CITY OF SEATTLE
ORDINANCE __________________
COUNCIL BILL __________________
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AN ORDINANCE related to the Seattle Transportation Benefit District (STBD); authorizing a $40 vehicle license fee pursuant to RCW 36.73.065 and 82.80.140; and ratifying and confirming certain prior acts.
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WHEREAS, The City of Seattle (“City”) has a responsibility for the improvement, maintenance, and protection of public ways within the corporate limits of Seattle pursuant to RCW 35A.11.020 and chapter 35A.47 RCW; and
WHEREAS, chapter 36.73 RCW provides for the establishment of a transportation benefit district (TBD) by a city or county, and authorizes TBDs to levy and impose various taxes and fees to generate revenues to support transportation improvements within the TBD; and
WHEREAS, in 2010 the City Council passed Ordinance 123397, which established the Seattle Transportation Benefit District (STBD), and although the STBD’s governing board was comprised of City Councilmembers, the STBD was a legally separate entity; and
WHEREAS, in 2010, the STBD’s governing board, by a majority vote, exercised its authority to impose a vehicle license fee of $20 pursuant to RCW 36.73.065 by adopting STBD Resolution 1; and
WHEREAS, in 2014, Seattle voters approved STBD Proposition 1, which imposed an additional $60 vehicle license fee pursuant to RCW 36.73.065 and resulted in a combined vehicle license fee of $80; and
WHEREAS, in 2016, the City Council passed Ordinance 125070, which absorbed the STBD, and vested the City Council with the STBD’s duties and authority, including the authority to collect a $20 vehicle license fee and the voter-approved $60 vehicle license fee; and
WHEREAS, the voter-approved $60 vehicle license fee was passed in 2014 (via STBD Proposition 1) and expires on December 31, 2020; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to RCW 36.73.065 and 82.80.140, if a transportation benefit district has imposed a $20 vehicle license fee for at least 24 months, the governing board may, by majority vote, impose a $40 vehicle license fee; and
WHEREAS, RCW 82.80.140 requires a six-month period between the approval of the vehicle license fee and the collection of revenue; and
WHEREAS, the increase in the vehicle license fee from $20 to $40 is anticipated to raise an additional $3.6 million in 2021, and an additional $7.2 million in subsequent years; and
WHEREAS, the City Council intends for the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) to develop a spending plan for the additional vehicle license fee revenue after a transparent, inclusive, and public stakeholder engagement process that includes input from the Move Seattle Levy Oversight Committee, the city’s transportation boards and commissions, transit equity organizations, and community organizations, particularly those organizations representing communities that are disproportionately reliant on transit, and labor unions whose members are impacted by transportation investments, including Ironworkers, Building Trades, and Laborers; and
WHEREAS, the City Council anticipates that SDOT will develop the spending plan proposal by April 1, 2021 or earlier, and that City Council will consider and approve the spending plan by May 1, 2021 or earlier; NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY OF SEATTLE AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. The City Council affirms that the Seattle Transportation Benefit District (STBD) has collected a $20 vehicle license fee (authorized by STBD Resolution 1) continuously since 2011 and that the City Council may authorize a $40 vehicle license fee pursuant to RCW 36.73.065 and 82.80.140.
Section 2. An annual vehicle license fee in the amount of $40 is established, consistent with RCW 36.73.065 and 82.80.140, to be collected by the Washington State Department of Licensing (DOL) on qualifying vehicles, as set forth in RCW 82.80.140 and chapters 36.74 and 46.16A RCW.
Section 3. The revenues generated by the vehicle license fee established in Section 2 of this ordinance may be used for any purpose allowed by law pursuant to Chapter 36.73 RCW.
Section 4. The City Council requests that the City Clerk notify the Washington State Department of Licensing (DOL) of the change in the vehicle license fee established in Section 2 of this ordinance and request that DOL take all steps necessary to implement collection of this fee no later than July 1, 2021, in accordance with RCW 82.80.140.
Section 5. Any action consistent with the authority of this ordinance taken prior to its effective date is ratified and confirmed.
Section 6. This ordinance shall take effect and be in force 30 days after its approval by the Mayor, but if not approved and returned by the Mayor within ten days after presentation, it shall take effect as provided by Seattle Municipal Code Section 1.04.020.
Passed by the City Council the ________ day of _________________________, 2020, and signed by me in open session in authentication of its passage this _____ day of _________________________, 2020.
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President ____________ of the City Council
Approved by me this ________ day of _________________________, 2020.
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Jenny A. Durkan, Mayor
Filed by me this ________ day of _________________________, 2020.
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Monica Martinez Simmons, City Clerk
(Seal)