Scorecard for the 2007 Legislature (I)

Submitted by Paul Ellis

RAMP is watching a number of bills currently in play in Olympia, and will continue to pursue the consensus Legislative agenda with state lawmakers duirng the 2007 Session.

The following bills should be of interest to RAMP participants and will be tracked by the group until their ultimate disposition:

• HB1094 and SB5136 are versions from each chamber proposing transportation appropriations for the biennium (2007-2009);


• HB1396 and SB5282 both provide for a single ballot proposition for the Regional Transportation Investment District (RTID) and Sound Transit at the 2007 general election;


• HB1858 and SB5767 both permit transportation benefit districts that fully encompass a city or county to impose impact fees for up to $20.00 in vehicle fees without voter approval;


• SB5207 is the substitute bill amending the controversial container tax proposal and, instead, authorizing a study to evaluate the imposition of such a fee in the context of other funding mechanisms to improve freight corridors;


• HB2101 and SB5803 propose two versions for implementing recommendations from the Regional Transportation Commission;


• SJR8211 extends state bonding from thirty to forty years for transportation projects;


• HB1773 helps implement recommendations of the Washington State Transportation Commission's Tolling Study;


• HB2146 and SB5681 will help residents of the Gig Harbor Peninsula get a break on tolls for crossing the new Narrows Bridge.

Paul Ellis is lead staff for RAMP; an employee of the Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber, Ellis led the Pierce County Transportation Advisory Committee (PCTAC), the community's largest transportation planning effort.