serving economic development
 purposes in rural counties ((and finance));
     (ii) Finance the construction of affordable workforce housing
 infrastructure or facilities; and
     (iii) Finance personnel in economic development offices.
     (b) The public facility must be listed as an item in the
 officially adopted county overall economic development plan, or the
 economic development section of the county's comprehensive plan, or
 the comprehensive plan of a city or town located within the county
 for those counties planning under RCW 36.70A.040, or provide
 affordable workforce housing infrastructure or facilities. For those
 counties that do not have an adopted overall economic development
 plan and do not plan under the growth management act, the public
 facility must be listed in the county's capital facilities plan or
 the capital facilities plan of a city or town located within the
 county, or provide affordable workforce housing infrastructure or
 facilities.
     (((b))) (c) In implementing this section, the county must consult
 with cities, towns, and port districts located within the county and
 the associate development organization serving the county to ensure
 that the expenditure of money collected under this section meets the
 goals of creating, attracting, expanding, and retaining businesses,
 providing family-wage jobs, and providing affordable workforce
 housing infrastructure or facilities and the use of money collected
 under this section meets the requirements of (a) and (b) of this
 subsection. Each county collecting money under this section must
 provide a report to the office of the state auditor within 150 days
 after the close of each fiscal year identifying in detail each new
 and continuing public facility project, economic development purpose
 project, affordable workforce housing infrastructure or facilities
 project, economic development staff position, and qualifying provider
 project funded with the tax authorized under this section and the
 amount of tax proceeds allocated to such project or position in the
 prior fiscal year. Any projects financed prior to June 10, 2004, from
 the proceeds of obligations to which the tax imposed under subsection
 (1) of this section has been pledged may not be deemed to be new
 projects under this subsection. No new projects funded with money
 collected under this section may be for justice system facilities.
                                     p. 2                       HB 1987.SL
     (((c))) (4) The definitions in this section apply throughout this
 section.
     (((i))) (a) "Public facilities" means bridges, roads, domestic
 and industrial water facilities, sanitary sewer facilities, earth
 stabilization,   storm   sewer   facilities,   railroads,   electrical
 facilities, natural gas facilities, research, testing, training, and
 incubation facilities in innovation partnership zones designated
 under RCW 43.330.270, buildings, structures, telecommunications
 infrastructure,   transportation    infrastructure,    or   commercial
 infrastructure, or port facilities in the state of Washington((, or
 affordable workforce housing infrastructure or facilities)).
     (((ii))) (b) "Economic development purposes" means those purposes
 which facilitate the creation or retention of businesses and jobs in
 a county, including affordable workforce housing infrastructure or
 facilities.
     (((iii))) (c) "Economic development office" means an office of a
 county, port districts, or an associate development organization as
 defined in RCW 43.330.010, which promotes economic development
 purposes within the county.
     (((iv))) (d) "Affordable workforce housing infrastructure or
 facilities" means housing infrastructure ((or)), facilities, or land
 that a qualifying provider owns or uses for housing for ((a)) single
 persons, ((family)) families, or unrelated persons living together
 whose income is no more than 120 percent of the median income,
 adjusted for housing size, for the county where the housing is
 located.
     (((v))) (e) "Qualifying provider" means a nonprofit entity as
 defined in RCW 84.36.560, a nonprofit entity or qualified cooperative
 association as defined in RCW 84.36.049, a housing authority created
 under RCW 35.82.030 or 35.82.300, a public corporation established
 under RCW 35.21.660 or 35.21.730, or a county or municipal
 corporation.
     (((4))) (5) No tax may be collected under this section before
 July 1, 1998.
     (a) Except as provided in (b) of this subsection, no tax may be
 collected under this section by a county more than 25 years after the
 date that a tax is first imposed under this section.
     (b) For counties imposing the tax before August 1, 2009, and
 meeting the definition of a rural county as of August 1, 2009, the
 tax expires December 31, 2054.
                                     p. 3                       HB 1987.SL
     (((5))) (6) By December 31, 2024, the state auditor must provide
 a publicly accessible report on its website containing the project
 information and other expenditure information included in the annual
 report required under subsection (3)(((b))) (c) of this section for
 each county. The publicly accessible report must also include the
 total amount of revenue collected by the county under this section in
 the prior fiscal year. The state auditor must develop a standardized
 expenditure report for the project information and other expenditure
 information included in the annual report submitted by counties. This
 subsection applies to reports filed beginning in 2024 based on 2023
 expenditures and thereafter.
     (((6))) (7) For purposes of this section, "rural county" means a
 county with a population density of less than 100 persons per square
 mile or a county smaller than 225 square miles as determined by the
 office of financial management pursuant to RCW 43.62.035.
         Passed by the House February 12, 2024.
         Passed by the Senate February 27, 2024.
         Approved by the Governor March 13, 2024.
         Filed in Office of Secretary of State March 14, 2024.
                                  --- END ---
                                     p. 4                        HB 1987.SL
Statutes affected: 
Original Bill: 82.14.370
Bill as Passed Legislature: 82.14.370
Session Law: 82.14.370